North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
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A Nato AWACS plane takes off the NATO Airbase in Geilenkirchen, Germany, Wednesday, March 12, 2014. AWACS planes flying out of Geilenkirchen to patrol over Romania and Poland. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)
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A Nato AWACS plane takes off the NATO Airbase in Geilenkirchen, Germany, Wednesday, March 12, 2014. AWACS planes flying out of Geilenkirchen to patrol over Romania and Poland. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)
FN_FNC
The FNC (Fusil Nouveau Type Carabine) is a 5.56mm assault rifle developed by the Belgian arms manufacturer Fabrique Nationale (FN) of Herstal and introduced in the late 1970s. The rifle was developed between 1975–1977 for NATO standardization trials. The rifle’s design is based on the FNC 76 prototype, which itself originated from the commercially unsuccessful FN CAL rifle. This prototype was soon withdrawn from the NATO competition after performing poorly due to its rushed development. Later trials for the Swedish Armed Forces held between 1981–1982 using updated prototypes proved the utility and efficiency of the design, impressing both the Swedish military and Belgian army staff back at home. The FNC was finally adopted by the armed forces of Belgium in 1989, as a service-wide replacement for the 7.62mm-caliber FN FAL after having been issued in small numbers to airborne infantry units for several years.
