The M1926 is a machine gun of Italian origin.
| SAFAT M1926 | |
|---|---|
_(1943-11-01)_6,5_mm_leichtes_Maschinengewehr_097_(i)_-_Mitragliatrice_leggera_Fiat_26_(Bild).png) SAFAT M1926 infantry machine gun | |
| Type | Machine gun |
| Place of origin | Kingdom of Italy |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | SAFAT |
| Variants | M1926 M1928 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 16.5 kg |
| Length | 1250 mm |
| Cartridge | 6.5×52mm Carcano (M1926) .303 British (M1928) |
| Caliber | 6.5 mm .303 |
| Action | Delayed blowback |
| Rate of fire | 720 rpm |
| Muzzle velocity | 745 m/s |
| Feed system | Belt |
| Sights | Iron |
History
editThe Fabbrica Italiana Automobile Torino (Italian Torino car factory), one of Europe's biggest car industries, and it was in World War I one of Italy's main suppliers of ground-based and aviation machine guns, mostly of Revelli designs.
After World War, FIAT created in 1926 a subsidiary devoted exclusively to machine guns, that was the Societa Anonima Fabrica Armi Torino, or anonymous society Torino guns factory, mostly known as its abbreviated S.A.F.A.T designation.
The first aircraft machine gun produced by S.A.F.A.T was the M1928, a scaled-up variant of the M1926 with a belt feed and increased rate of fire. However, its main change was the adoption of the 8 mm Fiat cartridge instead the usual M1891 6.5 mm ammunition. Worth to mention that the "8mm FIAT" designation was in fact a fancy name for the 7.7x56R cartridge (.303 British). Both types were completely interchangeable.
The M1928 was installed in some biplane fighters of the late 1920s and early 1930s. It was proven unreliable as sometimes the case ruptured with remains left in the chamber and difficult to synchronize, so it was replaced by the better Breda SAFAT designs.
References
edit- Ciampaglia, Giuseppe (2006). "Quando la Regia adottò il cannone da 20mm". RID Magazine (11).