The FN FAL ( French : Fusil Automatique Léger , English: Light Automatic Rifle) is a battle rifle designed in Belgium by Dieudonné Saive and manufactured by FN Herstal and others since 1953.
172-706: During the Cold War the FAL was adopted by many countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), with the notable exception of the United States. It is one of the most widely used rifles in history, having been used by more than 90 countries. It received the title "the right arm of the free world" from its adoption by many self-proclaimed free world countries. It is chambered in 7.62×51mm NATO , although originally designed for
344-488: A grenade launcher or combination rifle/grenade launcher. The criticism of this doctrine is that if the grenadiers in a group are disabled or separated from the group, then the group has completely lost the grenade launcher as a heavy fire support. With the addition of rifle grenades, each soldier would be equipped with a small number of rifle grenades, so every individual soldier could have some form of heavy firepower. However, all of these rifle grenades add additional weight to
516-804: A German rebuilding effort set forth by western European countries in 1948, the US, Britain and France spearheaded the establishment of the Federal Republic of Germany from the three Western zones of occupation in April 1949. The Soviet Union proclaimed its zone of occupation in Germany the German Democratic Republic that October. Media in the Eastern Bloc was an organ of the state , completely reliant on and subservient to
688-598: A blank cartridge inserted into the chamber of the rifle. And, the newer "bullet trap" and "shoot through" types, as their names imply use live ammunition. The M31 HEAT rifle grenade is a fin-stabilized anti-tank rifle grenade designed in the late 1950s to replace the Belgian ENERGA rifle grenade which was adopted by the US Army and US Marines as an emergency stop-gap measure during the Korean War. Compared to
860-582: A copy of the Energa rifle grenade , that would be surpassed by more recent designs still in production. Of particular note is the BT/AT 52 , an IMI version of the BT rifle grenade derived from the earlier MA/AT 52 model. It can be fired both from 5.56mm and 7.62mm weapons, which share the same-diameter muzzle device, with a maximum range of 300 m (328yd) from 7.62mm guns. The BT/AT 52 is often seen in photographs with
1032-590: A copy of the FAL called the FAL DSA SA58 FAL that is made with the same Steyr-Daimler-Puch production line equipment as the StG-58. It comes with a 406 mm (16 in), 457 mm (18 in) or 533 mm (21 in) barrel, an aluminum-alloy lower receiver, and improved Glass-filled Nylon furniture. Civilian clients are limited only to semi-automatic configuration, but military and law enforcement clients can procure select-fire configuration that
1204-685: A cup-type grenade launcher (the Type 100), discharged by a lightweight mortar-like projector (the Type 89 grenade discharger , or knee mortar ). or fitted with tail-fin assembly and fired from a spigot-type rifle grenade launcher. The spigot-type grenade launchers were used by Japanese Special Naval Landing Forces to launch an anti-tank (hollow-charge) finned grenade. They were also used to propel Type 91 hand grenades fitted with tail-fin assemblies. These grenades had wood-bulleted launching cartridges stored in their tail-fin assemblies. The cartridges are fired from
1376-425: A cup-type launcher attached to the muzzle of the gun to launch various less lethal grenade types. A golf ball launcher is a cup-type launcher which is used for sport or recreational purposes. These launchers will shoot a standard golf ball over 250 yards (230 m) with little to no recoil. These launchers are designed to replace an AR-15 type rifle's flash hider. There's also a soda/beer can launcher. Unlike
1548-646: A general term, in his essay "You and the Atomic Bomb", published 19 October 1945 in the British newspaper Tribune . Contemplating a world living in the shadow of the threat of nuclear warfare , Orwell looked at James Burnham 's predictions of a polarized world, writing: Looking at the world as a whole, the drift for many decades has been not towards anarchy but towards the reimposition of slavery... James Burnham's theory has been much discussed, but few people have yet considered its ideological implications—that is,
1720-522: A major propaganda effort began in 1949 was Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty , dedicated to bringing about the peaceful demise of the communist system in the Eastern Bloc. Radio Free Europe attempted to achieve these goals by serving as a surrogate home radio station, an alternative to the controlled and party-dominated domestic press in the Soviet Bloc. Radio Free Europe was a product of some of
1892-427: A metallic rod attached to the base. They were developed before World War I. To use: If the soldier does not immediately launch the grenade, it will time out and explode. It was later found that the repeated launching of rod grenades caused damage to a rifle's barrel and the rod-type rifle grenade fell from favor. The cup-type launcher replaced the rod-type rifle grenade during World War I. This soup-can shaped launcher
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#17328017395612064-412: A modified lower receiver for the stock. For field stripping, the FAL can be opened. During opening the rifle rotates around a two-piece pivot lock and pin assembly located between the trigger guard and magazine well to give access to the action and piston system. This opening method causes a suboptimal iron sight line as the rear sight element is mounted on the lower receiver and the front sight element of
2236-642: A neutral Germany to prevent West Germany's incorporation into NATO, but his attempts were cut short after he was executed several months later during a Soviet power struggle. The events led to the establishment of the Bundeswehr , the West German military, in 1955. In 1949, CCP Chairman Mao Zedong 's People's Liberation Army defeated Chiang Kai-shek 's United States-backed Kuomintang (KMT) Nationalist Government in China. The KMT-controlled territory
2408-675: A new war". On 6 September 1946, James F. Byrnes delivered a speech in Germany repudiating the Morgenthau Plan (a proposal to partition and de-industrialize post-war Germany) and warning the Soviets that the US intended to maintain a military presence in Europe indefinitely. As Byrnes stated a month later, "The nub of our program was to win the German people ... it was a battle between us and Russia over minds ..." In December,
2580-647: A plan envisioning an economically self-sufficient Germany, including a detailed accounting of the industrial plants, goods and infrastructure already taken by the Soviets. In June 1947, in accordance with the Truman Doctrine , the United States enacted the Marshall Plan , a pledge of economic assistance for all European countries willing to participate, including the Soviet Union. Under the plan, which President Harry S. Truman signed on 3 April 1948,
2752-414: A range of 280 m (306 yd). For these differing tasks, several specialized grenades with accompanying special propelling cartridges were developed for the 1,450,113 produced Schiessbecher rifle grenade launchers. The rifle grenade-propelling cartridges fired a wooden projectile through the barrel to the rifle grenade that, upon impact, automatically primed the rifle grenade. The Schiessbecher could be mounted on
2924-405: A regulator in fore-end of the rifle, which allowed for excess gas which would simply increase recoil to bleed off. The regulator is an adjustable gas port opening that adjusts the rifle to function reliably with various propellant and projectile specific pressure behavior, making the FAL not ammunition specific. In fully automatic mode, however, the shooter receives considerable abuse from recoil, and
3096-509: A result, this design was not adopted by any other nation. Today, it can be seen as an early, if unsuccessful ancestor of modern under-barrel grenade launchers such as the M203 . The Japanese military continued to experiment with rifle and hand-thrown grenades between the wars and would adopt a family of fragmentation grenades with almost universal adaptability. Introduced in 1931, the Type 91 fragmentation grenade could be thrown by hand, fired from
3268-629: A secret 1950 document, the National Security Council proposed reinforcing pro-Western alliance systems and quadrupling spending on defense. Truman, under the influence of advisor Paul Nitze , saw containment as implying complete rollback of Soviet influence in all its forms. United States officials moved to expand this version of containment into Asia , Africa , and Latin America , in order to counter revolutionary nationalist movements, often led by communist parties financed by
3440-529: A section or squad light support weapon. Most heavy barrel FALs are equipped with bipods , although some light barrel models were equipped with bipods, such as the Austrian StG 58 and the German G1, and a bipod was later made available as an accessory. Among other 7.62×51mm NATO battle rifles at the time, the FAL had relatively light recoil, due to the user-adjustable gas system being able to be tuned via
3612-411: A small plate that ignited the primer. This then lit the fuse in the grenade, providing an eight-second delay before detonation. It could be fired from the shoulder, but due to the heavy recoil and poor balance of the rifle fitted with the grenade, it was more common to fire it with the butt of the rifle resting on the ground, and either held at an appropriate angle, or resting on a tripod. The rifle grenade
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#17328017395613784-480: A source of intelligence. During the late 1970s and 1980s, the KGB perfected its use of espionage to sway and distort diplomacy. Active measures were "clandestine operations designed to further Soviet foreign policy goals," consisting of disinformation, forgeries, leaks to foreign media, and the channeling of aid to militant groups. Retired KGB Major General Oleg Kalugin , former head of Foreign Counter Intelligence for
3956-555: A time. In 1979, the toppling of pro-US governments in Iran and Nicaragua and a Soviet invasion of Afghanistan again raised fears of war. In the 1980s, the US provided support for anti-communist forces in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and the leadership of the USSR changed with the rise of Mikhail Gorbachev , who expanded political freedoms in his country and the Eastern Bloc. This led to
4128-542: A unified and neutral Germany was undesirable, with Walter Bedell Smith telling General Eisenhower "in spite of our announced position, we really do not want nor intend to accept German unification on any terms that the Russians might agree to, even though they seem to meet most of our requirements." Shortly thereafter, Stalin instituted the Berlin Blockade (June 1948 – May 1949), one of the first major crises of
4300-476: Is approximately 100 yd (91 m). In 1940, Britain put the first anti-tank grenade into the field during World War II the No. 68 AT grenade , which was one of the first "of any" type anti-tank weapons with a shaped charge or high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) type warhead. The design of the warhead was simple and could penetrate 52 mm (2.0 in) of armor in 1940. The simple fins gave it some stability in
4472-511: Is attached to a rifle's muzzle. The cup-type launcher could launch a standard hand-grenade or a purpose built cup-type grenade. To use: The cup-type launcher has the advantage of using standard hand-grenades. However, the need to load a blank cartridge into the rifle's chamber in order to launch the grenade proved to be clumsy in combat. This difficulty lead to the development the French "Vivien and Bessières" shoot-through grenade (or VB grenade). As
4644-457: Is believed that there was a quid pro quo agreement between Churchill and U.S. President Harry Truman in 1952 that the British accept the .30 Light Rifle cartridge as NATO standard in return for the U.S. acceptance of the FN FAL as NATO standard. The .30 Light Rifle cartridge was later standardized as the 7.62 mm NATO. However, the U.S. insisted on continued rifle tests. The FAL chambered for
4816-693: Is capable of firing in full auto with cyclic rate of fire of around 650–750 rounds per minute. The SA58 FAL can use any metric-measurement FAL magazines, which come in 5, 10-, 20-, or 30-round capacities. Early versions of the DSA FAL included a 4140 billet upper receiver, machined from a 19-pound block of 4140 steel, and a lower receiver milled from a block of 7075 T6 aircraft grade aluminum. The barrels were provided by Badger and were double stress relieved, cryogenically treated, and had an 11 degree target crown. These barrels featured broach cut rifling, were lapped by hand, and made from 4140 carbon steel. Barrel twist
4988-507: Is propelled by a blank cartridge inserted into the chamber of the rifle. A 22 mm (0.87 in) grenade can range from powerful anti-tank rounds such as the M9 rifle grenade , to simple finned tubes with a fragmentation hand grenade attached to the end such as the M1 grenade adapter . The "22 mm (0.87 in)" refers to the diameter of the base tube which fits over the spigot of the launcher, not
5160-450: Is screwed onto an AK-47's muzzle. The maximum effective range is approximately 150 m (490 ft). The M16 has a similar device used to launch tear-gas hand-grenades. On 10 April 2021, during 2021 Myanmar protests , security forces killed at least 82 protesters in Bago town with rifle grenades. 1,180 g (42 oz) The rod-type rifle grenade is a standard hand grenade with
5332-457: Is the fact that the G1 was the first FAL variant with the 3 mm lower sights specifically requested by Germany, previous versions having the taller Commonwealth-type sights also seen on Israeli models. The German FAL had access to high quality Hensoldt Optische Werk F-series scopes with Zeiss-equivalent optics; having 4x magnification, with a 24 mm (0.94 in) objective lens. The majority of
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5504-513: The Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic ". A week later, on 13 March, Stalin responded vigorously to the speech, saying Churchill could be compared to Adolf Hitler insofar as he advocated the racial superiority of English-speaking nations so that they could satisfy their hunger for world domination, and that such a declaration was "a call for war on the USSR." The Soviet leader also dismissed
5676-631: The Battle of Port Arthur in the Russo-Japanese War , and the idea was further used by the Spanish, though the French were the first to put it to widespread use during the trench warfare of World War I . In 1908, Frederick Marten Hale patented the rod grenade. "A simple rod was attached to a specialized grenade, inserted into the barrel of a standard service rifle and launched using a blank cartridge." The British did not immediately adopt
5848-859: The Berlin Wall to prevent the citizens of East Berlin from fleeing to West Berlin , at the time part of United States-allied West Germany . Major crises of this phase included the Berlin Blockade of 1948–1949, the Chinese Communist Revolution of 1945–1949, the Korean War of 1950–1953, the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 and the Suez Crisis of that same year, the Berlin Crisis of 1961 ,
6020-625: The British Army urged FN to build additional prototypes, including one in bullpup configuration, chambered for their new .280 British (7×43mm) caliber intermediate cartridge. After evaluating the single bullpup prototype, FN decided to return instead to their original, conventional design for future production. In 1950, the United Kingdom presented the redesigned FN rifle and the British EM-2 , both in .280 British calibre, to
6192-758: The Cuban Missile Crisis began after deployments of U.S. missiles in Europe and Soviet missiles in Cuba; it is widely considered the closest the Cold War came to escalating into full-scale nuclear war . Another major proxy conflict was the Vietnam War of 1955 to 1975; the Soviets solidified their domination of Eastern Europe with operations such as the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. Both powers used economic aid in an attempt to win
6364-719: The Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, and the Vietnam War of 1964–1975. Both superpowers competed for influence in Latin America and the Middle East , and the decolonising states of Africa , Asia , and Oceania . Following the Cuban Missile Crisis, this phase of the Cold War saw the Sino-Soviet split . Between China and the Soviet Union's complicated relations within the Communist sphere, leading to
6536-847: The Eastern Bloc . Cominform faced an embarrassing setback the following June, when the Tito–Stalin split obliged its members to expel Yugoslavia, which remained communist but adopted a non-aligned position and began accepting financial aid from the US. Besides Berlin, the status of the city of Trieste was at issue. Until the break between Tito and Stalin, the Western powers and the Eastern bloc faced each other uncompromisingly. In addition to capitalism and communism, Italians and Slovenes, monarchists and republicans as well as war winners and losers often faced each other irreconcilably. The neutral buffer state Free Territory of Trieste , founded in 1947 with
6708-554: The Japanese Type 06 advance grenades. These grenades were designed to be used by ordinary riflemen as opposed to specially trained grenadiers . For example, the MECAR rifle grenades are equipped with simple ballistic sights and have an effective range of 300 m (980 ft). Modern combined arms doctrine dictates that every infantry unit should have a certain percentage of dedicated grenadiers , or soldiers equipped with
6880-511: The KGB and involved in its intelligence operations, adhered to Moscow's line, although dissent began to appear after 1956. Other critiques of the consensus policy came from anti-Vietnam War activists , the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament , and the anti-nuclear movement . In early 1947, France, Britain and the United States unsuccessfully attempted to reach an agreement with the Soviet Union for
7052-518: The Kingdom of Greece in its civil war against Communist-led insurgents. In the same month, Stalin conducted the rigged 1947 Polish legislative election which constituted an open breach of the Yalta Agreement . The US government responded to this announcement by adopting a policy of containment , with the goal of stopping the spread of communism . Truman delivered a speech calling for
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7224-569: The Sino-Soviet border conflict , while France, a Western Bloc state, began to demand greater autonomy of action. The Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia occurred to suppress the Prague Spring of 1968, while the United States experienced internal turmoil from the civil rights movement and opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War . In the 1960s–1970s, an international peace movement took root among citizens around
7396-746: The Soviet boycott of the Allied Control Council and its incapacitation, an event marking the beginning of the full-blown Cold War and the end of its prelude, as well as ending any hopes at the time for a single German government and leading to formation in 1949 of the Federal Republic of Germany and German Democratic Republic . The twin policies of the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan led to billions in economic and military aid for Western Europe, Greece, and Turkey. With
7568-608: The Space Race . The US and USSR were both part of the Allies of World War II , the military coalition which had defeated Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan in 1945. After the war, the USSR installed satellite governments in the territories of Eastern and Central Europe it had occupied, and promoted the spread of communism to North Korea in 1948 and created an alliance with the People's Republic of China in 1949. The US declared
7740-568: The Truman Doctrine of " containment " in 1947, launched the Marshall Plan in 1948 to assist Western Europe's economic recovery, and founded the NATO military alliance in 1949 (which was matched by the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact in 1955). Germany's split occupation zones solidified into East and West Germany in 1949. The first major proxy war of the period was the Korean War from 1950 to 1953, which ended in stalemate. In 1962,
7912-609: The Turkish Straits crisis and Black Sea border disputes were also a major factor in increasing tensions. In September, the Soviet side produced the Novikov telegram, sent by the Soviet ambassador to the US but commissioned and "co-authored" by Vyacheslav Molotov ; it portrayed the US as being in the grip of monopoly capitalists who were building up military capability "to prepare the conditions for winning world supremacy in
8084-415: The United Nations Security Council Resolution 82 and 83 backed the defense of South Korea, although the Soviets were then boycotting meetings in protest of the fact that Taiwan (Republic of China), not the People's Republic of China , held a permanent seat on the council. A UN force of sixteen countries faced North Korea, although 40 percent of troops were South Korean, and about 50 percent were from
8256-473: The barrel , and the locking mechanism is what is known as a tilting breechblock . To lock, it drops down into a solid shoulder of metal in the heavy receiver much like the bolts of the Soviet SKS carbine and French MAS-49 series of semi-automatic rifles. The gas system is fitted with a gas regulator behind the front sight base, allowing adjustment of the gas system in response to environmental conditions. The piston system can be bypassed completely, using
8428-455: The intermediate .280 British . A license-built version of the FAL was produced and adopted by the United Kingdom and throughout the Commonwealth as the L1A1 Self-Loading Rifle . In 1946, the first FAL prototype was completed. It was designed to fire the intermediate 7.92×33mm Kurz cartridge developed and used by the forces of Germany during World War II with the Sturmgewehr 44 assault rifle . After testing this prototype in 1948,
8600-401: The .30 Light Rifle went up against the redesigned T25 (now redesignated as the T47), and an M1 Garand variant, the T44. Eventually, the T44 won, becoming the M14 . However, in the meantime, most other NATO countries were evaluating and selecting the FAL. Formally introduced by its designer Dieudonné Saive in 1951, and produced two years later, the FAL has been described as the "Right Arm of
8772-658: The 1960s. However it was generally disliked and replaced by the F89 Minimi in the late 1980s. The L2A1 or 'heavy barrel' FAL was used by several Commonwealth nations and was found to frequently experience a failure to feed after firing two rounds from a full magazine when in automatic mode. The 50.41 is fitted with a synthetic buttstock, while the 50.42's buttstock is made from wood. Folding-stock, standard 533 mm (21.0 in) barrel length. Folding-stock, shorter 457 mm (18 inch) barrel, paratrooper version. Folding-stock, shorter 440 mm (17.35 inch) barrel, paratrooper version, folding charging handle. This shorter version
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#17328017395618944-419: The 50.61, which was heavier than 50.00. The Sturmgewehr 58 ( StG 58) is a selective fire battle rifle. The first 20,000 were manufactured by FN Herstal Belgium, but later the StG 58 was manufactured under licence by Steyr-Daimler-Puch (now Steyr Mannlicher ), and was formerly the standard rifle of the Österreichisches Bundesheer (Austrian Federal Army). It is essentially a user-customized version of
9116-413: The 7.62×51mm NATO cartridge, and a slightly modified version of the CETME went on to be manufactured in West Germany by Heckler & Koch (H&K) as the G3 rifle, beginning production in 1959. The G3 would become the second most popular battle rifle in the Free World, "used by some 50 nations and license-manufactured in a dozen". Without the G3, the FAL may have completely dominated the militaries of
9288-414: The Cold War was in its essence a war of ideas. The United States, acting through the CIA, funded a long list of projects to counter the communist appeal among intellectuals in Europe and the developing world. The CIA also covertly sponsored a domestic propaganda campaign called Crusade for Freedom . The rearmament of West Germany was achieved in the early 1950s. Its main promoter was Konrad Adenauer ,
9460-404: The Cold War, preventing Western food, materials and supplies from arriving in the West Germany's exclave of West Berlin . The United States (primarily), Britain, France, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and several other countries began the massive "Berlin airlift", supplying West Berlin with food and other provisions despite Soviet threats. The Soviets mounted a public relations campaign against
9632-408: The Communist governments militarily. The fall of the Iron Curtain after the Pan-European Picnic and the Revolutions of 1989 , which represented a peaceful revolutionary wave with the exception of the Romanian revolution and the Afghan Civil War (1989–1992) , overthrew almost all of the Marxist–Leninist regimes of the Eastern Bloc. The Communist Party of the Soviet Union itself lost control in
9804-547: The ENERGA, the M31 is slightly lighter in weight and has a smaller-diameter warhead—i.e. 75 mm (3.0 in) vs 66 mm (2.6 in). Penetration for the M31 is estimated to be 200 mm (7.9 in) for steel armor plating and twice that estimate for concrete. The bullet-trap rifle grenade became increasing popular in the post-war years, most notably the French AC58 anti-armor and APAV40 multi-purpose grenades. The 22 mm (0.87 in) rifle grenade launchers were further simplified, becoming an integral part of
9976-431: The FAL and is still in use, mainly as a drill weapon, or for ceremonial purposes in the Gardebataillon (Guard Battalion) of the Austrian forces. It was selected in a 1958 competition, beating the Spanish CETME and American Armalite AR-10 . Most StG 58s featured a folding bipod, and differ from the FAL by using a plastic stock rather than wood in order to reduce weight in the later production rifles (although some of
10148-432: The FAL and wished to produce it under license. The Belgians, however, refused. Being subject to two German occupations in the space of two generations ( 1914–1918 and 1940–1945 ), the Belgians insisted on the Germans purchasing only FN-made FALs. Under the German occupation during World War II, FN was taken over by the major German arms manufacturer Deutsche Waffen- und Munitionsfabriken (DWM), its directors arrested, and
10320-462: The FAL in 9 versions: The first German FALs were from an order placed in late 1955 or early 1956, for several thousand FN FAL so-called "Canada" models with wood furniture and the prong flash hider. These weapons were intended for the Bundesgrenzschutz (border guard) and not the newly formed Bundeswehr (army), which at the time used M1 Garands and M1/M2 carbines. In November 1956, however, West Germany ordered 100,000 additional FALs, designated
10492-456: The FAL. The Israeli FAL first saw action in relatively small quantities during the Suez Crisis of 1956, being the standard-issue rifle in the Six-Day War in June 1967, the War of Attrition of 1967–1970. During the Yom Kippur War of October 1973, the FAL was still in front-line service as the standard Israeli rifle, though increasing criticism eventually led to the phasing-out of the weapon. Israeli forces were primarily mechanized in nature;
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#173280173956110664-432: The Free World". The FAL battle rifle has its Warsaw Pact counterpart in the AKM , each being fielded by dozens of countries and produced in many of them. A few, such as Israel and South Africa, manufactured and issued both designs at various times. The FAL operates by means of a gas-operated action very similar to that of the Soviet SVT-40 . The gas system is driven by a short-stroke, spring-loaded piston housed above
10836-424: The French Fusil Automatique Lourd , it had a heavy barrel for sustained fire with a 30-round magazine as a squad automatic weapon ; Known in Canada as the C2A1, it was their primary squad automatic weapon until it was phased out during the 1980s in favor of the C9 , which has better accuracy and higher ammunition capacity than the C2. In the Australian Army, as the L2A1, it was their primary squad automatic weapon in
11008-402: The G1, for the army. FN made the rifles between April 1957 and May 1958. The G1 user modifications included light metal handguards and an integral folding bipod, similarly to the Austrian version. Neither Germany nor Austria adopted the heavy-barreled FAL, instead using the MG3 (the modernized MG42 in 7.62×51mm NATO) as its general purpose machine gun (GPMG). The Germans were satisfied with
11180-419: The German G1 rifles were sold as surplus to the Turkish Army in the mid-1960's, and some G1s found their way to Rhodesia and Portugal . After the 1948 Arab–Israeli War , the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) had to overcome several logistics problems which were a result of the wide variety of old firearms that were in service, such as the German Mauser Kar 98k and some British Lee–Enfield rifles. In 1955
11352-413: The Germans tried to destroy the FN factory with V1 flying bombs , achieving two direct hits. The memories of the Nazi occupation were still far too fresh in 1956. Based on political and economical considerations, but also national pride, the Germans aimed at a weapon they could produce domestically and turned their sights to the Spanish CETME Modelo 58 rifle. Working with the Germans, the Spanish adopted
11524-436: The IA2, MD-2 and MD-3 assault rifles, Brazil produces the M964A1/Pelopes (Special Operations Platoon), with a 16.5" barrel, 3-point sling and a Picatinny rail with a tactical flashlight and sight. Brazilian Army officially used the FAP ( Fuzil Automático Pesado , or heavy automatic rifle) as its squad automatic weapon until 2013/2014, when the FN Minimi was adopted to replace it. The Marine Corps and Air Force also adopted
11696-439: The IDF adopted the IMI -produced Uzi submachine gun and the FN FAL in order to standardize their infantry armament; with the FAL being designated Rov've Mitta'enn or Romat (רומ"ט), abbreviation of "Self-Loading Rifle". The FAL version ordered by the IDF came in two basic variants, both regular and heavy-barrel (squad automatic rifle/ light machine gun), and were chambered in 7.62mm NATO. The Israeli heavy barrel FAL (or FALO)
11868-400: The KGB (1973–1979), described active measures as "the heart and soul of Soviet intelligence ." During the Sino-Soviet split , "spy wars" also occurred between the USSR and PRC. In September 1947, the Soviets created Cominform to impose orthodoxy within the international communist movement and tighten political control over Soviet satellites through coordination of communist parties in
12040-454: The Karabiner 98a, G98/40, StG 44, and FG 42 The Japanese would also adopt a version of the German Schiessbecher grenade launcher. The Type 2 rifle grenade launcher was an attachment for the Type 38 and Type 99 rifles that allowed them to fire special hollow charge grenades. Two grenades were produced for the launcher: a 30 mm (1.2 in) grenade and a larger, 40 mm (1.6 in) grenade, both designated Type 2. The launcher sits over
12212-424: The L1A1 SAS, a carbine variant of the L1A1 with a barrel length of 290 mm (11.4 inches). Argentine FALs saw action during the Falklands War , and in different peacekeeping operations such as in Cyprus and the former Yugoslavia. Argentine FALs are known to have been exported to Bolivia (in 1971), Colombia, Croatia (during the wars in former Yugoslavia during the 1990s), Honduras, Peru, and Uruguay. Along with
12384-474: The Makleon: By Israeli training practice, when the light machine guns are used as fire base to cover the forward movement of the rest of the section, they should not operate at more than two hundred yards' [183m] maximum range from the target. To cut that distance by half is considered better. In the attack, LMGs are rated as highly expendable items and are shoved far front. When the section rushes
12556-428: The Marshall Plan, seeing it as an effort by the US to impose its influence on Europe. In response, the Soviet Union established Comecon (Council for Mutual Economic Assistance) to foster economic cooperation among communist states. The United States and its Western European allies sought to strengthen their bonds and used the policy of containment against Soviet influence; they accomplished this most notably through
12728-698: The Minimi to replace the FAP. IMBEL also produced a semi-automatic version of the FAL for Springfield Armory, Inc. (not to be confused with the US military Springfield Armory ), which was marketed in the US as the SAR-48 (standard model) and SAR-4800 (made after 1989 with some military features removed to comply with new legislation), starting in the mid-1980s. IMBEL-made receivers have been much in demand among American gunsmiths building FALs from "parts kits". IMBEL in 2014 offered
12900-514: The Russian Civil War further complicated relations, and although the Soviet Union later allied with Western powers to defeat Nazi Germany , this cooperation was strained by mutual suspicions. In the immediate aftermath of World War II, disagreements about the future of Europe, particularly Eastern Europe , became central. The Soviet Union's establishment of communist regimes in the countries it had liberated from Nazi control—enforced by
13072-554: The Second World War, Nazi Germany developed and fielded a propaganda rifle grenade ( Propaganda-Gewehrgranate ). It was designed for front-line troops to disperse propaganda leaflets via a rifle grenade that would disperse the printed material via a small ejecting charge. The advent of less lethal grenades for riot control has led to the creation of gun launched versions of these grenades, though they are typically launched by riot shotguns , not rifles. These systems use
13244-481: The Soviet Union and its communist party , which had an influence across the Second World and was also tied to a network of authoritarian states. The Soviet Union had a command economy and installed similarly communist regimes its in satellites. United States involvement in regime change during the Cold War included support for anti-communist and right-wing dictatorships , governments, and uprisings across
13416-467: The Soviet Union was used to monitor dissent from official Soviet politics and morals. Although to an extent disinformation had always existed, the term itself was invented, and the strategy formalized by a black propaganda department of the Soviet KGB. Based on the amount of top-secret Cold War archival information that has been released, historian Raymond L. Garthoff concludes there probably
13588-572: The Soviet Union, which at the time was undergoing the Era of Stagnation . This phase saw the new Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev introducing the liberalizing reforms of glasnost ("openness") and perestroika ("reorganization") and ending Soviet involvement in Afghanistan in 1989. Pressures for national sovereignty grew stronger in Eastern Europe, and Gorbachev refused to further support
13760-558: The Soviet Union. A number of self-proclaimed Marxist–Leninist governments were formed in the second half of the 1970s in developing countries , including Angola , Mozambique , Ethiopia , Cambodia , Afghanistan , and Nicaragua . Détente collapsed at the end of the decade with the beginning of the Soviet–Afghan War in 1979. Beginning in the 1980s, this phase was another period of elevated tension. The Reagan Doctrine led to increased diplomatic, military, and economic pressures on
13932-643: The Soviets accumulated after broken promises by Stalin and Molotov concerning Europe and Iran. Following the World War II Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran , the country was occupied by the Red Army in the far north and the British in the south. Iran was used by the United States and British to supply the Soviet Union, and the Allies agreed to withdraw from Iran within six months after the cessation of hostilities. However, when this deadline came,
14104-535: The Soviets agreed to withdraw from Iran after persistent US pressure, an early success of containment policy. By 1947, US president Harry S. Truman was outraged by the perceived resistance of the Soviet Union to American demands in Iran, Turkey, and Greece, as well as Soviet rejection of the Baruch Plan on nuclear weapons. In February 1947, the British government announced that it could no longer afford to finance
14276-559: The Soviets had permitted to retain democratic structures. The public brutality of the coup shocked Western powers more than any event up to that point, set in motion a brief scare that war would occur, and swept away the last vestiges of opposition to the Marshall Plan in the United States Congress. In an immediate aftermath of the crisis, the London Six-Power Conference was held, resulting in
14448-545: The Soviets remained in Iran under the guise of the Azerbaijan People's Government and Kurdish Republic of Mahabad . Shortly thereafter, on 5 March, former British prime minister Winston Churchill delivered his famous " Iron Curtain " speech in Fulton, Missouri . The speech called for an Anglo-American alliance against the Soviets, whom he accused of establishing an "iron curtain" dividing Europe from " Stettin in
14620-455: The Truman Doctrine marked the beginning of a US bipartisan defense and foreign policy consensus between Republicans and Democrats focused on containment and deterrence that weakened during and after the Vietnam War , but ultimately persisted thereafter. Moderate and conservative parties in Europe, as well as social democrats, gave virtually unconditional support to the Western alliance, while European and American Communists , financed by
14792-470: The U.S. Ordnance Department, used a long stem projecting from the rear of the grenade, which was slipped into the barrel of the Springfield 1903 rifle, and propelled with a special blank cartridge . The stem was calibrated with a number of grooves and a split ring, which allowed the user to set the grenade to slide a certain distance into the muzzle of the rifle. When the stem was inserted only part way,
14964-648: The U.S., and in 1951 even made a deal that the U.S. could produce FALs royalty-free, given that the UK appeared to be favouring their own EM-2. This decision appeared to be correct when the British Army decided to adopt the EM-2 (as Rifle No.9 Mk1) and the .280 British cartridge. This decision was later rescinded after the Labour Party lost the 1951 General Election and Winston Churchill returned as Prime Minister. It
15136-567: The US assistance, the Greek military won its civil war . Under the leadership of Alcide De Gasperi the Italian Christian Democrats defeated the powerful Communist – Socialist alliance in the elections of 1948 . All major powers engaged in espionage, using a great variety of spies, double agents , moles , and new technologies such as the tapping of telephone cables. The Soviet KGB ("Committee for State Security"),
15308-581: The US government gave to Western European countries over $ 13 billion (equivalent to $ 189 billion in 2016) to rebuild the economy of Europe . Later, the program led to the creation of the OECD . The plan's aim was to rebuild the democratic and economic systems of Europe and to counter perceived threats to the European balance of power , such as communist parties seizing control through revolutions or elections. The plan also stated that European prosperity
15480-588: The US was trying to buy a pro-US re-alignment of Europe. Stalin therefore prevented Eastern Bloc nations from receiving Marshall Plan aid. The Soviet Union's alternative to the Marshall Plan, which was purported to involve Soviet subsidies and trade with central and eastern Europe, became known as the Molotov Plan (later institutionalized in January 1949 as the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance ). Stalin
15652-483: The USSR. In this way, this US would exercise " preponderant power ," oppose neutrality, and establish global hegemony . In the early 1950s (a period sometimes known as the " Pactomania "), the US formalized a series of alliances with Japan (a former WWII enemy), South Korea , Taiwan , Australia , New Zealand , Thailand and the Philippines (notably ANZUS in 1951 and SEATO in 1954), thereby guaranteeing
15824-527: The United Nations, was split up and dissolved in 1954 and 1975, also because of the détente between the West and Tito. The US and Britain merged their western German occupation zones into " Bizone " (1 January 1947, later "Trizone" with the addition of France's zone, April 1949). As part of the economic rebuilding of Germany, in early 1948, representatives of a number of Western European governments and
15996-518: The United States a number of long-term military bases. One of the more significant examples of the implementation of containment was the United Nations US-led intervention in the Korean War . In June 1950, after years of mutual hostilities, Kim Il Sung 's North Korean People's Army invaded South Korea at the 38th parallel . Stalin had been reluctant to support the invasion but ultimately sent advisers. To Stalin's surprise,
16168-401: The United States announced an agreement for a merger of western German areas into a federal governmental system. In addition, in accordance with the Marshall Plan , they began to re-industrialize and rebuild the West German economy, including the introduction of a new Deutsche Mark currency to replace the old Reichsmark currency that the Soviets had debased. The US had secretly decided that
16340-568: The United States armed forces, these 40 mm grenade launchers generally took the form of separate weapons, such as the M79 grenade launcher . Or, as an under-barrel attachment to an assault rifle , such as the M203 grenade launcher attached to an M16 rifle . Today, there is a return to the concept of the rifle grenade, such as the SIMON breach grenade , the IMI Refaim , FN Herstal Telgren and
16512-438: The United States for comparison testing against the favoured United States Army design of the time—Earle Harvey's T25. It was hoped that a common cartridge and rifle could be standardized for issue to the armies of all NATO member countries. After this testing was completed, U.S. Army officials suggested that FN should redesign their rifle to fire the U.S. prototype ".30 Light Rifle" cartridge. FN decided to hedge their bets with
16684-620: The United States. Rifle grenade A rifle grenade is a grenade that uses a rifle -based launcher to permit a longer effective range than would be possible if the grenade were thrown by hand. The practice of projecting grenades with rifle-mounted launchers was first widely used during World War I and World War II and continues to the present, with the term "rifle grenade" now encompassing many different types of payloads including high explosive , fragmentation , anti-tank warheads , concussion , smoke , incendiary , and flare missiles. Rifle grenades have largely been supplanted in
16856-510: The Warsaw Pact's primary function was to safeguard Soviet hegemony over its Eastern European satellites, with the pact's only direct military actions having been the invasions of its own member states to keep them from breaking away; in the 1960s, the pact evolved into a multilateral alliance, in which the non-Soviet Warsaw Pact members gained significant scope to pursue their own interests. In 1961, Soviet-allied East Germany constructed
17028-525: The West during the Cold War. The G1 featured a pressed metal handguard identical to the ones used on the Austrian Stg. 58, as well as the Dutch and Greek FALs, this being slightly slimmer than the standard wood or plastic handguards, and featuring horizontal lines running almost their entire length. G1s were also fitted with a unique removable prong flash hider, adding another external distinction. Of note
17200-472: The Western agencies paid special attention to debriefing Eastern Bloc defectors . Edward Jay Epstein describes that the CIA understood that the KGB used "provocations", or fake defections, as a trick to embarrass Western intelligence and establish Soviet double agents. As a result, from 1959 to 1973, the CIA required that East Bloc defectors went through a counterintelligence investigation before being recruited as
17372-462: The accusation that the USSR was exerting increasing control over the countries lying in its sphere. He argued that there was nothing surprising in "the fact that the Soviet Union, anxious for its future safety, [was] trying to see to it that governments loyal in their attitude to the Soviet Union should exist in these countries." Soviet territorial demands to Turkey regarding the Dardanelles in
17544-621: The air and detonation occurred on impact. In 1942, an attachable rifle grenade launcher called the Gewehrgranatengerät or Schiessbecher ('shooting cup') was introduced that was developed based on rifle grenade launcher models designed during World War I. The 30 mm (1.2 in) Schiessbecher cup-type rifle grenade launcher could be mounted on any Karabiner 98k and was intended to replace all previous rifle grenade launcher models. The rifle grenade launcher could be used against infantry, fortifications and light armored vehicles up to
17716-561: The allocation of $ 400 million to intervene in the war and unveiled the Truman Doctrine , which framed the conflict as a contest between free peoples and totalitarian regimes. American policymakers accused the Soviet Union of conspiring against the Greek royalists in an effort to expand Soviet influence even though Stalin had told the Communist Party to cooperate with the British-backed government. Enunciation of
17888-461: The assault with a volley of grenades onto the enemy positions intended to stun and suppress the defenders, while being immediately followed by the infantry assault while the enemy was shaken. Israel's infantry prefers the rifle-fired antitank grenade to the bazooka for shock effect on a group or bunker. At night, if the section should run into an ambush, the grenadier fires, and all the others rush straight in, not firing. Initially, Israel manufactured
18060-712: The assembly lines run by slave labour after only 10% of the Belgian factory workers showed up when ordered to do so. After the Normandy landings , the Germans stripped the FN factories of everything useful and sent it back to augment German industries, destroying what they couldn't carry. FN tried to recoup its losses immediately after liberation near the end of 1944 by refurbishing Allied weapons and producing cheap, easily produced spare parts such as tank tracks. To make matters worse,
18232-482: The bureau responsible for foreign espionage and internal surveillance, was famous for its effectiveness. The most famous Soviet operation involved its atomic spies that delivered crucial information from the United States' Manhattan Project , leading the USSR to detonate its first nuclear weapon in 1949, four years after the American detonation and much sooner than expected. A massive network of informants throughout
18404-429: The chamber pressure upon firing was reduced, propelling the grenade a shorter distance. When fired at a 45-degree angle, ranges from 50 to 300 yd (46 to 274 m) were possible; with the rifle angled at 80 degrees, ranges as short as 15 yd (14 m) were possible. In addition to providing the force to propel the grenade, the gases from firing were directed through a hollow in the stem, and provided force to arm
18576-657: The chancellor of West Germany, with France the main opponent. Washington had the decisive voice. It was strongly supported by the Pentagon (the US military leadership), and weakly opposed by President Truman; the State Department was ambivalent. The outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950 changed the calculations and Washington now gave full support. That also involved naming Dwight D. Eisenhower in charge of NATO forces and sending more American troops to West Germany. There
18748-515: The communist party. Radio and television organizations were state-owned, while print media was usually owned by political organizations, mostly by the local communist party. Soviet radio broadcasts used Marxist rhetoric to attack capitalism, emphasizing themes of labor exploitation, imperialism and war-mongering. Along with the broadcasts of the BBC and the Voice of America to Central and Eastern Europe,
18920-497: The country and was banned following the 1991 Soviet coup attempt that August. This in turn led to the formal dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991 and the collapse of Communist governments across much of Africa and Asia. The Russian Federation became the Soviet Union's successor state, while many of the other republics emerged from the Soviet Union's collapse as fully independent post-Soviet states . The United States
19092-422: The diameter of the warhead section, which is much wider. After World War II, many countries adopted 22 mm (0.87 in) spigot-type launchers and anti-tank rifle grenades with shaped charge or high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) warheads. The Belgian ENERGA anti-tank rifle grenade design in particular was widely adopted by Western nations. These post-war designs come in "standard" type which are propelled by
19264-415: The early FN-built production rifles did come with wooden stocks). The rifle can be distinguished from its Belgian and Argentine counterparts by its combination flash suppressor and grenade launcher . The foregrip was a two-part steel pressing. Steyr-built StG 58s had a hammer forged barrel. Some StG 58s had modifications made to the fire mode selector so that the fully automatic option was removed, leaving
19436-564: The end of World War II , and lasted until the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. The term cold war is used because there was no direct fighting between the two superpowers , though each supported opposing sides in major regional conflicts known as proxy wars . Aside from the nuclear arms race starting in 1949 and conventional military deployment , the struggle for dominance was expressed indirectly via psychological warfare , propaganda campaigns , espionage , far-reaching embargoes , sports diplomacy , and technological competitions such as
19608-401: The end of the barrel, held in place with a clamping device. A special crimped blank cartridge or wooden bullet is used to fire the grenades. In the years just before World War II, the United States adopted the spigot-type 22 mm rifle grenade launchers . These 22 mm (0.87 in) launchers are attached to a rifles muzzle, in the form of a detachable adapter. As with most rifle grenades, it
19780-540: The enemy position under cover of the LMG fire, one rifleman stays behind to protect the gunners. Marshall also notes the advantage of both rifle and LMG ammunition being interchangeable, with the squad carrying sixty 20-round magazines, with 1,200 rounds in total. The Israeli FALs were originally produced as selective-fire rifles, though later light-barrel rifle versions were altered to semi-automatic fire only. The first rifles were Belgian-made, with Israel later licence-producing
19952-408: The fall of the communist governments of Europe from 1989, which concluded with the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. The Western Bloc included the US and a number of First World nations that were generally capitalist and liberal democratic but tied to a network of often authoritarian Third World states, most of which were the European powers' former colonies . The Eastern Bloc was led by
20124-401: The formation of NATO , which was essentially a defensive agreement in 1949. The Soviet Union countered with the Warsaw Pact in 1955, which had similar results with the Eastern Bloc. As by that time the Soviet Union already had an armed presence and political domination all over its eastern satellite states, the pact has been long considered superfluous. Although nominally a defensive alliance,
20296-417: The gas plug, to allow for the firing of rifle grenades and manual operation. The FAL's magazine capacity ranges from five to 30 rounds, with most magazines holding 20 rounds. In fixed stock versions of the FAL, the recoil spring is housed in the stock, while in folding-stock versions it is housed in the receiver cover, necessitating a slightly different receiver cover, recoil spring, and bolt carrier, and
20468-509: The golf ball launcher that screws onto the end of the barrel, where the AR-15 family of rifles' flash hider attaches, the can launcher tube is fitted directly to the AR-15 upper receiver and is the entire barrel assembly. Both the golf ball launcher and can launcher require the use of blank ammunition. Compared to a standard hand-grenade , a rifle grenade: However, a rifle grenade: Compared to
20640-555: The grenade had to be re-designed with a smaller hole, but even this was not sufficient to ensure reliable functioning, due to differences in bullet design. The American bullet would often break apart in the grenade, and this led to the V-B derived grenade design being scrapped in May 1918. The next United States attempt at a rifle grenade was to return to and develop an improved rod-grenade. The Babbitt grenade, developed by Colonel E. B. Babbitt of
20812-459: The grenade was slow. In order to speed rod grenades to the front, the British also made rodded versions of the Mills bomb . Although a simple approach, launching a rod grenade "...placed an extreme amount of stress on the rifle barrel and the rifle itself, resulting in the need to dedicate specific rifles to the grenade launching role, as they quickly became useless as an accurate firearm. This led to
20984-403: The grenade. After the grenade was launched, the chamber was opened, ejecting the spent cartridge case and making the bullet fall out. The necessity of changing the rifle bolt kept the rifle out of use until the bolt could be replaced, a slow and clumsy procedure. The bolt-changing procedure could also result in lost rifle bolts in the heat of battle, putting the weapon out of action completely. As
21156-572: The grenade. Once armed, the grenade had a heavy plunger that would detonate the grenade upon impact. After World War I, the rifle grenade was steadily modified to increase its effectiveness when launched from a rifle. In 1928, the Italian Army adopted an unusual cup-type 38.5 mm (1.52 in) rifle grenade launcher bolted to the side of a normal Carcano 6.5 mm carbine, the Moschetto di Fanteria Mod. 91/28 con Tromboncino . In use,
21328-557: The half-tracks to hit the sand, finding the rifles filthy at the moment of contact. In such lightning-fast mobile warfare, the men would hardly have time to eat, sleep or clean their rifles. Though the IDF evaluated a few modified FAL rifles with 'sand clearance' slots in the bolt carrier and receiver (which were already part of the Commonwealth L1A1/C1A1 design), malfunction rates did not significantly improve. The Israeli FAL
21500-578: The idea and entered World War I without any rifle grenades. However, as soon as the trench warfare started, there was a sudden need for rifle grenades. The British government purchased a rodded variant of the No 2 grenade as a temporary solution. By 1915, Hales had developed the No 3, which is commonly known as the Hales rifle grenade . The Hales grenade was improved throughout World War I to make it more reliable and easier to manufacture. However, production of
21672-455: The infantry fire support role by a combination of grenade launchers (typically affixed to rifles) and disposable anti-armor rockets . Adaptation of grenades for use in rifles began around the 18th century, when cup-shaped dischargers were fitted to the barrels of flintlock muskets, with the grenades propelled by the force of a blank cartridge. During the early 20th century a Japanese Colonel Amazawa experimented with rifle fired grenades during
21844-717: The integral muzzle brakes. A Peruvian derivative of the FAL designed by the Diseños Casanave Corporation in 2010. Like the FAL, it uses standard 20-round box magazines with the same 7.62×51mm caliber ammo. The FAL has been used by over 90 countries, and some seven million have been produced. The FAL was originally made by Fabrique Nationale de Herstal (FN) in Liège, Belgium, but it has also been made under license in fifteen countries. As of August 2006, new examples were still being produced by at least four different manufacturers worldwide. A distinct sub-family
22016-529: The kind of world-view, the kind of beliefs, and the social structure that would probably prevail in a state which was at once unconquerable and in a permanent state of "cold war" with its neighbours. In The Observer of 10 March 1946, Orwell wrote, "...after the Moscow conference last December, Russia began to make a 'cold war' on Britain and the British Empire." The first use of the term to describe
22188-455: The long, heavy FAL slowed deployment drills, and proved exceedingly difficult to maneuver within the confines of a vehicle. Additionally, Israeli forces experienced occasional jamming of the FAL due to heavy sand and dust ingress endemic to Middle Eastern desert warfare. With the soldiers traveling in open-topped halftracks in fast-paced operations, with tank tracks filling the air with clouds of dust filled with fine grit, soldiers would jump from
22360-402: The loyalty of non-aligned countries , such as India . By the 1970s, Japan and Western Europe rebuilt their economies, allowing them more diplomatic independence. After the Sino-Soviet split between the USSR and China in 1961, the U.S. initiated contacts with China in 1972 . In the same year, the US and USSR signed a series of treaties limiting their nuclear arsenals, which eased tensions for
22532-411: The more common cup designs it is a gas trap system, meaning that it incorporates a barrel extension which taps off excess propellant gases to launch the grenade from a cup offset from the barrel. This has the advantage that standard rifle cartridges could be used along with the standard hand-grenades which simplified logistics, at the expense of increased weight and decreased efficiency. The effective range
22704-414: The most prominent architects of America's early Cold War strategy, especially those who believed that the Cold War would eventually be fought by political rather than military means, such as George F. Kennan. Soviet and Eastern Bloc authorities used various methods to suppress Western broadcasts, including radio jamming . American policymakers, including Kennan and John Foster Dulles , acknowledged that
22876-402: The name implies, these grenades allow for the use of standard ball ammunition. The VB grenade has a hole through the middle that permits the passage of a standard bullet; this arms the grenade, the expanding gasses launch the grenade, and the grenade explodes 8 seconds later. This removes the need to provide a special blank round to launch the grenade. To use: The 22mm type rifle grenade launcher
23048-671: The policy change. Once again, the East Berlin communists attempted to disrupt the Berlin municipal elections , which were held on 5 December 1948 and produced a turnout of 86% and an overwhelming victory for the non-communist parties. The results effectively divided the city into East and West, the latter comprising US, British and French sectors. 300,000 Berliners demonstrated and urged the international airlift to continue, and US Air Force pilot Gail Halvorsen created " Operation Vittles ", which supplied candy to German children. The Airlift
23220-441: The political decision-making level on either side. Similarly, there is no evidence, on either side, of any major political or military decision that was prematurely discovered through espionage and thwarted by the other side. There also is no evidence of any major political or military decision that was crucially influenced (much less generated) by an agent of the other side. According to historian Robert L. Benson, "Washington's forte
23392-479: The presence of the Red Army —alarmed the US and UK. Western leaders saw this as a clear instance of Soviet expansionism, clashing with their vision of a democratic Europe. Economically, the divide was sharpened with the introduction of the Marshall Plan in 1947, a US initiative to provide financial aid to rebuild Europe and prevent the spread of communism by stabilizing capitalist economies. The Soviet Union rejected
23564-491: The rifle and the wooden bullets are trapped by the tail-fin assemblies launching and arming the grenades. These launchers are not numbered, and production figures are not available and examples of spigot grenade launchers are rarely encountered. In 1939, the Japanese introduced the Type 89 grenade discharger , the Type 91 fragmentation grenade was fitted with a propellant base and time fuse. It did not explode upon contact, but
23736-474: The rifle itself. All current NATO rifles are capable of launching STANAG 22 mm (0.87 in) rifle grenades from their flash hiders without the use of an adapter. By the late 1960s and early 1970s, rifle grenades and their launchers were slowly replaced by disposable single shot rocket launchers such as the M72 LAW (light anti-tank weapon) , and dedicated 40 mm grenade launchers . First seen in
23908-411: The rifle's bolt was removed and installed in the launcher chamber. The rifle was placed butt-first against the ground, a grenade loaded down the launcher's muzzle and standard rifle round loaded into the grenade launcher's chamber. When fired, the bullet was trapped, the neck of the cartridge case expanded and the gases passed into launcher's barrel through four holes providing the energy needed to launch
24080-460: The search for an alternative and resulted in the reappearance of the cup launcher during the latter years of World War I". After World War I, the rod-type rifle grenade was declared obsolete and the remaining Hales were replaced with gas check equipped Mills Bombs shot from a rifle via a cup launcher. The French grenade, named the V-B grenade after its inventors, Viven and Bessières, was fired from
24252-630: The selector with only safe and single-shot positions. The StG 58 was replaced by the Steyr AUG (designated StG 77) in 1977, although the StG 58 served with many units as the primary service rifle through the mid-1980s. A semi-automatic, twin-barrel variant chambered in the 5.56mm "Duplex" round during Project SALVO . This weapon was designed by Stefan Kenneth Janson who previously designed the EM-2 rifle . American company DSA (David Selvaggio Arms) manufactures
24424-408: The sight line is mounted on the upper receiver/barrel and hence are fixed to two different movable subassemblies. The sight radius for the FAL 50.00 and FAL 50.41 models is 553 mm (21.8 in) and for the 50.61 and FAL 50.63 models 549 mm (21.6 in). FAL rifles have also been manufactured in both light and heavy-barrel configurations, with the heavy barrel intended for automatic fire as
24596-458: The soldiers' war-load, and as a consequence they must reduce the amount of rifle ammunition that they carry. For example, a modern French AC58 "bullet trap" rifle grenade weighs 0.5 kg (1.1 lb), the equivalent of a loaded M16 STANAG magazine. The AK-47 can mount the Kalashnikov cup-type grenade-launcher that uses standard Soviet RGD-5 hand-grenades. The soup-can shaped launcher
24768-469: The source of the term, Lippmann traced it to a French term from the 1930s, la guerre froide . The roots of the Cold War can be traced back to diplomatic and military tensions preceding World War II. The 1917 Russian Revolution and the subsequent Treaty of Brest-Litovsk , where Soviet Russia ceded vast territories to Germany, deepened distrust among the Western Allies. Allied intervention in
24940-463: The specific post-war geopolitical confrontation between the Soviet Union and the United States came in a speech by Bernard Baruch , an influential advisor to Democratic presidents, on 16 April 1947. The speech, written by journalist Herbert Bayard Swope , proclaimed, "Let us not be deceived: we are today in the midst of a cold war." Newspaper columnist Walter Lippmann gave the term wide currency with his book The Cold War . When asked in 1947 about
25112-407: The standard service rifle with the use of a special adapter and a standard cartridge, providing an effective range of around 175 to 200 yd (160 to 183 m). The grenade had a hollow through the middle, allowing the bullet to pass through, while the muzzle blast was captured by the launching device and used to propel the grenade. The bullet, after passing through the body of the grenade, struck
25284-421: The target. Although the Type 89 could be fired by a single person, it was typically operated with a crew of 3, enabling it to reach a rate of fire of about 25 rounds per minute. In 1939, the Japanese also introduced the Type 100 grenade discharger for the Type 38 and Type 99 Arisaka rifles. It launches standard Type 91 and Type 99 hand-grenades. The launcher is somewhat unusual in that rather than using
25456-474: The use of live ammunition. All modern 22mm rifle grenades explode on impact. All Standard issue NATO rifles are capable of launching STANAG type 22mm rifle grenades from their integral flash hiders without the use of an adapter. Modern bullet-trap rifle grenades such as the French APAV40 can be fired as fast as a soldier can place a grenade on an FAMAS rifle's muzzle and pull the trigger. To use: During
25628-442: The weapon climbs off-target quickly, making automatic fire only of marginal effectiveness. Many military forces using the FAL eventually eliminated full-automatic firearms training in the light-barrel FAL. Depending on the variant and the country of adoption, the FAL was issued as either semi-automatic only or select-fire (capable of both semi-automatic and fully automatic firing modes). Also known as FALO as an abbreviation from
25800-503: The weapons and its magazines. The Israeli models are recognizable by a distinctive handguard with a forward perforated sheet metal section. Israeli-made magazines were made in the same FN standard of steel, finished with durable black enamel paint, and bearing two Hebrew characters stamped into the metal on one side. The IDF always emphasized the used of rifle grenades, integrating its usage into their doctrine of night assaults. Approaching enemy positions within rifle-grenade range, initiating
25972-411: The world, while Soviet involvement in regime change included the funding of left-wing parties , wars of independence , revolutions and dictatorships. As nearly all the colonial states underwent decolonization and achieved independence in the period from 1945 to 1960, many became Third World battlefields in the Cold War. At the end of World War II, English writer George Orwell used cold war , as
26144-486: The world. Movements against nuclear weapons testing and for nuclear disarmament took place, with large anti-war protests . By the 1970s, both sides had started making allowances for peace and security, ushering in a period of détente that saw the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks and the 1972 visit by Richard Nixon to China that opened relations with China as a strategic counterweight to
26316-505: Was 'signals' intelligence - the procurement and analysis of coded foreign messages." leading to the Venona project or Venona intercepts, which monitored the communications of Soviet intelligence agents. Moynihan wrote that the Venona project contained "overwhelming proof of the activities of Soviet spy networks in America, complete with names, dates, places, and deeds." The Venona project
26488-628: Was 1:11. Rifles produced during the Federal Assault Weapons Ban from 1994 to 2004 included integrally machined muzzle brakes that served to reduce muzzle rise and recoil. Further more, these muzzle brakes added additional length to barrels to achieve the 16.5 inches that would otherwise have been considered short-barreled rifles under the National Firearms Act . As such, DSA FAL barrels that were effectively ~14 inches, could be legally considered 16.5 inches due to
26660-412: Was a strong promise that West Germany would not develop nuclear weapons. Widespread fears of another rise of German militarism necessitated the new military to operate within an alliance framework under NATO command. In 1955, Washington secured full German membership of NATO. In May 1953, Lavrentiy Beria , by then in a government post, had made an unsuccessful proposal to allow the reunification of
26832-567: Was also fearful of a reconstituted Germany; his vision of a post-war Germany did not include the ability to rearm or pose any kind of threat to the Soviet Union. In early 1948, following reports of strengthening "reactionary elements", Czech Communists executed a coup d'état in Czechoslovakia (resulting in the formation of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (9 May 1948)), the only Eastern Bloc state that
27004-433: Was as much a logistical as a political and psychological success for the West; it firmly linked West Berlin to the United States. In May 1949, Stalin backed down and lifted the blockade. In 1952, Stalin repeatedly proposed a plan to unify East and West Germany under a single government chosen in elections supervised by the United Nations, if the new Germany were to stay out of Western military alliances, but this proposal
27176-679: Was contingent upon German economic recovery. One month later, Truman signed the National Security Act of 1947 , creating a unified Department of Defense , the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and the National Security Council (NSC). These would become the main bureaucracies for US defense policy in the Cold War. Stalin believed economic integration with the West would allow Eastern Bloc countries to escape Soviet control, and that
27348-576: Was designated the Makle'a Kal , or Makleon , having a standard handguard improved with a perforated metal sleeve around the heavy barrel, and a wooden handguard with a heat shield. The folding bipod being directly attached to the barrel. The Israeli Makleon was fed by a 20-round magazine. Analysing the Israeli campaign of 1956 in the Sinai, during the Suez Crisis , Brigadier General SLA Marshall noted of
27520-411: Was designed to ignite its fuse while in flight. A weak creep spring inside the grenade firing mechanism allowed the firing pin to be thrown back upon launching, igniting a time fuse with a 7-8 second delay. Using this system, the Type 91 grenades could be launched through jungle cover or through small openings without the danger of premature detonation in the event the grenade struck an object on its way to
27692-439: Was developed before World War II. This type of launcher is attached to a rifle's muzzle and allows for the use of a wide range of rifle grenades, from powerful anti-tank rounds to simple finned tubes with a fragmentation hand-grenade attached to the end. These rifle grenades come in "standard" type, which are propelled by a blank cartridge inserted into the chamber of the rifle; or, "bullet trap" and "shoot through" types, which allow
27864-444: Was eventually replaced from 1972 onwards by the M16 and in 1974 by the Galil . The FAL remained in production in Israel into the 1980s. Cold War The Cold War was a period of global geopolitical tension and struggle for ideological and economic influence between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc , that started in 1947, two years after
28036-402: Was kept highly secret even from policymakers until the Moynihan Commission in 1995. Despite this, the decryption project had already been betrayed and dispatched to the USSR by Kim Philby and Bill Weisband in 1946, as was discovered by the US by 1950. Nonetheless, the Soviets had to keep their discovery of the program secret, too, and continued leaking their own information, some of which
28208-454: Was left as the world's sole superpower. In February 1946, George F. Kennan 's " Long Telegram " from Moscow to Washington helped to articulate the US government's increasingly hard line against the Soviets, which would become the basis for US strategy toward the Soviet Union for the duration of the Cold War. The telegram galvanized a policy debate that would eventually shape the Truman administration 's Soviet policy. Washington's opposition to
28380-488: Was now restricted to the island of Taiwan , the nationalist government of which exists to this day. The Kremlin promptly created an alliance with the newly formed People's Republic of China. According to Norwegian historian Odd Arne Westad , the communists won the Civil War because they made fewer military mistakes than Chiang Kai-Shek made, and because in his search for a powerful centralized government, Chiang antagonized too many interest groups in China. Moreover, his party
28552-403: Was parity in the quantity and quality of secret information obtained by each side. However, the Soviets probably had an advantage in terms of HUMINT (human intelligence or interpersonal espionage) and "sometimes in its reach into high policy circles." In terms of decisive impact, however, he concludes: We also can now have high confidence in the judgment that there were no successful "moles" at
28724-441: Was requested by Belgian paratroopers. The upper receiver was not cut for a carry handle, the charging handle on the 50.63 was a folding model similar to the L1A1 rifles, which allowed the folded-stock rifle to fit through the doorway of their C-119 Flying Boxcar when worn horizontally across the chest. Folding-stock, standard 533 mm (21.0 in) barrel length, ' Hiduminium ' aluminium alloy lower receiver made it lighter than
28896-427: Was still useful to the American program. According to Moynihan, even President Truman may not have been fully informed of Venona, which may have left him unaware of the extent of Soviet espionage. Clandestine atomic spies from the Soviet Union, who infiltrated the Manhattan Project at various points during WWII, played a major role in increasing tensions that led to the Cold War. In addition to usual espionage,
29068-413: Was the Commonwealth inch-dimensioned versions that were manufactured in the United Kingdom and Australia (as the L1A1 Self Loading Rifle or SLR), and in Canada as the C1. The standard metric-dimensioned FAL was manufactured in South Africa (where it was known as the R1 ), Brazil, Israel, Austria and Argentina. Both the SLR and FAL were also produced without license by India. The Dutch company Armtech built
29240-431: Was turned down by the Western powers. Some sources dispute the sincerity of the proposal. Britain, France, the United States, Canada and eight other western European countries signed the North Atlantic Treaty of April 1949, establishing the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). That August, the first Soviet atomic device was detonated in Semipalatinsk , Kazakh SSR . Following Soviet refusals to participate in
29412-512: Was useful in offense, particularly in attacking sandbag fortified machine gun nests, as well as in defense. Eight men armed with rifle grenades could fire 150 shots in a minute, providing a heavy barrage to break up an attacker's lines. Upon entering World War I, the United States attempted to adopt the V-B grenade, but this was not very successful. The difference in bore diameter between the French and American service cartridges (8 mm (0.31 in) vs. 7.62 mm (0.300 in)) meant that
29584-434: Was weakened during the war against Japan . Meanwhile, the communists told different groups, such as the peasants, exactly what they wanted to hear, and they cloaked themselves under the cover of Chinese nationalism . Confronted with the communist revolution in China and the end of the American atomic monopoly in 1949, the Truman administration quickly moved to escalate and expand its containment doctrine. In NSC 68 ,
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