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Posted by Christopher Eger Dec 31, 2006 |
This month’s weapon of the month is one of the most interesting (and I think sexy) rifles in military history: The Fusil Automatique Léger (Light Automatic Rifle) or FAL -- also known as the SLR, or the L1A1 put popularly referred to as the ‘right arm of the free world’. This weapon holds the number three spot for proliferation, behind the Ak47 and the M16 and is truly a classic. The weapons were produced in at least nine countries and end used in no less than forty.
The assault rifle was invented in 1916 by a Tsarist Russian arms designer named Federov. His design was revolutionary and ahead of its time. Only a few hundred Federov AVT's were built and are as rare as Faberge Easter eggs now. Fast forward to world war two, overwhelmed German panzergrenadiers on the eastern front were given a new weapon to help even the odds, the StG44 assault rifle. This weapon was light, easy to produce, carried a large magazine, and could fire at an impressive rate. The victorious allies seized upon the lessons of the StG 44 and went in two directions. The soviets in the east went on to design the Ak-47, what is arguably the firearm that has taken the most lives in the 20th Century from these lessons. The western European countries as a rule (except notably the US) adopted the FAL.