精密國際AW

A few years later, the Swedish military were also on the hunt for a new rifle, and Accuracy International entered an upgraded version of the PM, now known as the AW or Arctic Warfare. This was the start of the Arctic Warfare name, which would become the primary name of the rifle family despite its earlier names.

The rifle now featured special de-icing features allowing it to be used effectively at temperatures as low as -40 °C (-40 °F). The stockhole, bolt, magazine release and trigger guard on the AW are large enough to facilitate use with heavy arctic mittens. This version was accepted into use by the Swedes in 1988 as the PSG-90.

It has since spawned an entire family using the Arctic Warfare name, and has been adopted by a number of other countries, including Australia, Belgium, Germany, Ireland, The Netherlands, and Singapore. Other AI rifles descended from the L96A1 include the AI AE, and the AI AS50 (see variants below).

The AW is almost unique in being a purpose-designed sniper rifle, rather than an accurized version of an existing, general-purpose rifle. Rather than a traditional wooden or polymer rifle stock, the AW has an aluminium bedding block bolted directly to the action, and which extends the entire length of the stock. Two hollow polymer "half stocks", usually green, are in turn bolted to the bedding block, creating a remarkably rugged, yet light, weapon.

The AW's distinctive green thumbhole/pistol-grip stock, unique design and reliability in adverse weather conditions have made it a popular, if expensive, weapon. The rifle is extremely accurate (about 0.5 MOA), and its maximum effective range with a Schmidt & Bender 6 x 42 scope is around 600 m. The AW is usually equipped with an integrated bipod and it also has a monopod in the butt.