Editing M1 carbine (section)

==U.S. combat use==
===World War II===

[[File:USMC M1 Carbine.JPEG|thumb|U.S. Marine in combat at Guam]]
[[File:First Iwo Jima Flag Raising.jpg|thumb|M1 carbine at first Iwo Jima flag raising]]

The M1 carbine with its reduced-power .30 cartridge was not originally intended to serve as a primary weapon for combat infantrymen, nor was it comparable to more powerful assault rifles developed late in the war. However, it was markedly superior to the .45 caliber submachine guns in use at the time in both accuracy and penetration,<ref name="George, John 1981 p. 394"/> and its lighter .30 caliber cartridge allowed soldiers to carry more ammunition. As a result, the carbine was soon widely issued to infantry officers, American [[paratrooper]]s, [[non-commissioned officer]]s, ammunition bearers, forward artillery observers, and other frontline troops.<ref name="Rush_GI">{{cite book |author1=Rush, Robert S. |title=GI: The US Infantryman in World War II |publisher=Osprey Publishing Ltd.|date=21 November 2003 |isbn=1-84176-739-5|pages=33–35|quote=Officers were issued .45 M1911 pistols as individual weapons until 1943, when they were issued the M1 carbine in place of the pistol}}</ref>  The first M1 carbines were delivered in mid-1942, with initial priority given to troops in the [[European Theater of Operations]] (ETO).<ref name="George, John 1981 p. 394"/>

During World War II a standard U.S. Army infantry company was issued a total of 28 M1 carbines.<ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=http://www.militaryresearch.org/7-17%2026Feb44.pdf|title=T/O&E 7-17 Infantry Rifle Company|date=1944-02-26|work=U.S. Government (War Department)|access-date=15 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230405202158/http://www.militaryresearch.org/7-17%2026Feb44.pdf|archive-date= 5 April 2023}}</ref> The company headquarters was issued nine carbines (for the company commander, executive officer, first sergeant, mess sergeant, supply sergeant, bugler, and three messengers), the weapons platoon was issued sixteen carbines (for the platoon leader, platoon sergeant, two platoon messengers in the platoon headquarters, one messenger in each of the two mortar and machine gun section headquarters, and ten for the mortar and machine gun ammunition bearers), and the three rifle platoons were issued one each (for the platoon leader).<ref name="auto"/>

The M1 carbine gained generally high praise for its small size, light weight and firepower, especially by those troops who were unable to use a full-size rifle as their primary weapon.<ref name="Shore, C. 1988 pp. 191-195"/><ref name="Brotherhood">{{cite book |author1=McManus, John C. |title=The Deadly Brotherhood: The American Combat Soldier in World War II|location=New York |publisher=Random House Publishing|url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/325362.The_Deadly_Brotherhood |isbn=978-0-89141-655-5|date=27 April 1998 |page=52 |quote=Armored infantryman Herb Miller, of the [[U.S. 6th Armored Division]], pointed out one of the M1's strong points, "I was very happy with the carbine... It's fast, it's easy to use in a hurry. For churches and houses and things like that, it was good".}}</ref> However, its reputation in front-line combat was mixed and negative reports began to surface with airborne operations in [[Sicily]] in 1943,<ref>{{cite book |author1=Gavin, James M. (Lt. Gen.)|title=War and Peace in the Space Age |location=New York |publisher=Harper and Brothers|date=1958|pages=57, 63|url=https://www.amazon.com/War-peace-space-James-Gavin/dp/B0006AVLH0 |quote=Col. [[James M. Gavin|Gavin]]'s love affair with his M1A1 carbine ended in Sicily, when his carbine and that of Maj. [[Benjamin H. Vandervoort|Vandervoort]] jammed repeatedly. Noticing that carbine fire rarely suppressed rifle fire from German infantry, he and Vandervoort traded with wounded soldiers for their M1 rifles and ammunition; Gavin carried an M1 rifle for the rest of the war.}}</ref> and increased during the fall and winter of 1944.<ref name="Burgett">{{cite book |author1=Burgett, Donald|title=Seven Roads To Hell|location=New York|publisher=Presidio Press |date=14 April 1999|isbn=0-440-23627-4|pages=153–154 |quote=[[Donald Burgett|Burgett]], a machine-gunner in the 101st Airborne from Normandy to the Battle of the Bulge, witnessed several failures of the .30 carbine to stop German soldiers after being hit.}}</ref>

In the [[Asiatic-Pacific Theater]], soldiers and guerrilla forces operating in heavy jungle with only occasional enemy contact praised the carbine for its small size, light weight, and firepower.<ref name="Chapman">{{cite book |author1=Chapman, F. Spencer |title=The Jungle Is Neutral: A Soldier's Two-Year Escape from the Japanese Army| publisher=Lyons Press|edition=1st|isbn=978-1-59228-107-7|date=2003|page=300}}</ref> However, soldiers and marines engaged in frequent daily firefights (particularly those serving in the Philippines) found the weapon to have insufficient penetration and stopping power.<ref name="Dunlap"/><ref name="Brotherhood52">McManus, p. 52, "Richard Lovett, of the U.S. [[Americal Division]], was one of several who did not like the carbine. "It didn't have stopping power. Enemy soldiers were shot many times but kept on coming."</ref> While carbine bullets would easily penetrate the front and back of steel helmets, as well as the body armor used by Japanese forces of the era,<ref>{{cite book |publisher=U.S. Army|date=15 September 1944 |title=Chapter X, Equipment| format=TM-E-30-480|url=https://archive.org/details/HandbookOnJapaneseMilitaryForces1944/Handbook%20on%20Japanese%20Military%20Forces%201944_compressed/page/n287/mode/2up}}</ref><ref>George, John, ''Shots Fired In Anger'' NRA Press (1981), p. 450</ref> reports of the carbine's failure to stop enemy soldiers, sometimes after multiple hits, appeared in individual after-action reports, postwar evaluations, and service histories of both the U.S. Army and the U.S. Marine Corps.<ref name="Dunlap"/><ref name="Brotherhood52"/>

The carbine's exclusive use of non-corrosive-primer ammunition was found to be ideal by troops and ordnance personnel serving in the Pacific, where barrel corrosion was a significant issue with the corrosive primers used in .30-06 caliber weapons.<ref name="Dunlap"/>  However, in the [[European theatre of World War II|European theatre]], some soldiers reported misfires attributed to moisture ingress of the non-corrosive primer compound.<ref name="Shore, C. 1988 pp. 191-195">{{cite book |author1=Shore, C. (Capt) |title=With British Snipers To The Reich|url=https://www.abebooks.com/9780935856026/British-Snipers-Reich-C-Shore-0935856021/plp |publisher=Lancer Militaria  |date=1988 |pages=191–195|quote=Small-statured men such as Capt. Shore and Sgt. [[Audie Murphy]] liked the carbine, as its small stock dimensions fit them particularly well.}}</ref>

====Selective-fire version====
[[File:United Nations troops fighting in the streets of Seoul, Korea HD-SN-99-03081.jpg|thumb|U.S. Marines fighting in the streets of Seoul, South Korea. 20 September 1950. The M1 carbine in the foreground has a bayonet mounted.]]
Initially, the M1 carbine was intended to have a [[selective-fire|select-fire]] capability, but the requirement for rapid production of the new carbine resulted in the omission of this feature from the Light Rifle Program. On 26 October 1944, in response to the Germans' widespread use of automatic weapons, especially the [[StG 44|Sturmgewehr 44]] [[assault rifle]], the select-fire ''M2 carbine'' was introduced, along with a new 30-round magazine. The M2 had a fully automatic rate-of-fire of 750-775 rounds-per-minute. Although actual M2 production began late in the war (April 1945), U.S. Ordnance issued conversion-part kits to allow field conversion of semi-auto M1 carbines to the selective-fire M2 configuration. These converted M1/M2 select-fire carbines saw limited combat service in Europe, primarily during the final Allied advance into Germany. In the Pacific, both converted and original M2 carbines saw limited use in the last days of the [[Philippines campaign (1944–1945)|fighting in the Philippines]].<ref name="Dunlap"/>

====Infrared sight versions====
The ''M3 carbine'' was an M2 carbine with the M2 infrared night sight or ''[[Sniperscope#Generation 0|sniperscope]]''.<ref name="Century 2000. page 290"/> The M3 did not have [[iron sights]].<ref name="Century 2000. page 290"/> It was first used in combat by Army units during the [[Battle of Okinawa|invasion of Okinawa]], where about 150 M3 carbines were used. For the first time, U.S. soldiers had a weapon that allowed them to visually detect Japanese infiltrating into American lines at night, even during complete darkness. A team of two or three soldiers was used to operate the weapon and provide support.<ref name="Rush_GI"/>  At night, the scope would be used to detect Japanese patrols and assault units moving forward. At that point, the operator would fire a burst of automatic fire at the greenish images of enemy soldiers.<ref name="Rush_GI"/>  The M3 carbine had an effective range of about {{convert|70|yd|m|abbr=off|sp=us}}, limited by the visual capabilities of the sight.<ref name="Article">{{cite web |title=M3 Infra Red Night Sight |url=http://www.rt66.com/~korteng/SmallArms/m3irsnip.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081005050126/http://www.rt66.com/~korteng/SmallArms/m3irsnip.htm |archive-date=2008-10-05|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Fog and rain further reduced the weapon's effective range.<ref name="Rush_GI"/><ref name="Article"/> However, it is estimated that 30% of Japanese casualties inflicted by rifle and carbine fire during the Okinawan campaign were caused by the M3 carbine.<ref name="Rush_GI"/>

The system was refined over time, and by the Korean War the improved M3 infrared night sight was in service. The M3 sight has a longer effective range than its predecessor, about {{convert|125|yd|m|abbr=off|sp=us}}. However, it still required the user to carry a heavy backpack-mounted battery pack to power the scope and infrared light. They were used primarily in static defensive positions in Korea to locate troops attempting to infiltrate in darkness. M3 operators would not only use their carbines to dispatch individual targets, but also used tracer ammo to identify troop concentrations for machine gunners to decimate.<ref name="Leroy_M1"/> In total, about 20,000 sets were made before they became obsolete, and were given to the public as surplus.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}

===Korean War===
[[File:Korean War HA-SN-98-07010.jpg|thumb|right| M1 carbine in action during Korean War with 30-round magazine, stock pouch for two 15-round Magazine and grenade launcher near a captured Soviet [[Degtyaryov machine gun|DP-27 machine gun]]]]
[[File:Chinese POWs captured by USMC in Korea HD-SN-99-03152.JPG|thumb|U.S. Marines with M1 carbine with mounted bayonet holding captured Chinese soldiers during fighting on the central Korean front]]

By the [[Korean War]], the [[select fire]] M2 carbine had largely replaced the submachine-gun in U.S. service<ref name="The M16 2011. page 6">{{cite book|url=https://ospreypublishing.com/the-m16 |title=The M16 |author1=Rottman, Gordon L. |publisher=Osprey Publishing |date=20 December 2011|page=6}}</ref> and was the most widely used carbine variant.<ref name="Leroy_M1"/><ref name="Canfield">{{cite magazine |author1=Canfield, Bruce |url=http://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/arms-chosin-few/|title=Arms of the Chosin Few |magazine=American Rifleman|date=2 November 2010|access-date=10 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230316143904/https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/arms-chosin-few/|archive-date= 16 March 2023}}</ref> However, the semi-auto M1 carbine was also widely used- especially by support troops. However, in Korea, all versions of the carbine soon acquired a widespread reputation for jamming in extremely cold weather,<ref name="Dill">{{cite book |url=https://www.americanheritage.com/winter-yalu|author1=Dill, James|title=Winter of the Yalu|publisher=Changjin Journal|date=December 1982|quote=A soldier remembers the freezing, fearful retreat down the Korean Peninsula after the Chinese armies smashed across the border|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407083459/https://www.americanheritage.com/winter-yalu|archive-date= 7 April 2023}}</ref><ref name="Canfield"/><ref name="Hammel_Chosin">{{cite book |author1=Hammel, Eric |title=Chosin: Heroic Ordeal of the Korean War |publisher=Presidio Press |edition=1st |isbn=978-0-7603-3154-5 |date=1 March 1990 |page=205}}</ref> this being eventually traced to weak return springs, freezing of parts due to overly viscous lubricants and inadequate cartridge recoil impulse as the result of subzero temperatures.<ref name="S.L.A. Marshall, 1951">{{cite book |author1=S.L.A. Marshall |title=Commentary on Infantry and Weapons in Korea 1950–51, 1st Report ORO-R-13 of 27 October 1951, ''Project Doughboy'' [Restricted]|publisher=Operations Research Office (ORO), U.S. Army}}</ref><ref name="Clavin">{{cite book |author1=Clavin, Tom|author2=Drury, Bob |title=Last Stand of Fox Company: A True Story of U.S. Marines in Combat |location=New York |publisher=Atlantic Monthly Press |isbn=978-0-87113-993-1 |date=2009 |pages=82,113,161|quote=In addition to their bulky cotton-padded ''telegroika'' coats, which could freeze solid with perspiration, Chicom infantry frequently wore vests or undercoats of thick goatskin.}}</ref>

There were also many complaints from individual soldiers that the carbine bullets failed to stop heavily clothed<ref name="O'Donnell_Korean">{{cite book |author1=O'Donnell, Patrick K. |title=Give Me Tomorrow: The Korean War's Greatest Untold Story: The Epic Stand of the Marines of George Company |publisher=Da Capo Press|edition=1st|isbn=978-0-306-81801-1|date=2 November 2010 |pages=88,168,173}}</ref><ref name="Clavin"/><ref name="Jowett">{{cite book |author1=Jowett, Philip S. |url=https://ospreypublishing.com/the-chinese-army-1937-49-pb |title=The Chinese Army 1937–49: World War II and Civil War|publisher=Osprey Publishing |isbn=978-1-84176-904-2 |date=10 July 2005 |page=47}}</ref><ref name="Thomas">{{cite book |author1=Thomas, Nigel|author2=Abbott, Peter| title=The Korean War 1950–53|url=https://ospreypublishing.com/the-korean-war-1950-53-pb |publisher=Osprey Publishing Ltd.|isbn=978-0-85045-685-1|date=27 March 1986 |pages=37, 47|quote=Many Chinese troops carried either rice or ''shaoping'', an unleavened bread flour mixture in a fabric tube slung over the shoulder}}</ref> or gear-laden<ref name="Andrew">{{cite news |author=Andrew, Martin Dr.| title=Logistics in the PLA |url=https://alu.army.mil/alog/issues/MarApr10/spectrum_lpa_logistics.html|work=Army Sustainment|location=PB 700-10-02, Volume 42 Issue 2| date=March–April 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190119094501/https://alu.army.mil/alog/issues/MarApr10/spectrum_lpa_logistics.html|archive-date= 19 January 2019}}</ref><ref name="Thomas"/><ref>Chinese troops frequently wore bandolier-type ammunition pouches and carried extra [[PPSh-41|PPSh]] or Thompson magazines in addition to 4–5 stick grenades.</ref> North Korean and Chinese ([[People's Volunteer Army|PVA]]) troops even at close range and after multiple hits.<ref name="Canfield"/><ref name="S.L.A. Marshall, 1951"/><ref name="Breakout">{{cite book |author1=Russ, Martin |title=Breakout: The Chosin Reservoir Campaign, Korea 1950|publisher=Penguin Publishing|isbn=978-0-14-029259-6|date=1 April 1999 |page=40| quote=The failure of the .30 carbine round to stop enemy soldiers may not have been due to inadequate penetration. Marine Lt. James Stemple reported that he shot an enemy soldier with his M2 carbine four times in the chest and saw the padding fly out the back of the soldier's padded jacket as the bullets penetrated his body, yet the enemy soldier kept on coming.}}</ref>  Marines of the 1st Marine Division also reported instances of carbine bullets failing to stop enemy soldiers, and some units issued standing orders for carbine users to aim for the head.<ref name="Clavin"/><ref name="O'Donnell_Korean"/>  PVA infantry forces who had been issued captured U.S. small arms disliked the carbine for the same reason.<ref name="Spurr">{{cite book |author1=Spurr, Russell |title=Enter the Dragon: China's Undeclared War Against the U.S. in Korea, 1950–51|url=https://www.abebooks.com/first-edition/Enter-Dragon-Chinas-Undeclared-Against-Korea/15445827432/bd|location=New York, NY |publisher=Newmarket Press |isbn=978-1-55704-914-8 |date=1988 |page=182|quote=Chinese frontline PLA troops disliked the M1/M2 carbine, as they believed its cartridge had inadequate stopping power. Captured U.S. carbines were instead issued to runners and mortar crews}}</ref>

A 1951 official U.S. Army evaluation reported that&nbsp;..."There are practically no data bearing on the accuracy of the carbine at ranges in excess of {{convert|50|yd|abbr=on}}. The record contains a few examples of carbine-aimed fire felling an enemy soldier at this distance or perhaps a little more. But they are so few in number that no general conclusion can be drawn from them. Where carbine fire had proved killing effect, approximately 95 percent of the time the target was dropped at less than {{convert|50|yd|abbr=on}}."<ref name="S.L.A. Marshall, 1951"/> The evaluation also reported that&nbsp;..."Commanders noted that it took two to three engagements at least to settle their men to the automatic feature of the carbine so that they would not greatly waste ammunition under the first impulse of engagement. By experience, they would come to handle it semi-automatically, but it took prolonged battle hardening to bring about this adjustment in the human equation."<ref name="S.L.A. Marshall, 1951"/>

Despite its mixed reputation, the M2 carbine's firepower often made it the weapon of choice, when it came to night patrols in Korea.<ref name="S.L.A. Marshall, 1951"/> The M3 carbine with its infrared sniper scope was also used against night infiltrators, especially during the static stages of the conflict.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}

===Vietnam War===
[[File:ARVN and US Special Forces.jpg|thumb|ARVN soldiers with M1 carbines and U.S. Special Forces with M16s]]

The M1 and M2 carbines issued to U.S. forces were first given to American military advisors in Vietnam beginning in 1956,<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|last=Laemlein|first=Tom|title=The M1 Carbine in Vietnam|url=https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2018/6/13/the-m1-carbine-in-vietnam|website=American Rifleman|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181127120522/https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2018/6/13/the-m1-carbine-in-vietnam/|archive-date= 27 November 2018}}</ref> and later, the [[United States Air Force Security Forces|United States Air Force Security Police]] and [[United States Army Special Forces]]. These weapons began to be replaced by the M16 in 1964, and they were generally out of service by the 1970s. By the war's end, it was estimated that a total of 1.5 million M1 and M2 carbines were left in Vietnam.<ref name=":0" />

At least 793,994 M1 and M2 carbines were given to the [[Army of the Republic of Vietnam|South Vietnamese]] and were widely used throughout the [[Vietnam War]].<ref name="bmc"/> A number were captured during the war by [[Viet Cong]],<ref>{{Cite book |last=Diagram Group |title=Weapons: An international encyclopedia from 5000 B.C. to 2000 A.D. |place=New York |publisher=St. Martin's Press, Inc. |year=1991 |url=https://archive.org/details/weaponsinternati00diag |isbn=0-312-03950-6 |url-access=registration }}</ref> with some made compact by shortening the barrel and/or stock.<ref name="Leroy_M1"/> "While the carbine's lighter weight and high rate of fire made it an excellent weapon for small-statured Asians, these guns lacked sufficient hitting power and penetration, and they were eventually outclassed by the AK-47 assault rifle."<ref name="Rottman_Green"/>
The M1/M2/M3 carbines were the most heavily produced family of U.S. military weapons for several decades. They were used by every branch of the U.S. Armed Forces.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}