Pistole Mitraglitrice Vilar-Perosa M15

Pistole Mitraglitrice Vilar-Perosa

Last Updated on Saturday, 11 July 2009 20:43 Written by Administrator Friday, 03 July 2009 00:03

The Pistole Mitraglictrice Vilar-Perosa M15 was an early submachine gun of the First World War era. It was an experimental design and the submachine gun, though innovative in many regards, was not so effective in the field.

The M15 was very short at 550mm (21.5 inches). In fact, it is shorter than the modern Mini-Uzi. The M15 had two barrels and was chambered for a 9mm round. It was fed from the top of each barrel from two 25-round magazines.

The Vilar-Perosa M15 was designed as a support weapon i.e. to provide cover from enemy fire by engaging the enemy when needed. The submachine gun also came with a bipod. It could also be used by suspending it with the help of straps for making a quick assault on enemy troops.

One of the main disadvantages of the M15 was its tremendous firing rate of 1200 rounds per minute. At the rate, the barrel would become empty in no time requiring the firer to reload—which was time consuming process.

Overall, the M15 was a poor submachine gun. It was less than handy to use in the field. However, those were the initial days of submachine guns. The concept of the submachine gun was in nascent stages at that time and had to wait for a few more decades to mature.