American Rifle - Alexander Rose [276]
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83. J. Raymond, “M-14 Rifle Output Now Satisfies U.S.; Delays Overcome,” New York Times, October 16, 1961, p. 1.
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84. “Only 1 of 10 in Army Has Its M-14 Rifle,” Washington Post, June 25, 1961, p. A14.
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85. “Army, Olin Mathieson Unit Agree Output of M-14 Rifle Lags; Each Blames Other,” Wall Street Journal, April 20, 1961, p. 4.
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86. “Only 1 of 10 in Army Has Its M-14 Rifle,” p. A14.
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87. Raymond, “M-14 Rifle Output,” p. 1.
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88. Ezell, Lightweight Rifle, pp. 267–68.
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89. L. Kraar, “Army Maneuvers Show Gaps in Preparedness for Any Shooting War,” Wall Street Journal, August 17, 1961, p. 1. Ezell, Lightweight Rifle, p. 344, notes that the 5,000 troops in besieged Berlin carried M1s, as did the 1,500 reinforcements sent to aid them.
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90. On the defense preparations, see T. Wicker, “President Defends Arms Stand; Asks His Critics to Be Specific,” New York Times, October 12, 1961, p. 20; Kraar, “Army Maneuvers,” p. 1.
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91. Raymond, “M-14 Rifle Output,” p. 1.
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92. Ezell, Lightweight Rifle, pp. 272–76.
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93. Canfield, “M14,” p. 95.
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94. Ezell, Lightweight Rifle, p. 282.
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95. “Experts Study Infantry Weapon to Replace M-14,” Washington Post, January 30, 1963, p. A7.
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Chapter 11
1. There is little material available on Sullivan. The article “Plastic Rifle Designed by Angeleno Passes Test,” Los Angeles Times, February 11, 1957, p. 31, contains a few nuggets as well as a photo, and J. Hartt, “Deadly AR-15 Rifles Born with $999 Loss,” Los Angeles Times, January 3, 1966, adds a bit more.
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2. Michault’s role at this early stage is shrouded in obscurity. See R. B. Stevens and E. C. Ezell, The Black Rifle: M16 Retrospective (Toronto: Collector Grade, 1987), pp. 19–20.
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3. Indeed, at the time Fairchild was taking an enormous gamble that its new forty-seat turboprop F-27, which it had licensed from Fokker in the Netherlands, would replace the fabled Douglas DC-3 as the nation’s number-one civilian airliner. Though built in significant numbers, the F-27 ultimately could not compete against the DC-3’s ingrained customer base, let alone its versatility, thriftiness, and hardiness. See “Flight of the Friendship,” Time, April 21, 1958.This article also mentions Boutelle’s “trophy-filled office.”
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4. These very early days in the history of ArmaLite are covered in D.T. McElrath, “Golden Days at ArmaLite,” American Rifleman 152, no. 12 (December 2004) and the official history of the company, “A Historical Review of ArmaLite,” available online at www.armalite.com. On Fairchild’s sales figures, see “Flight of the Friendship,” Time.
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5. As a former Air Corps major, Boutelle might have heard about this some time before his army-connected competitors did. Another probable information conduit was through Boutelle’s senior management team, which enjoyed strong connections with the Air Force: the consumer-relations director had actually outranked the corporate president back in the day. See “Flight of the Friendship,” Time; on his senior managers, see R. P. Cooke, “Fairchild: A Small Firm Made Big by Making Bigger Planes; It May Be the First to Top Wartime Production,” Wall Street Journal, November 6, 1950, p. 6.
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6. On the number manufactured, see “The Aluminum Rifle,” Time, December 3, 1956. On the colorful civilian models, “New and Lighter Rifles Signal Fairchild’s Entry in Arms Field,” Washington Post, November 27, 1956, p. A14.
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7. McElrath, “Golden Days”; and “Historical Review of ArmaLite.” Wikipedia has a useful entry giving Stoner’s sparse biographical details. See also D. Shea, “Father of the AR-15,” American Rifleman 145, no. 12 (November/December 1997), pp. 39, 54–55, 62, for a technical appreciation.