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FARA 83 / FAA 81 (Fusil Automatico Republica Argentina)

1981 COLD WAR MODERN

FARA 83 / FAA 81 (Fusil Automatico Republica Argentina) History

For decades, the Argentine army (and many around the world) has been using the well-established Belgian Fabrique Nationale FN FAL automatic rifle with the 7.62x51mm NATO cartridge. Over 2,000,000 examples of this type have been made, and are distributed so that over 90 countries use one form of weapon or another - some even continue to use this type today. Production began in 1947 and is still in progress at the time of writing (2012).

Needless to say, FN FAL has seen its fair share of fights worldwide.

Argentina accepted the FN FAL into front-line service in 1955, with the first prototypes arriving in 1958. The FN FAL serving in Argentina was designated FSL-FAL (the Belgian descriptor "FAL = Fusil Automatique Leger" became the Argentine "Fusil Automatico Liviano").

Licensed production in 1960 cemented the Belgian design's place as the standard battle rifle in Argentine military history. In the early 1980s, an attempt was made to modernize the Argentine stock and it was responded in the form of the "FARA 83" - the "FAA 81" also known as the "Fusil Automatico Argentino".

In all respects, the FARA 83 is a relative mashup of components borrowed from other proven designs, including but not limited to the FN FAL itself. The FARA 83 bears striking resemblance to the Israeli IMI Galil assault rifle Army, which itself developed the Soviet-era AK-47 system via the Finnish RK 62 and may have had an influence on the Argentine development.

As we all know, the FARA 83 is a very traditional assault rifle design. It has proven design features that make for a very useful weapon system. The receiver is rectangular as a whole, roughly in the shape of a plate, with an HK-type ejection port and a loading handle on the right side of the fuselage. Well angled and ergonomically designed, the pistol grip is located behind the trigger assembly.

The trigger system is known for managing settings for semi-automatic and fully automatic fire. The magazine feeder is mounted directly in front of the trigger group and accepts a curved spring magazine case. The stock is semi-skeletal, with the hinge folded on the right side of the receiver - this helps facilitate a more compact overall design suitable for use by vehicle occupants or paratroopers, battlefield elements that traditionally require smaller weapons facilities.

The front of the weapon includes a horizontally ribbed front end, cylinder and barrel assembly. The gas cylinder is mounted above the barrel assembly and closed at the front by the front iron sight. The rear view mirror is mounted at the very end of the receiver.

The barrel protrudes a short distance in front of the gun and is closed by a clearly slotted muzzle brake.

The FARA 83 has an overall running length of 40 inches with the stock fully extended. The folded length has been reduced to a very manageable 30 inches. The barrel itself measures 18 inches. Curb weight is close to 9 pounds.

The system's chamber fires 5.56x45mm cartridges from a 30-round detachable magazine. The cyclic rate of fire is approximately 750 rounds per minute, with a muzzle velocity of 3,166 feet per second.

As the alternate name would suggest, the FAA 81/FARA 83 rifle appeared in 1981 and eventually began production in 1984 under the direction of the state-owned Fabrica Militar de Armas Portatiles Domingo Matheu in Rosario, Argentina. Despite its promising nature, the Argentine army was plagued by financial difficulties at this point in its history. As a result, production of the FARA 83 was limited to 1,193 prototypes circulating in the Argentine army. Due to lack of funding, production was halted in 1986, making the FARA 83 a short-lived success.

Limited production is believed to have resumed sometime in 1990, but the total amount of production from this second attempt is unknown.