In May 1980, the company was invited to bid on a contract to supply the Austrian military with a new duty pistol to replace the World War II-era Walther P38 service pistol. Samples were submitted for assessment trials and, after passing all of the exhaustive endurance and abuse tests, Glock emerged as the winner with the Glock 17 model. The handgun was adopted into service with the Austrian military and police forces in 1982 as the P80 (Pistole 80).[1] Shortly thereafter, the weapon was accepted into service with the Dutch, Norwegian and Swedish armed forces. The Glock 17 gave rise to a range of modified versions with alternative caliber chamberings, external dimensions and weights, all retaining the basic design elements. By 1992, some 350,000 pistols had been sold in more than 45 countries, including 250,000 in the United States.