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FAMAS 1985
The FAMAS ( French: ''Fusil d'Assaut de la Manufacture d'Armes de Saint-Étienne'', lit. 'Assault rifle from the Saint-Étienne Weapon Factory') is a bullpup assault rifle designed and manufactured in France by MAS in 1978. It is known by French troops as ''Le Clairon'' (The Bugle) due to its distinctive shape. The FAMAS is known for its high rate of fire of around 900–1,100 rounds per minute. Beginning in 2017, the FAMAS was replaced in most frontline units in the French Army by the HK416F, and the FAMAS is expected to remain in limited service until 2028. History The first French bullpup rifles were developed between 1946 and 1950 at the AME (''Atelier Mécanique de Mulhouse'') and MAS, testing rounds such as .30 US Carbine, 7.92×33mm Kurz, 7.65×38mm (Made by ''Cartoucherie de Valence'') and some other intermediate calibres. Since France was engaged in the First Indochina War at the time, and was also the second-largest contributor to NATO, the research budgets ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bullpup
A bullpup firearm is one with its firing grip located in front of the Chamber (firearms), breech of the weapon, instead of behind it. This creates a weapon with a shorter overall length for a given barrel length, and one that is often lighter, more compact, concealable, and more maneuverable than a conventionally configured firearm. Where it is desirable for troops to be issued a more compact weapon, the use of a bullpup configuration allows for barrel length to be retained, thus preserving muzzle velocity, range, and ballistic effectiveness. The bullpup concept was first tested militarily in 1901 with the British Thorneycroft carbine, but it was not until the Cold War that more successful designs and improvements led to wider adoption. In 1977, the Austrian Federal Army, Austrian Army became the first military force in the world to adopt a bullpup rifle, the Steyr AUG, as a service rifle, principal combat weapon. Since then the militaries in many countries have followed suit w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
French Army
The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, French Air and Space Force, and the National Gendarmerie. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Staff of the French Army (CEMAT), who is subordinate of the Chief of the Defence Staff (France), Chief of the Defence Staff (CEMA), who commands active service Army units and in turn is responsible to the President of France. CEMAT is also directly responsible to the Ministry of Armed Forces (France), Ministry of the Armed Forces for administration, preparation, and equipment. The French Army, following the French Revolution, has generally been composed of a mixed force of conscripts and professional volunteers. It is now considered a professional force, since the French Parliament suspended the Conscription in France, conscription of soldiers. Acc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manurhin
Manurhin is a trademark used by Chapuis Armes since 1998. It is used to designate the Manurhin MR 73 revolver family, manufactured at Saint-Bonnet-le-Château, France. The genesis of the term “Manurhin” is ''Manufacture de Machines du Haut-Rhin'' founded in 1919 by Julius Spengler (Frenchified by him to Jules Spengler). The trademark was originally held by an earlier designer and manufacturer of the revolver. It now manufactures only military munitions. History Manurhin, officially known as ''Manufacture de Machines du Haut-Rhin'', in Haut-Rhin, France started by manufacturing Walther PP, PPK, and PPK/S model pistols in 1952. The guns were imported into the US from 1953 by Tholson Co. and from 1956 by Interarms. In 1984, Manurhin imported their new models directly; they were marked Manurhin on the left front slide assembly. This differs from the previous Walther stamped guns. No Interarms logo appears on the right side. It is through its production of its revolvers (no ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
SIG SG 540
The SG 540 is a 5.56×45mm NATO assault rifle developed in the early 1970s by Schweizerische Industrie Gesellschaft (SIG, currently SAN Swiss Arms AG) of Neuhausen am Rheinfall, Neuhausen, Switzerland as a private venture primarily destined for export markets and as a potential replacement for the 7.5×55mm Swiss SIG SG 510, SG 510 automatic rifle known as the Stgw 57 in Swiss service. History Work on a new generation of lightweight rifle using the intermediate 5.56mm round began at SIG in the 1960s and resulted in the somewhat unsuccessful SIG SG 530, SG 530-1 design that employed a Gas-operated reloading, gas-assisted Blowback (arms)#Delayed blowback systems#Roller delayed, roller-delayed blowback operating mechanism which proved too complicated and expensive to manufacture. As a result, in 1969 SIG chose to dispense with the complex roller-delayed action opting instead for a design using the more robust and simple piston-operated rotating bolt locking mechanism (derived from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Kolwezi
The Battle of Kolwezi was an airborne operation by French and Belgian airborne forces that took place in May 1978 in Zaire during the Shaba II invasion of Zaire by the Front for the National Liberation of the Congo (FLNC). It aimed at rescuing European and Zairean hostages held by FLNC rebels after they conquered the city of Kolwezi. The operation succeeded with the liberation of the hostages and light military casualties. Context Situation of Kolwezi The city of Kolwezi is situated in the ore-rich region of Shaba (now Lualaba), in the South-East of Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo). In 1978, the city held 100,000 inhabitants in a 40 km2 urban area, with city quarters, separated by hills. It is a strategic spot, as it lies on important roads and railroad lines that link Lubumbashi to Dilolo. There is an airport from the center of the city. Hostage taking by rebels In March 1978, a meeting took place between Algerian and Angolan officials and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marcel Bigeard
Marcel Bigeard (; February 14, 1916 – June 18, 2010), personal radio call-sign "Bruno", was a French military officer and politician who fought in World War II, the First Indochina War and the Algerian War. He was one of the commanders in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu and is thought by many to have been a dominating influence on French "unconventional" warfare thinking from that time onwards. He was one of the most decorated officers in France, and is particularly noteworthy because of his rise from being a Ranks in the French Army, regular soldier in 1936 to ultimately concluding his career in 1976 as a Général de corps d'armée, Lieutenant General and serving in the government of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing. After leaving the military, Bigeard embarked on a political career serving as deputy of Meurthe-et-Moselle from 1978 to 1988 and became a prolific author. His final years were marked by a controversy surrounding allegations that he had overseen torture during the Algerian c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heckler & Koch HK33
The Heckler & Koch HK33 is a 5.56mm assault rifle developed in the 1960s by West German armament manufacturer Heckler & Koch GmbH (H&K), primarily for export. Building on the success of their G3 design, the company developed a family of small arms (all using the G3 operating principle and basic design concept) consisting of four types of firearms: the first type, chambered in 7.62×51mm NATO; the second, using the Soviet 7.62×39mm M43 round; the third, chambered in .223 Remington and 5.56×45mm NATO; and the fourth type, chambered for the 9×19mm Parabellum pistol cartridge. Commercially the HK33 was a successful design but it did not sell as well as the G3. The HK33 series of rifles were adopted by the Brazilian Air Force (''Força Aérea Brasileira'' or FAB), the armed forces of Thailand and Malaysia where they were produced under a licence agreement. The rifle was also licence-built in Turkey by MKEK, and exported from France branded as MAS but actually made in Germany. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Rifle
A battle rifle is a service rifle chambered to fire a fully powered cartridge. The term "battle rifle" is a retronym created largely out of a need to differentiate automatic rifles chambered for fully powered cartridges from automatic rifles chambered for intermediate cartridges, which were later categorized as assault rifles. Battle rifles were most prominent from the 1940s to the 1970s, when they were used as service rifles. While modern battle rifles largely resemble modern assault rifle designs, which replaced battle rifles in most roles, the term may also describe older military full-power semi-automatic rifles such as the M1 Garand, SVT-40, Gewehr 41, Gewehr 43, Type 4 rifle, Type 4, FN Model 1949, and MAS-49 rifle, MAS-49. History World War I Semi-automatic First examples of semi-automatic fully powered-cartridge rifles used in World War I are the Meunier rifle, Meunier A6, Fusil Automatique Modèle 1917 in 8×50mmR Lebel and the Winchester Model 1910 in .401 Wincheste ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heckler & Koch G3
The Heckler & Koch G3 () is a selective fire, select-fire battle rifle chambered in 7.62×51mm NATO developed in the 1950s by the German firearms manufacturer Heckler & Koch, in collaboration with the Spanish state-owned firearms manufacturer CETME. The G3 was the service rifle of the German ''Bundeswehr'' until it was replaced by the Heckler & Koch G36 in the 1990s, and was adopted into service with numerous other countries. The G3 has been exported to over 70 countries and manufactured under license in at least 15 countries. Over 7.8 million G3s have been produced. Its modular design was used for several other HK firearm models, including the Heckler & Koch HK21, HK21, Heckler & Koch MP5, MP5, Heckler & Koch HK33, HK33, Heckler & Koch PSG1, PSG1, and Heckler & Koch G41, G41. History The origin of the G3 can be traced back to the final years of World War II when Mauser engineers at the Light Weapon Development Group (''Abteilung 37'') at Oberndorf am Neckar designed the ''Mas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
M16 Rifle
The M16 (officially Rifle, Caliber 5.56 mm, M16) is a family of assault rifles adapted from the ArmaLite AR-15 rifle for the United States Armed Forces, United States military. The original M16 was a 5.56×45mm NATO, 5.56×45mm automatic rifle with a 20-round magazine. In 1964, the XM16E1 entered US military service as the M16 and in the following year was deployed for jungle warfare operations during the Vietnam War. In 1969, the M16A1 replaced the M14 rifle to become the US military's standard service rifle. The M16A1 incorporated numerous modifications including a bolt-assist ("forward-assist"), chrome-plated bore, protective reinforcement around the magazine release, and revised flash hider. In 1983, the United States Marine Corps, US Marine Corps adopted the M16A2 rifle, and the United States Army, US Army adopted it in 1986. The M16A2 fires the improved 5.56×45mm (M855/SS109) cartridge and has a newer adjustable rear sight, case deflector, heavy barrel, improved ha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
FA-MAS Type 62
The FA-MAS Type 62 is a 7.62×51mm NATO rifle developed by the French Army as a replacement for the MAS-49/56. It was the last in series of 40 different prototype rifles designed between 1952 and 1962. However, the introduction of the 5.56×45mm cartridge caused the French to rethink their approach and the project was eventually cancelled. The Type 62's bayonet was later adopted for use on the FAMAS rifle. Predecessors Type-55 The MAS-55 has its gas piston underneath its barrel and operated in a similar way to the FM1924/29 light machine gun but resulted in a heavy rifle for its type. Type-56 The Type-56 was a simpler alternative to the Type-55 and was closer to the FN FAL. Type-59 The Type-59 came with an improved stock and foregrip. It also came with a folding stock, bipod and infra-red sight as the AP61. See also *List of battle rifles Battle rifles are full-length, semi-automatic or select fire rifles that are chambered for a full-power rifle cartridge, and have b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member states—30 European and 2 North American. Established in the aftermath of World War II, the organization implements the North Atlantic Treaty, signed in Washington, D.C., on 4 April 1949. NATO is a collective security system: its independent member states agree to defend each other against attacks by third parties. During the Cold War, NATO operated as a check on the threat posed by the Soviet Union. The alliance remained in place after the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact, and has been involved in military operations in the Balkans, the Middle East, South Asia, and Africa. The organization's motto is . The organization's strategic concepts include Deterrence theory, deterrence. NATO headquarters, NATO's main headquarter ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
