The U.S. Air Force has ordered a service-wide inspection of all M18 pistols following the death of Airman Brayden Tyriq Lovan.
Lovan, 21, assigned to the 90th Security Forces Squadron under the 90th Security Forces Group, died on July 20 while on duty at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Wyoming after an M18 pistol discharged. He was officially identified by the Air Force four days later.
The incident remains under investigation.
The safety inspection of the service’s 125,000 M18 handguns comes as Air Force Global Strike Command, on July 22, ordered its personnel to stop using the Sig Sauer-made weapon amid an ongoing investigation into the death of Lovan.
“The Air Force directed the service-wide supplemental inspection of the M18 out of caution to validate the serviceability of weapons and reinforce confidence in their use,” an Air Force spokesperson told Air & Space Forces Magazine.
The M18, a compact 9mm variant of the Sig Sauer P320, is the Air Force’s standard issue handgun under the Modular Handgun System. It features an external safety lever but has been subject to lawsuits and complaints over unintentional discharges.
A 2024 FBI report cited a case where an M18 fired while holstered, concluding that such discharges may be possible under certain conditions.
In a July 29 statement, Sig Sauer defended the weapon’s design: “The P320 cannot under any circumstances discharge without the trigger first being moved to the rear.”
“This has been verified through exhaustive testing by Sig Sauer engineers, the U.S. Military, several major federal and state law enforcement agencies, and independent laboratories,” the company added.
The company said it has offered assistance to the Air Force in the investigation into Lovan’s death.
— SIG SAUER (@sigsauerinc) July 23, 2025
The Air Force awarded Sig Sauer a $22 million contract in 2020 to replace the Beretta M9 with the M18. The pistol is also used by the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps.
No other branches have announced similar inspections.
