Written by Ido Kalev.
The mythical weapon was first presented to the public at the 1955 Independence Day parade, before becoming a legend. Thanks to its durability, it earned itself a reputation as a reliable weapon, and was purchased by security units in dozens of countries around the world.
The Uzi, named after its inventor, Uzi Gal, was chosen as the IDF’s leading weapon because it was light and cheap to manufacture, consisted of fewer parts than other rifles, and was easy to disassemble and assemble. Its maintenance costs were also considered cheap.
The submachine gun was used as a weapon by soldiers in infantry and armored units, but following its inferiority to the Kalashnikov rifle used by enemy armies during the Yom Kippur War, the Uzi was replaced by the Galilee rifle, which itself was replaced by the M-16.
However, the Uzi remains in use by special units in the IDF, and its derivatives continue to serve in the operational system, and are mainly used by special units for combating terrorism. In 2011, a new model of the Uzi entered service. The new model, which is compact, was purchased by the Central Command for the special units serving under it, and is composed of materials that reduced the weight of the rifle to 2.3 kg.
GLOBAL FOOTPRINT AND COMBAT LEGACY
The Uzi gained its fame in service with the Paratrooper Brigade, and later also in Operation Kadesh and the Six-Day War. Thanks to the aura of heroism it acquired in the IDF service and its reputation as a reliable and durable weapon, the submachine gun was marketed over the years to dozens of military and police units around the world.
The Uzi was purchased in more than 90 countries, and in addition to Israel’s wars, it also took part in the Vietnam War, the Sri Lankan Civil War, the Falklands War, the Somali Civil War, the war on drug trafficking in Mexico, and more. The Uzi also became popular with terrorist organizations and criminals due to its small size, and it appears in quite a few films.
A famous photo showing the Uzi was taken immediately after the assassination attempt on former US President Ronald Reagan.
He “starred” in Schwarzenegger’s action movie, in the Six-Day War and also in Vietnam. The Israeli weapon that conquered the world.
BIRTH OF THE WEAPON AND UZI GAL’S STORY
On April 27, 1955, the weapon was first unveiled to the Israeli public at the Day of the Dead parade when it successfully functioned in a retaliatory operation in Gaza; and its inventor, Uzi Gal, received a commendation from the then Chief of Staff, Moshe Dayan, for “military ingenuity.”
Incidentally, the committee that had examined the weapon a few years earlier and given the green light for its further development was headed by the Chief of Staff and future Prime Minister, then “only” a Lieutenant Colonel, Yitzhak Rabin.
The story of Uzi is first and foremost a tribute to the Jewish mind that invents patents for us. But it also contains a personal story of personal fulfillment and courage, as well as jealousy, narrow-mindedness and claims of copying. Because that’s how it is in Israel, there is no good without a little bad. And there is no phenomenal success without someone trying to stick a pin in a balloon.
FROM GOTTHARD GLASS TO UZI GAL
Uzi Gal is a Sabra name. Gotthard Glass is a strictly German name. In 1933, when the Nazis came to power and Glass himself was burned by sawing weapons, the 10-year-old Jewish boy was sent from his home in Munich, with his school friends, into forced exile in England. Three years later, he would immigrate to Palestine and be reunited with his father, Erich, on Kibbutz “Yagur.”
Glass (later Gal) inherited his fondness for weapons from that father, who was a painter who collected antique weapons, and in his youth served in the German commando in World War I. Two years after arriving in Israel, the 15-year-old boy had already developed an automatic crossbow, and four more years later he would enlist in the “Palmach”, where he was engaged, of course, in developing weapons.
The British government, how to put it mildly, did not take this kindly, and stuck him in prison for three years. He was released in July 1946, and of course returned to investing time and brains in his hobby, not to mention an incurable addiction.
FROM AN IDEA TO AN IDF ICON
At the end of the War of Independence, the IDF, a poor army with severe supply problems, began to think about self-production. Gal, full of inventions and ideas, was the right person in the right place.
On October 20, 1949, infantry officer Gal wrote a letter of no less than 30 pages to Lieutenant Colonel Meir Zorea, at that time the commander of the officer school, in which he described to him his idea for a home-made submachine gun with a detachable handle (an idea that had been thought of even earlier by the inventors of the Nazi MP-44 rifle, but let’s not be petty).
And so he wrote to him –
“Enclosed is an example of a submachine gun personally manufactured by 120946, Lieutenant (Trainee) Uziel Glass. I personally examined the weapon and the following are my conclusions –
A. Excellent grip (fits wonderfully in the hand).
B. Instinctive aiming from the hip surpasses that of any weapon I know.
C. Great accuracy.
D. No limitations, except those due to defective ammunition.”
Gal was immediately absorbed into the IDF, which is the military industry.
The road to glory was paved.
THE RIVAL WEAPON: CAPTAIN HAIM KARA AND THE HAMAD
But here our story takes a twist. A surprising turn in the form of another hero. His name was Captain Haim Kara. He was a locksmith who served in the Science Corps, and the weapon he worked on developing was called the Hamad (an acronym for “Science Corps”).
Kara’s claim is that Gal – how to put it delicately – “asked,” not to say “sucked,” ideas from his development.
The weapon was strikingly similar to that immortal Uzi, with the same handle in the center, the same mechanism that disassembles it, and even the same anvil that pushes the bullet into the chamber.
What’s the difference?
The Uzi looks squarer. And the Hamad, what can I say, is round.
THE 1950 DECISION AND AFTERMATH
1950 was the decisive year.
According to Kara, he had been working on his weapon in what was known as “Institute 1” since the beginning of 1949, and Gal, whom he called “Lieutenant Uzi,” was actually attached to his unit in the spring of 1950, when he also presented it in a test to several top brass.
The weapon of that “Lieutenant Uzi,” Kara firmly claims, was unusable and unsuitable.
And yet, Uzi took the whole pot. More precisely, the IDF won the treasury. Because from the sales of this weapon, which brought in two billion dollars to the State of Israel over the decades.
On December 8, 1950, an IDF committee headed by Yitzhak Rabin, commander of the 3rd Battalion, decided, after much deliberation, to prefer the Uzi over the Hamad, also known as the “K-12.”
The Uzi, of course, was cheaper (14 pounds per unit, compared to 17) and also, apparently, more reliable – the Hamad did weigh less, but according to experts, its body was weaker.
The Production began, and the paratroopers were enthusiastic about using it against the “fedayenn” gangs, who were sowing death and terror in the Israeli school communities in the south of the country.
GLOBAL ICON AND FINAL YEARS
In 1976, Gal, winner of the Israel Defense Prize for his invention, left the country for family reasons. Five years later, the entire world watched as US President Ronald Reagan’s security guard drew his mini-Uzi, as an assassin shot Reagan.
Later, in the movie “Commando,” Arnold Schwarzenegger put it to good and effective use.
In September 2002, at the age of 79, Uzi Gal passed away in Philadelphia.
A year later, in December 2003, after no less than a million and a half pieces had been manufactured over the years, the Uzi was taken out of service – but it returned eight years later in the form of the “Micro Uzi Polymer” model that fought terrorists wherever they were.
