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FP-45 Liberator
The FP-45 Liberator was an inexpensive pistol designed by the U.S. military during World War 2 to serve as a disposable single-shot pistol. Though described as an 'assassination weapon' some historians bristled at the connotation, indicating that the intent was to provide ultra cheap weapons which could be dropped behind enemy lines to friendly forces. The simple design and single shot capacity would ensure that the weapon be regarded as relatively useless by any enemy military (firing a .45 ACP round from an unrifled 4-inch barrel, the Liberator's effective range was around 3 yards), but could be used as a last ditch defensive weapon or to procure better weapons from enemy forces. The weapon was made in utmost secrecy, with instructions using non-firearm terms such as "spanner" to describe the parts and a deliberately misleading designation ("FP" for "Flare Pistol"). Most of the Liberator pistols manufactured were never distributed and were destroyed after the war. So far there is no documented evidence of their usage as a weapon during WW2.
The Liberator is an extremely simple twist-lock breech weapon without even an extractor mechanism; while it can store 5 additional .45 ACP rounds in a magazine-like structure in the grip, this does not feed into the weapon. Reloading the weapon requires the spent casing first be manually forced out of the barrel from the front, with a wooden dowel rod provided for this purpose. This rather infamously resulted in the only gun in history that took longer to reload than it did to manufacture.
The FP-45 Liberator can be seen in the following video games used by the following actors:
Television
| Show Title / Episode | Actor | Character | Notation | Air Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mail Call / 'Snafu' | R. Lee Ermey | Himself |
Video Games
| Game Title | Appears as | Mods | Notation | Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater | EZ GUN (main game) / Monkey Shaker (Snake vs. Monkey) | With silencer and laser aiming module | Shown firing tranquilizer darts | 2004 |
| Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker | EZ Gun | With silencer and laser aiming module | Fires life- or Psyche-gauge-regaining darts | 2010 |