In August 2009, the Rangers of C Company, 1st Ranger Battalion became the first U.S. soldiers to deploy as a unit with the FN-Herstal SOF Combat Assault Rifle, or SCAR. After months of training with the new weapon, which comes in 5.56mm and 7.62mm variants, the Rangers were ready to test the SCAR in combat. Whether or not the rifle became a permanent addition to the Ranger arsenal depended on how well it held up in the treacherous mountains of eastern Afghanistan, where the unit was deployed to disrupt some of the most well-equipped and active terrorist cells operating in the region.