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The Fliegerbeobachter-Doppelpistole (lit. "aviation observer double pistol"), often shortened to Flieger-Doppelpistole, was a Swiss double-barreled submachine gun produced by W+F Bern.

History[]

The Doppelpistole was designed by Adolf Furrer in 1919 as a weapon for aircraft observers, although it never saw extensive use in this role, especially after the introduction of modern aircraft rendered the role of the observation gunner obsolete. Stocked versions were instead fielded in limited numbers by the Swiss Army for ground roles. By 1921, 61 units were in use by the Fliegertruppen near DĆ¼bendorf. Production of the Doppelpistole was brief and the weapon was succeeded by the more practical Furrer MP41.

Design[]

The Doppelpistole was a toggle-action, blowback-operated submachine gun. The action was basically that of an upside-down Luger, with the toggle locks located on the underside of the gun and the magazines being fed into the top of the receiver. The spent casings were ejected straight downwards. It fired from an open bolt.

Unconventionally, the Doppelpistole featured twin barrels with separate firing mechanisms allocated to them, linked to a single central trigger mechanism. The weapon could not fire from both barrels at once; a selector switch on the side of the receiver would allow the user to control which barrel was fired from. It also featured a fire selector that included automatic, semi-automatic, and safety modes.

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References[]

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