F1
| Factions | Weapon | Icon | Classes | Ammo |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 ANZAC |
 F1 |
 |
 Medic Engineer Radioman |
34 / 102 |
| Damage Base | Headshot × | Chest × | Stomach × | Leg × | Arm × | Reload Speed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Partial | Empty | ||||||
| 35 | ×2.4 = 84 | ×1.3 = 45.5 | ×1.2 = 42 | ×0.8 = 28 | ×0.75 = 26.25 | 2.66 Seconds | 3.166 Seconds |
| Designation | Weapon Type | Fire Modes | Fire Rate | Bullet Spread ° | Range Modifier | Muzzle Velocity | Projectile weight | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| [[]] | SMG | Auto+Semi | 625 RPM | 7.25° & 1.95° ADS | 0.92 | 365 m/s | 7.5 g (115.743 gr) | 3.7 kg (8.15 lbs) |
| Full name | Caliber | Place of Origin | Date | Manufacturer | Barrel Length | Total Length | Weapon Script Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FN | 9x19mm | Australia | 1963 | ARM | in ( mm) | in ( mm) | weapon_f1 |
The F1 submachine gun is an Australian 9×19mm Parabellum open-bolt SMG produced at the Lithgow Small Arms Factory as a postwar replacement for the Owen gun. It is recognizable for its top-mounted magazine and offset iron sights, and it emphasizes simple construction and rugged handling over refinement. In service it was primarily a close-range automatic weapon, most associated with Australian forces during the Vietnam War era before being supplanted by 5.56mm rifles in many roles.
HISTORY
The F1 emerged from Australian trials work in the early 1960s, evolving from prototype “X-series” guns into a production weapon that combined features associated with earlier Australian and British submachine guns. It retained the Owen-style top-feed layout while adopting a straightforward tubular receiver and simplified manufacturing approach, and it was adopted for Australian service in the early 1960s as the Kpist m/45-era generation of SMGs was giving way to newer rifles and carbines.
In the Vietnam War, the F1 was carried by Australian troops in roles where a compact automatic weapon was useful at short range, including some patrol, support, and specialist tasks. Operational experience in Southeast Asia increasingly favored lighter 5.56mm rifles for general infantry use, and the F1 was gradually displaced in many frontline contexts even while it remained in service more broadly. The weapon stayed in Australian inventory into the late Cold War period before eventual replacement by later small-arms families.
Sources
- Australian War Memorial — X3 F1 Submachine Gun (prototype of the production F1)
- Australian War Memorial — Australian soldier carrying an F1 sub-machine gun (photograph)
- Australian War Memorial Library — 100 years of Australian service machineguns (Ian D. Skennerton)
- Forgotten Weapons — “Sterling Meets Owen: The Australian F1 Submachine Gun”