SAS WEAPONS

WORLD WAR II TO THE PRESENT DAY

Webmaster's Note: Special thanks to Ryan Wulfsohn for this article.

World War II

Pistols:

The US Colt .45in automatic was the standard sidearm of the Commando units from which the SAS " Originals " were recruited and continued to be used by these men. Some preferred .38 revolvers, mainly those manufactured for the British army by Enfield and Smith & Wesson. Later in the war the 9mm FN Browning Hi-Power came into service; those used by the British in the war were actually made by the John Inglis company in Canada. The Colt .45 was the most popular pistol, but this was an area where SAS men could really express their individuality. Older types like the Webley .455 revolver were sometimes used, as well as captured German Luger P08s and Walther P38s, both 9mm automatics.

Submachine guns:

The .45 Thompson submachine gun (TSMG), M1928A1, was the only one available in 1941 and was usually used with the 30-round box magazine rather than the unwieldy 50-round drum. Later the M1 and M1A1 versions of the Thompson were also used. The SAS avoided the British 9mm Sten gun ( officially a " machine carbine " ) as much as possible, though the Mk.II and Mk.V versions were used to an extent. More popular than either the Thompson or Sten was the German MP38 or MP40 " Schmeisser ", a 9mm weapon highly prized by those who could get hold of one.

Rifles and carbines:

The standard British infantry rifle of the war was the No.4 Mk.I Lee-Enfield, a .303 weapon like the No.1 Mk.III it replaced. It was used by the SAS, especially in the desert, but its bolt-action was unsuitable for the close quarter fighting often necessary. The No.4(T) was the standard sniper rifle, being equipped with a telescopic sight and cheek rest. From 1943 the US .30 M1 carbine entered service with the SAS and proved very popular, mainly because of its light weight and high rate of fire. It is the most commonly seen weapon in photos of the SAS in 1944/45.

Machine guns:

The .303 Bren light machine gun, unlike other standard-issue weapons, was widely used by the SAS. The Vickers K, in the same calibre, was originally an aircraft-mounted gun, fed from a 100-round drum. With twice the rate of fire of the Bren, over 1000 rounds per minute, it was the standard armament for SAS jeeps, usually on twin mountings fore and aft. Also mounted on jeeps was the American .50 Browning M2, to begin with the aircraft version with fully-perforated barrel jacket. The standard infantry water-cooled .303 Vickers gun, mounted on a tripod, was occasionally used in positional fighting. German MG34s and MG42s were also sometimes used. These were both 7.92mm general purpose machine guns, the MG42 being by far the superior weapon.

Other:

When appropriate the SAS used the normal 2-inch and 3-inch mortars. The Projector Infantry Anti Tank or PIAT was a crude and unpopular weapon but nevertheless was better than no anti-armour capability. The standard fragmentation hand grenade was the No.36 " Mills bomb ". Other grenades were the No.69 Bakelite offensive grenade and the "Gammon" bomb, an anti-tank device.

Post-war

Pistols:

The Browning Hi-Power finally became the standard British pistol in 1957, after serving alongside various .38 revolvers for many years. The SAS had already adopted it as their sidearm, as had most elite units.

Submachine guns:

The Australian Owen gun was used by 22SAS in Malaya in the 1950s, in preference to the much-hated Sten. The Sten's replacement, the Sterling, was officially adopted in 1954, although early versions had entered service as early as 1944. It took a while to reach the troops but was by the late '50s in full service. Particularly useful for the SAS was the silenced version, known as the L34A1. When the regiment started training counter-terrorist teams in the early 1970s the Ingram Model 11 in 9mm was the first SMG adopted, but was soon replaced by the Heckler & Koch MP5.

Rifles and carbines:

The main weapons used in the early stages of the Malayan campaign were the M1 carbine and the No.5 Lee-Enfield rifle, a shortened " jungle" version of the No.4. The SAS were among the first troops to receive experimental examples of the Belgian 7.62mm FN FAL in 1954. A semi-auto only version of this rifle was adopted as British army standard in 1956, as the Self Loading Rifle(SLR). This became the most widely-used SAS weapon for over twenty years. In 1963 Britain bought a large amount of 5.56mm AR-15s from the US, specifically for use in Borneo. Adopted by the US the following year as the M16, the " Armalite " supplemented the SLR and replaced SMGs under most circumstances, for it was little heavier than the Sterling. It went on to be used by the SAS in all its campaigns up to and including the Falklands War of 1982, by which time it was generally preferred to the SLR. The M16 was also used to an extent by the Gurkhas and Royal Marines. British M16s were all of the original type without the bolt-closure device of the later M16A1. A small number of CAR-15s, known as " Colt Commandos ", were obtained for use by the SAS, and appeared as late as the Gulf War in 1991. The No.4(T) remained the principle sniper rifle until the 1960s, when it was replaced by a new 7.62mm version of the Lee-Enfield,  the L42A1.

Machine guns:

The Bren gun was retained after World War II, but with the adoption of the SLR in 1956 the Brens were converted to 7.62mm, these weapons being known under the designation L4A4. From 1960 they were replaced by the British version of the FN MAG, the 7.62mm General Purpose Machine Gun or " jimpy " (L7 series). Vickers water-cooled guns and Browning M2HBs saw service in South Arabia( Aden and the Radfan ) and Oman, where long-range weapons were necessary.

Other:

While the 2-inch mortar remained in service until the 1980s, the 3-inch was replaced in the late 1950s by the 81mm mortar. Similiarly the much-hated PIAT gave way to the American 3.5-inch rocket launcher a few years before. This in its turn was succeeded by the Carl Gustav 84mm recoilless rifle and the 66mm M72 light anti-tank weapon( US-designed but made in Norway ). The standard grenade was the old Mills bomb for many years, until the introduction of the L2, basically a copy of the US M26, in the 1970s. Smoke and stun grenades were also used when appropriate. The British army bought four hundred 40mm M79 grenade launchers in 1969 and some were used by the SAS in Oman. Soon the M203, mounted on the M16, was procured for the SAS and first saw action in the Falklands. The L2 grenade and the No.94 Energa rifle grenade could be fired from the SLR, though this was rarely done. The American Remington pump-action shotgun was used in Malaya and Borneo; FN semi-automatic types were also tried.

Today

Pistols:

The Hi-Power remains in service, although the SIG-Sauer P226 is preferred in the counter-terrorist role. The Walther PPK has been used by those needing a more easily concealed firearm.

Submachine guns:

The SMG is a far less important weapon than in the past, but is still used by SAS troops on Counter Revolutionary Warfare(CRW) duties. The weapon is the MP5, which comes in several different versions, including a silenced one and the MP5K, a smaller variant for concealed use.

Rifles and carbines:

The M16A2, known like its predecessors as the Armalite, is the primary weapon of today's SAS. It first saw known operational use in the Gulf War and more often than not has the M203 grenade launcher attached. The Heckler & Koch G3, a 7.62mm automatic rifle, was first used by SAS teams in Northern Ireland, and would presumably be used whenever its range and stopping power outweigh the weight penalty. Its smaller stable-mate, the 5.56mm HK53 carbine, is also in service, again originally being used in Ulster. The Accuracy International PM, designated L96A1 in British army service, replaced the old Lee-Enfield in the late 1980s. Like its predecessor it is 7.62mm bolt-action weapon, but of ultra-modern type, being one of the few rifles specifically designed for sniping. More recently the Barrett Model 82A1, a .50 sniper rifle, has entered service. The standard British rifle today, the SA80, is only used by 22SAS men when they are disguised as regular troops, though it is the main weapon of the Territorial Army SAS regiments.

Machine guns:

The GPMG remains in service, but is today more often vehicle-mounted. Long-range foot patrols can use the FN Minimi, a 5.56mm light machine gun known in the US as the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon. The Minimi uses the same 5.56mm round as the M16 and is usually fed from a 200-round assault pack. The seemingly irreplaceable .50 Browning ( British designation L1A1) also remains, usually vehicle-mounted, but it can be fired from a tripod if necessary.

Other: