FAMAS

Lore & Background

The FAMAS project began in 1967 under the direction of General Paul Tellié and the first prototype was completed in 1971, with French military evaluation beginning in 1972. In late 1978, the French military accepted the FAMAS as their standard-issue rifle, the FAMAS F1. The FAMAS first saw service in Chad during Operation Manta and again in desert operations during Operation Desert Storm and in other various missions. It is known affectionally by French troops as 'The Bugle' (French: Le Clairon) due to its distinctive shape.

In Their Own Story

The dust settled in the narrow corridor of Dust II, illuminated only by the emergency strobe lights. The operator checked his FAMAS one last time, the grey polymer cool against his gloved palm. No M4 today; the economy was tight after two consecutive losses. He gripped the foregrip, feeling the weight of the bullpup design balanced perfectly for a quick pivot around the corner. A single shot would be enough if he got close. The mission wasn't about glory anymore; it was about survival and holding the line until reinforcements arrived.

Reader's Guide

The FAMAS is a bullpup assault rifle with a lever-delayed blowback action and a high rate of fire of around 900–1,100 rounds per minute. Fire mode is controlled by a selector within the trigger guard, with three settings: safe (central position), single shot (to the right), and automatic fire (to the left). Automatic fire can be in three-shot bursts or fully automatic, determined by another selector under the housing and behind the magazine. The FAMAS F1 uses a proprietary 25-round magazine, while the FAMAS G2 uses M16-type, NATO-compatible 30-round STANAG magazines. The FAMAS can use a variety of rifle grenades up to 500 g and can also accommodate an external grenade launcher as an add-on module under the hand guard.

Did You Know?

• The FAMAS is known affectionally by French troops as 'The Bugle' (French: Le Clairon) due to its distinctive shape.
• The FAMAS uses a lever-delayed blowback action, an action type also used in the French AA-52 machine gun.
• The FAMAS F1 functions best with French-specified steel-casing 5.56×45mm ammunition; using standard brass-casing NATO ammunition can cause malfunctions.