History

 In 1947, the first FN FAL prototype was completed. It was designed to fire the intermediate 7.92x33mm Kurz cartridge developed and used by the forces of Nazi Germany during World War II (see StG44 assault rifle). After testing this prototype in 1948, the British Army urged FN to build additional prototypes, including one in bullpup configuration, chambered for their new .280 British caliber intermediate cartridge. After evaluating the single bullpup prototype, FN decided to return instead to their original, conventional design for future production.

In 1950, the United Kingdom presented the redesigned FN rifle and the British EM-2, both in .280 British calibre, to the United States for comparison testing against the favoured United States Army design of the time - Earle Harvey's T25. It was hoped that a common cartridge and rifle could be standardized for issue to the armies of all NATO member countries. After this testing was completed, U.S. Army officials suggested that FN should redesign their rifle to fire the U.S. prototype '.30 Light Rifle' cartridge. FN decided to hedge their bets with the U.S., given that the UK appeared to be favouring their own EM-2.

In 1951, FN even made a deal with the U.S. that they could produce the FAL royalty-free in the U.S. This decision appeared to be correct when the British Army decided to adopt the EM-2 and .280 British cartridge in the very same month. This decision was later rescinded after the Labour Party lost the General Election, was ousted from control of Parliament and Winston Churchill returned as Prime Minister. It is believed that there was a quid pro quo agreement between Churchill and U.S. President Harry Truman in 1952 that the British accept the .30 Light Rifle cartridge as NATO standard in return for U.S. acceptance of the FN FAL as NATO standard. The .30 Light Rifle cartridge was in fact later standardized as the 7.62 mm NATO; however, the U.S. insisted on continued rifle tests. The FAL chambered for the .30 Light Rifle went up against the redesigned T25 (now redesignated as the T47), and an M1 Garand variant, the T44. Eventually, the T44 won out, becoming the M14. However, in the meantime, most other NATO countries were evaluating and selecting the FAL.

FN created what is possibly the classic post-war battle rifle. Formally introduced by its designers Dieudonne Saive and Ernest Vervier in 1951, and produced two years later, it has been described as the "right arm of the Free World." The FAL battle rifle has its Warsaw Pact counterpart in the AK-47, each being fielded by dozens of countries and produced in many of them. A few, such as Israel and South Africa, manufactured and issued both designs at various times. Unlike the Russian AK-47 assault rifle, the FAL utilized a heavier full-power rifle cartridge.

Singleplayer/Co-Op

The FN FAL returns in Call of Duty: Black Ops, and looks much different from the Modern Warfare 2 version, having its wooden stock and body, a shorter magazine, and lacking a rail system for attachments. In singleplayer, the weapon is used heavily by the Tropas but also used by the NVA in "The Defector."

In Zombies mode, the FN FAL can only obtained from the Mystery Box. It comes with a 20 round magazine, moderate power and high accuracy. Due to the larger mag size and equal power, the FN FAL is considered superior to the M14. When Pack-a-Punched it turns into EPC WN, and gains a Reflex Sight with a random reticule and switches to a three-round burst firing mode, though since use of the FN FAL is rare itself because of its ineffectiveness in anything other than the first few rounds, one will seldom see a player using the EPC WN.

Multiplayer

Damage 50-40 (MP)
 
Damage Multipliers Head: 1.4, Body: 1, Limbs: 1
 
Magazine Size 20 rounds(30 Extended Mags)
 
Unlocked at Level 32
 
Cost  2000
 
Starting Ammunition 60
 
Maximum Ammunition 160
 
Reload Time 2.5 loaded, 3.1 unloaded
 
Rate of Fire 625 RPM
 
Recoil Moderate
 
Penetration Moderate
 
Fire Mode Semi-Automatic
 
Used by Tropas, NVA 

Unlocked at level 32, the FN FAL has medium recoil and high damage, killing in 2-3 shots in Core game modes. The weapon has some advantages over the similar M14: the FN FAL has much more open, less obstructed iron sights, easily stays on target in close to medium range gunfights and does not require a grip like the M14. The FN FAL does feature some horizontal recoil which can make it difficult to kill at long range compared to the M14. The weapon does have a 0.1 second longer partial reload time and 0.35 second faster empty reload time. The FN FAL also has lower damage multiplier on the head and neck than the M14 does, which means that the FAL needs two headshots to two-hit at long range, while the M14 only needs one of the two bullets to hit the head or neck in order to get a two-hit kill at range. Unlike the M14, the FN FAL can use the Dual Mag attachment.

Challenges