When you think of French rifles, the joke of “never fired, dropped once” may come to mind. That would be a very foolish assumption to make. Yes, France has had some duds, like the Chauchat machine gun (which ranks as one of the worst small arms EVER designed). But some of its other guns are not that bad.
One of these is the more modern Fusil d’Assaut de la Manufacture d’Armes de Saint-Étienne, or FAMAS rifle, which has been in service since 1979, or about as long as Jennifer Love Hewitt has been alive. This rifle was pushed into service after the Battle of Kolwezi, a successful rescue of European hostages in Zaire.
While the rescue had been a success, the French had five troops killed in action, six others were missing, and 25 wounded. But the French also realized that the MAS-49 rifle, which had served for over 25 years, wasn’t holding up compared to those of other countries. Furthermore, the 7.5x54mm round the rifle used was not compatible with other NATO countries, which had chosen to make the 5.56x45mm round the standard rifle round. The rifle also had a 10-shot magazine.
When it had entered service, the MAS-49 compared favorably to the M1 Garand or the Simonov SKS carbine. But the M1 was replaced by the M14 rifle (firing the 7.62x51mm NATO round and with a 20-round magazine) in 1959, and the SKS was already in the process of being replaced by the AK-47, which fired the 7.62x39mm round, and held 30 rounds. French troops were facing modern conflicts with a World War II rifle – a good way to end up on the losing end of a firefight.
The FAMAS had been in development since 1967, but the French had dragged their feet on the replacement. In the meantime, they had to manufacture copies of the SIG SG 540 rifles until enough FAMAS rifles arrived. The first version, the FAMAS F1, featured a bullpup design (thmagazine being behind the trigger group), and the 25-round magazine.
So, French troops now had a new rifle. It wasn’t bad – with an effective range of about 330 yards, and it was about a pound lighter than the MAS-49/56 version that was the French Army’s mainstay. As a bonus, the FAMAS also replaced the MAT-49 submachine gun, which fired the standard 9x19mm round, and used either a 20 or 32 round magazines.
The FAMAS F1 held the line, but as the Cold War ended, France began taking a closer look, particularly after combat experience in Chad and Kuwait. The FAMAS F1, while an improvement over what French troops had been using, still had some problems. Notably, its magazines were not in compliance with NATO standards – the magazines used in the M16 or SA80 would not work in the FAMAS, and FAMAS magazines wouldn’t work in NATO allies’ rifles.
The FAMAS G2 addressed some of those issues, using standard NATO 30-round magazines. That was the good news for French troops. The FAMAS is also being upgraded as part of the French military’s Fantassin à Équipement et Liaisons Intégrés (Felin) program, which was comparable to the U.S. Army’s Nett Warrior program. In other words, the French have a good rifle – and you underestimate it at your peril.