Villar Perosa aircraft submachine gun

Villar Perosa
TypeLight machine gun
Aircraft machine gun
Place of originItaly
Service history
Used bySee users
WarsWorld War I
Production history
Designed1914
Specifications
Mass6.5 kg (14 lb)
Length533 mm (21.0 in)
Barrel length320 mm (13 in)

CartridgeGlisenti M.915 Per Mitragliatrici, 9x23mm Steyr (Sturm-Pistole), .455 Webley (Trials only)
Barrels2, side by side
ActionDelayed blowback
Rate of fire1200-1500 rounds/min per barrel, 2400-3000 total
Feed system2 25-round box magazines

The Pistola Mitragliatrice Fiat Mod. 1915, commonly nicknamed the Villar Perosa, was an Italian portable automatic weapon developed during World War I by the Officine di Villar Perosa.

As it was designed to use 9×19mm ammunition, it is said to be the first submachine gun, although not a true submachine gun by modern standards. Due to its extremely high rate of fire, it was nicknamed Pernacchia (literally raspberry, in that context meaning something like fart gun) by its operators.