Firearms / Assault rifles / FAMAS

FAMAS

General Facts

  • TYPE
    Assault rifle

  • ORIGIN
    France

  • NICKNAMES
    Le Clarion (French nickname)

  • DESIGNED
    1967 - 1972

  • DESIGNER
    Manufacture d'Armes de Saint-Étienne (MAS)

  • PRODUCTION
    1974 - 2000 (F1)
    1994 - 2000 (G2)

  • PRODUCERS
    France - MAS (F1, F1 Commando)
    France - Giat (G1, G2, FELIN)

  • QUANTITY
    Over 400.000 F1 and over 300.000 G2 produced.

  • UNIT COST
    € 1.500 for F1 in the 1980's
    € 3.000 for G2 in the 1990's

  • CHARACTERISTICS
    Compact design
    Rugged and reliable
    Bipod fitted as standard
    Expensive to produce
    Uses uncommon version of the 5.56mm round
    Rather heavy

Introduction

The FAMAS is a late Cold War era assault rifle of French origin. It was developed by MAS in the late 1960's but not adopted by the French forces until 1978. The name FAMAS stands for Fusil d'Assaut de la Manufacture d'Armes de Saint-Étienne, which is French for assault rifle of the Saint-Étienne weapons factory.

Design

The FAMAS has a bullpup design and can be easily identified by its oversized carrying handle. The FAMAS uses the uncommon lever delayed blowback action also found on the AAT-52 machine gun. A metal receiver is used which is mostly covered by a plastic frame. It can be used by both right and left handed persons since the ejection mechanism can be reversed. The sights are mounted on the carrying handle. A bipod is fitted as standard and straddles along the forwarm when not in use. The FAMAS is also used in the French FELIN future soldier programme, in which the carrying handle is replaced by optical sights.

Firepower

The FAMAS fires a proprietary version of the 5.56x45mm M193 round from 25 round magazines. Later models are able to fire both the proprietary M193 and the NATO version of the 5.56mm round and use 30 round STANAG magazines. The FAMAS is a select fire weapon with options for semi-automatic, three round burst and full automatic fire. The cyclic rate of fire is about 1.000 rpm and the maximum effective range is about 400 meters. The FAMAS is capable of launching rifle grenades, a practice which is widely used in French service.

Users

The main user of the FAMAS is France, where it was adopted by all branches as a replacement for both the MAT-49 sub machine gun and the MAS 49/56 rifle. The FAMAS has been exported to several nations in limited quantities.

Variants

FAMAS F1

FAMAS F1: The original version of the FAMAS assault rifle. It uses a 12 inch rifling twist rate and uses the French M193 round with steel case. The F1 can be identified by its straight 25 round magazine.
FAMAS F1 Commando: This is a rather uncommon version of the F1 with a shorter barrel.
FAMAS G1: An improved F1 with an enlarged trigger guard. It was not produced, but the enlarged trigger guard can also be found on the later G2 model.

TypeAssault rifle
Caliber5.56x45mm M193
Magazine25 rounds
OperationGas operated, lever delayed blowback
Fire selector0-1-3-F
Rate of fire900 - 1.000 rpm
Barrel length488 mm
Rifling3 grooves, 305 mm right hand twist
Muzzle velocity960 m/s
StockFixed
Length757 mm
Width?
Height?
Weight3.61 kg empty
SightsIron sights, blade front and aperture rear, 0 to 300 meters gradation, 330 mm sight radius, optional optical sights
RemarksBipod
TypeAssault rifle
Caliber5.56x45mm M193
Magazine25 rounds
OperationGas operated, lever delayed blowback
Fire selector0-1-3-F
Rate of fire900 - 1.000 rpm
Barrel length405 mm
Rifling3 grooves, 305 mm right hand twist
Muzzle velocity?
StockFixed
Length674 mm
Width?
Height?
Weight3.5 kg empty
SightsIron sights, blade front and aperture rear, 0 to 300 meters gradation, 330 mm sight radius, optional optical sights
RemarksBipod

FAMAS G2

FAMAS G2: This is an updated model of the FAMAS F1 that was developed in the 1990's to comply with NATO standards. The G2 uses a 9 inch rifling twist rate which allows it to fire both the French M193 round and the NATO round. The G2 retains the oversized trigger guard that was used on the G1 model and uses 30 round STANAG magazines. Several variants of the G2 were developed, including sub machinge gun, carbine and sniper, but were not placed in production.

TypeAssault rifle
Caliber5.56x45mm M193 or NATO
Magazine30 rounds
OperationGas operated, lever delayed blowback
Fire selector0-1-3-F
Rate of fire1.000 - 1.100 rpm
Barrel length488 mm
Rifling3 grooves, 228 mm right hand twist
Muzzle velocity925 m/s
StockFixed
Length757 mm
Width?
Height?
Weight3.8 kg with empty magazine, 4.17 kg loaded
SightsIron sights, blade front and aperture rear, 0 to 300 meters gradation, 330 mm sight radius, optional optical sights
RemarksBipod

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