The Israeli arms industry is committed to excellence for the survival of a people surrounded by enemies.

Finland’s more modest military return is directed at defending only one possible enemy, but when its opponent is Russia … well, after three fierce wars, it is enough for the enemy.

Most of Finland’s defense has been the use of what it has received from foreign journalists, but it has also made its own domestic models.

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One of the most significant was the Finnish KP / 31 Konopististol or “submachine gun”.

Finland’s declaration of independence from Russia in December 1917 was followed by a civil war between pro-independence whites – with the help of German volunteers – and the Reds, who wanted to join the Bolshevik government with the help of the Soviet Union.

During the fighting, the Finns acquired so many bolt-operated Mosin-Nagant M1891 rifles, which became a mainstay of the infantry throughout World War II. They also acquired some Bergmann M / 20 SMGs supplied by Germany, which were purchased to supplement its armed forces from 1922 onwards.

By then, however, Finnish weapons designer Aimo Lahti believed that he would be able to develop a cheaper, more efficient SMG than the Bergmann and started working. He produced a series of such weapons that culminated in the KP / 31, back-blown, assorted SMG with differential locking system.

In October 1931, the Finnish army ordered 100 new 9/19 mm caliber for the first time. Machined components and wooden furniture KP / 31 was not the easiest weapon for mass production, and it was not until the autumn of 1942 that they were enough to deliver the two units desired by the Finnish army.

By the end of 1943, there were enough three per group available. At the beginning of June 1944, at the last peak of Soviet and Finnish forces, the latter had received more than 52,600 Finns.

Subsequent versions of the KP / 31, produced in response to military criticism of fully automatic snout shooting, have a muzzle brake that increased overall length and slowed muzzle speed.

During the Continuation War of 1941-44, 500 Korsu-Finns were made with thinner, longer hand guards and a wooden pistol grip instead of standard storage to facilitate use from inside the bunker.

It is said that 40 KP / 31 were built as compact, for use inside or outside the tanks. In the spring of 1944, the Finnish version for combat engineers may have served as a flamethrower, but it is questionable that more than 40 of them were made.

Finland’s excellent accuracy of up to 500 meters led to its extensive initial use as a light machine gun (LMG) in support of infantry alongside the Lahti-Saloranta m / 26 LMG. Neither weapon was sufficiently available, and the m / 26 proved to be heavy, difficult to use, and had too many parts, making it difficult to clean and maintain in the field.

However, after the Soviet Union began the Winter War on November 30, 1939, Finns received so many Degtyaryov DP-28 LMG stockpiles that were compatible with their own 7.62x54R cartridges that they were able to distribute them over their group. complete m / 26 and free Suominen to a more mobile SMG role.

As an SMG, Finland KP / 31 had advantages over its foreign counterparts. It can change barrels, allowing for continuous use in firefighting. In addition, it used two different barrel types, one of which was accurate enough to be used by a strong, stable, skilled submachine gun in the role of a sniper.

Its selector switch was able to fire single semi-automatic shots or automatic shots, which Finns usually limited to three to five shots to ensure accuracy. Strength was a necessity to compensate for the main lack of a weapon — it was heavy, as were five 70-cartridge drums or seven 50-cartridge box magazines that a Finnish cannonman was expected to carry.

In addition to Finland’s use of infantry in melee combat, Finland gained its most iconic reputation during the Winter War in the hands of the ski forces. Negotiating in the frozen terrain they knew intimately, these special units ambushed the roadposts of the Soviet Union, breaking them down into isolated “mottos” (woodpeckers for cutting) and then destroying them one by one in machine gun fire.

It should be noted that Soviet troops had their own SMG Pistolet-Pulamot Degtyaryova in the PPD-40, but they were not as numerous and were not used as effectively during the Winter War. The heavy losses caused by KP / 31 aircraft and their moral impact prompted the Soviet Union to develop better SMG aircraft, starting with PPSh-41.

Other foreign forces, which noted Finland’s effectiveness as an offensive weapon, are also trying to develop their own. Some were bought from Germany, more than 5,000 were sold to Bulgaria and some were exported to Sweden, Denmark and Switzerland.

Sweden manufactured them under license m / 37-39 and sold them to Norway, Denmark, Indonesia and Egypt. 1,000 licenses were built for Denmark before being occupied by the Germans in April 1940. Hispano-Suiza in Switzerland produced about 22,500 licenses, some of which were used by the papal Swiss guard in the Vatican until they were replaced by Heckler und Koh MP5 aircraft in 1970..

The product of a sparsely populated country, Finland KP / 31, cast a disproportionate shadow as one of the most successful and influential weapons of World War II.