FM 24/29
| Factions | Weapon | Icon | Classes | Ammo |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 VC |
 FM 24/29 |
 |
 Gunner |
25 / 125 |
| Damage Base | Headshot × | Chest × | Stomach × | Leg × | Arm × | Bayonet | Rifle Grenades | Reload Speed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Partial | Empty | ||||||||
| 49 | ×2.3 = 112.7 | ×1 = 49.0 | ×0.95 = 46.55 | ×0.6 = 29.4 | ×0.55 = 26.95 | NO | NO | 3.4 Seconds | 4.166 Seconds |
| Designation | Weapon Type | Fire Modes | Fire Rate | Bullet Spread ° | Range Modifier | Muzzle Velocity | Projectile weight | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| [[]] | LMG | Auto+Semi | 450 RPM | 9.03° & 2.35° ADS | 0.925 | 735 m/s | 7.9 g (121.92 gr) | 8.9 kg (19.62 lbs) |
| Full name | Caliber | Place of Origin | Date | Manufacturer | Barrel Length | Total Length | Weapon Script Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FN | 7.5×54mm French | France | 1925 | ARM | in ( mm) | in ( mm) | weapon_fm24 |
The FM 24/29 (Fusil-mitrailleur modèle 1924 modifié 1929) is a French light machine gun (LMG) chambered in 7.5×54mm French (7,5×54mm MAS). It served as a squad automatic weapon, feeding from a distinctive top-mounted 25-round box magazine. The FM 24/29 is best known for long service across multiple conflicts, including widespread use by French forces in the First Indochina War.
HISTORY
France developed the FM 24 as a post–World War I replacement for earlier light automatic weapons, and it entered production in the mid-1920s as the standard infantry section machine gun. The original pattern was later modified and standardized in 1929 as the FM 24/29, including changes associated with adopting the 7.5×54mm Mle 1929 cartridge. It remained in French service through World War II and continued to appear with French units for decades afterward.
During the First Indochina War, the FM 24/29 was a common squad automatic weapon among French Union units operating in Vietnam, and period photographs in French military archives document it in the field. As the conflict progressed, captured examples also entered Vietnamese hands and could remain in circulation alongside other small arms, especially in units equipped from mixed stocks. This battlefield capture-and-reuse pattern helped keep the FM 24/29 visible in the region even as newer weapons became more common.
Sources
- Imperial War Museums – Fusil Mitrailleur M1924/29 (collection entry)
- Musée de l'Armée (Invalides) – Fusil-mitrailleur modèle 1924 M29 (collection entry)
- Gallica (BnF) – Notice sur le fusil-mitrailleur, modèle 1924-M. 29 (1939/1940)
- Service historique de la Défense – Fusil-mitrailleur 1924-29, fabrication : plans (archive notice)
- Ministère des Armées (ImagesDéfense) – 1/3e RTM en opération au sud Viêt Nam (FM M24/29)