Needlegun

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The APS underwater rifle, an underwater firearm designed by the Soviet Union in the early 1970s APS underwater rifle REMOV.jpg
The APS underwater rifle, an underwater firearm designed by the Soviet Union in the early 1970s

A needlegun, also known as a needler, flechette gun or fletcher, is a firearm that fires small, sometimes fin-stabilized, metal darts or flechettes. Theoretically, the advantages of a needlegun over conventional projectile firearms are in its compact size, high rate of fire, and extreme muzzle velocity. The needle presents less frontal area than a bullet, producing less drag and thus more effective range (especially in water) than a wider projectile of the same mass and velocity. There have been experiments to make guided flechettes that can home in on targets. [1]

Contents

Pre-industrial

The first projectiles in early gun systems dating from the 14th century were typically hand wrought iron flechettes wrapped in a leather sabot.[ citation needed ] However, due to the expense and trouble of making these darts in a pre-industrial society, they were soon replaced with the less accurate stone cannonball.

World War I

World War I flechettes Verkehrsmuseum Dresden - Luftverkehr - Fliegerpfeile - DSC4900.jpg
World War I flechettes

Flechettes again came into mass use in the years before World War I. Starting as early as 1910, the French began experimenting with air-dropped flechettes; flechettes dropped from planes were used extensively during the war. [2]

Vietnam War

A June 1978 issue of Gallery Magazine [3] quotes L. Fletcher Prouty observing a test of flechette weapons in 1960 and the testimony of William E. Colby in the Church Committee on September 16 to 18, 1975 describing flechette weapons. Charles A. Senseney testified that he was a project engineer of the M-1 dart launcher that was described as resembling a M1911 pistol with a sight mount at the top.

Senseney claimed the M-1 was designed for the US Army Special Forces to be used in the Vietnam War but never got there due to not being able to get into the US Army's logistics system in time. [4] Flechette ammunition encased in a sabot was available for the M-16, shotguns, and other weapons for use in Vietnam.

Underwater

A June 1965 Esquire magazine story on the making of the then-upcoming James Bond film Thunderball featured drawings of dart firing pistols that were not used in the completed film. [5]

At the same time several makes of underwater firearms fired a steel bolt just over 4 inches long (but without fins).

Special Purpose Individual Weapon

5.56mm Point Target SPIW (Special Purpose Individual Weapon) at the National Firearms Museum. SPIW at the National Firearms Museum.jpg
5.56mm Point Target SPIW (Special Purpose Individual Weapon) at the National Firearms Museum.

The Special Purpose Individual Weapon was a long-running United States Army program to develop, in part, a workable XM-216 flechette-based "rifle", though other concepts were also involved. The concepts continued to be tested under the Future Rifle Program and again in the 1980s and 1990s under the Advanced Combat Rifle program, but neither program resulted in a system useful enough to warrant replacing the current M16.

In fiction

In Marko Kloos's Frontlines series of novels, the military commonly use M66 flechette rifles and pistols putting out rounds of thousands a minute.

In William Gibson's novel Neuromancer , the character Molly Millions uses a flechette pistol.

In Neal Stephenson's novel Snow Crash , characters use a modified version of a needle/railgun called Reason.

In Michael Moorcock's Jerry Cornelius stories, the title character uses a transistorized needlegun.

In Terry Brooks's Genesis of Shannara stories, multiple characters use flechette guns.

In TSR's 1982 science fiction role-playing game Star Frontiers, a "needler" was a common weapon with multiple variations existing in the game.

In Bungie's 1996 video game sequel, Marathon Infinity , the KKV-7 10mm SMG Flechette makes its debut and introduces the player to an extreme rate of fire.

In the Halo video games, originally developed by Bungie, the Needler is an alien weapon that fires homing crystalline needles that explode after a delay. In 2010, the Needle Rifle was introduced to the series with the release of Halo: Reach .

In Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 , a flechette rifle called the S6 Stingray can be unlocked. It is a two-round burst tactical rifle firing high damage serrated projectiles. Impact blasting projectiles can be equipped for maximum damage.

In Fallout 2 there is a pistol variant of flechette firing weapons known as the "Needler Pistol".

In the videogame F.E.A.R., there are several 10mm flechette nailguns.

In the fictional universe of Warhammer 40,000 , Needleguns are occasionally mentioned as being used by non-military combatants, such as inquisitors and assassins.

In Frank Herbert's Dune novel, many organizations and houses wielded flechette projectile weapons, and a needlegun is featured in the 1984 film adaptation as a pistol wielded by Gurney Halleck.

In Robert A Heinlein's novel The Number of the Beast , the character Deety (Deja Thoris Burroughs-Carter) owns an illegal flechette pistol for self-defence.

In David Weber's Honorverse, several factions use flechette guns.

In K. A. Applegate's Animorphs, the alien race of Howlers use flechette guns.

In Dan Simmons' Hyperion Cantos, flechette guns are used by many military and police forces.

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bullet</span> Projectile propelled by a firearm, sling, or air gun

A bullet is a kinetic projectile, a component of firearm ammunition that is shot from a gun barrel. They are made of a variety of materials, such as copper, lead, steel, polymer, rubber and even wax; and are made in various shapes and constructions, including specialized functions such as hunting, target shooting, training, and combat. Bullets are often tapered, making them more aerodynamic. Bullet size is expressed by weight and diameter in both imperial and metric measurement systems. Bullets do not normally contain explosives but strike or damage the intended target by transferring kinetic energy upon impact and penetration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flechette</span> Pointed, fin-stabilized steel projectile

A flechette is a pointed, fin-stabilized steel projectile. The name comes from French fléchette, meaning "little arrow" or "dart", and sometimes retains the acute accent in English: fléchette. They have been used as ballistic weapons since World War I. Delivery systems and methods of launching flechettes vary, from a single shot, to thousands in a single explosive round. The use of flechettes as antipersonnel weapons has been controversial.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smoothbore</span> Weapon that has a barrel without rifling

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steyr IWS 2000</span> Anti-materiel rifle

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SCMITR was part of an experimental military shotgun ammunition created in the 1970s by AAI Corporation. It was a variation on flechette ammunition, but instead of containing a bundle of tiny needle-like steel darts, the cartridge contained a stack of razor-edged stamped sheet-metal arrow shapes designed to fly aerodynamically. It was considered to be very promising but prohibitively expensive to manufacture, so it has never been mass-produced.

The Special Purpose Individual Weapon (SPIW) was a long-running United States Army program to develop, in part, a flechette-firing "rifle", though other concepts were also involved. The concepts continued to be tested under the Future Rifle Program and again in the 1980s under the Advanced Combat Rifle program, but neither program resulted in a system useful enough to warrant replacing the M16.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gyrojet</span> Firearm that fires small rocket projectiles

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The Steyr ACR was a prototype flechette-firing assault rifle built for the US Army's Advanced Combat Rifle program of 1989/90. Although the Steyr design proved effective, as did most of the weapons submitted, the entire ACR program ended with none of the entrants achieving performance 100% better than the M16A2, the baseline for a successful ACR weapon.

Darts are airborne ranged weapons. They are designed to fly such that a sharp, often weighted point will strike first. They can be distinguished from javelins by the presence of fletching and a shaft that is shorter and/or more flexible. Darts can be propelled by hand or with the aid of a hand-held implement such as a blowgun. They can be distinguished from arrows because they are not used with a bow.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Underwater firearm</span> Firearms that can be effectively fired underwater

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References

  1. "Sandia's self-guided bullet prototype can hit target a mile away". Sandia Laboratories. Albuquerque, NM, USA: Sandia Corporation. 30 Jan 2012. Archived from the original on 5 February 2012. Retrieved 19 December 2013.
  2. Barak, Eitan (2011-10-28). Deadly Metal Rain: The Legality of Flechette Weapons in International Law: A Reappraisal Following Israel's Use of Flechettes in the Gaza Strip (2001-2009). Martinus Nijhoff Publishers. pp. 23–31. ISBN   978-90-04-16719-3.
  3. Sprague, Richard E. and Cutler, Robert The Umbrella System: Prelude to an AssassinationGallery Magazine June 1978
  4. "Charles A. Senseney testimony", Church Committee, September 18, 1975
  5. "Bond: A Spy's Report on 007's Next Movie Thunderball", Esquire, June 1965