Microsoft Close Combat manual Colt .45 model Walther P, Effective range 30 m 32 yds

Chapter 5

Weapons

Colt .45 model 1911

Walther P 38

Operation Semiautomatic

Caliber .45 (11.4 mm)

Muzzle velocity 253 mps (830 fps)

Capacity 7-round detachable box magazine Weight 1.1 kg (2.43 lbs)

Overall length 21.9 cm (8.62 in.)

Effective range 30 m (32 yds)

The most famous American handgun of World War II was the Model 1911 .45-caliber semiautomatic pistol invented by John M. Browning. This pistol was born out of the U.S military’s frustration with the limited stopping power of smaller-caliber revolvers during the Spanish-American War. Both Colt and the Springfield Armory produced the pistol between 1911 and 1915, and by the end of World War I over 60 percent of the American soldiers in France were issued Colt 45s. After World War I, slight modifica- tions were made to the trigger, hammer, grip, and frame. Although it was issued to officers and squad leaders, the .45 was not standard issue for infantry- men during World War II. This didn’t keep many front line soldiers from obtaining them, and the regulation against their carrying pistols was rarely enforced. The Colt was recognized as a weapon of last resort—most soldiers had more effective weapons available, but no one denied the feeling of security the weighty .45 provided. It remained the standard U.S. sidearm until 1984.

Operation Semiautomatic

Caliber 9-mm Parabellum (.354 in.)

Muzzle velocity 350 mps (1,149 fps)

Capacity 8-round magazine

Weight 0.96 kg (2 lbs)

Overall length 21.3 cm (8.25 in.)

Effective range 30 m (32 yds)

The Walther P 38 semiautomatic pistol, which eventually replaced the Luger P 08 as the standard German military sidearm, entered production in 1939. It was designed to be more quickly, cheaply, and easily manufactured than the P 08. In addition to these virtues, the sophisticated yet robust P 38 added several features that made it more convenient and safer than the Luger, which had been designed at the end of the previous century. The P 38 was a double- action firearm—after it was cocked and loaded, the user could lower the hammer, and then at any time pull back the hammer and press the trigger to fire the chambered round; in an emergency in which aim was less important than speed, simply pulling the trigger would cock the hammer and fire the chambered round. By the end of the war more

than a million P 38s had been produced. In 1957 Walther resumed production of the P 38 in a slightly lightened version called the P 1, which was the standard German military sidearm until 1980. The P 38 remained in service in several countries into the 1990s.