List of equipment of the Biafran Army

This is a list of equipment in service with the former Biafran Armed Forces.

A considerable number of Czechoslovakian weapons were reportedly purchased in 1967, though Czechoslovakia officially denied a sale of weapons to the Biafran Armed Forces.

Small arms

Name Image Caliber Type Origin Notes
Submachine guns
CZ-23 and CZ-25 7.62×25mm Tokarev Submachine gun Czechoslovak Socialist Republic 300 bought at the beginning of 1967,[1] though Czechoslovakia denied direct purchase.
CZ-247 Submachine gun Czechoslovak Socialist Republic
Lanchester Mk I 9×19mm Parabellum Submachine gun United Kingdom Some used by mercenaries[2]
Name Image Caliber Type Origin Notes
Rifles
Dane guns Rifle Biafra Locally made muskets. In service with militias[3]
Lee-Enfield No.4 .303 British Bolt-action rifle United Kingdom From ex-Nigerian Army stocks. 120 to 150 rifles in January 1967[4]
Beretta BM 59 7.62×51mm NATO Battle rifle Italy Captured from Nigerian Army. [4]
Vz. 24 rifle 7.92×57mm Mauser Bolt-action rifle Czechoslovak Socialist Republic 1,860 bought at the beginning of 1967,[1] though Czechoslovakia denied direct purchase.
Vz. 52 rifle 7.62×45mm Semi-automatic rifle Czechoslovak Socialist Republic 820 bought at the beginning of 1967,[1] though Czechoslovakia denied direct purchase.
Vz. 58 rifle 7.62×39mm Assault rifle Czechoslovakia 732 bought at the beginning of 1967,[1] though Czechoslovakia denied direct purchase.
MAS-36 rifle 7.5×54mm French Bolt-action rifle France 300 from Haiti as a gift in 1968.[5] Gabon, Ivory Coast are also named as suppliers.
L1A1 SLR 7.62×51mm NATO Semi-automatic rifle United Kingdom 930 delivered by Parker-Hale in 1967;[5]
FN FAL 7.62×51mm NATO Battle rifle Belgium Some units captured from the Nigerian Army.[4]
CETME rifle Battle rifle Spain Captured from the Nigerian Army.[2][6]
98-type Mausers 7.62×51mm NATO Bolt-action rifle German Empire [7]
Type 56 assault rifle 7.62×39mm Assault rifle China In service with militias
Name Image Caliber Type Origin Notes
Machine guns
Vz. 26 machine gun Machine gun Czechoslovakia 55 units of vz. 26, 30, 52 and 59 machine guns bought at the beginning of 1967,[1] though Czechoslovakia denied direct purchase.
Vz. 30 machine gun Machine gun Czechoslovakia
Vz. 52 machine gun Machine gun Czechoslovakia
Vz. 59 machine gun Machine gun Czechoslovakia
Vz. 37 heavy machine gun Machine gun Czechoslovakia 20 bought at the beginning of 1967,[1] though Czechoslovakia denied direct purchase.
MG 34 7.92×57mm Mauser General-purpose machine gun Nazi Germany [1]
Bren .303 British General-purpose machine gun United Kingdom From ex-Nigerian Army stocks. ~12 guns in January 1967.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Jowett 2016, p. 22.
  2. ^ a b Jowett 2016, p. 46.
  3. ^ Jowett 2016, p. 14.
  4. ^ a b c d Jowett 2016, p. 21.
  5. ^ a b Jowett 2016, p. 23.
  6. ^ "¿Estos son Cetmes españoles?". Archived from the original on 2023-02-19. Retrieved 2022-12-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  7. ^ Scarlata, Paul (October 2012). "The military rifle cartridges of Nigeria". Shotgun News.

Sources

  • Jowett, Philip S. (2016). Modern African Wars (5): The Nigerian-Biafran War 1967–70. Oxford: Osprey Publishing Press. ISBN 978-1472816092.
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