Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife - Wikipedia 06/02/2019, 10)45

Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife

The Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife is a double-edged
Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife
fighting knife resembling a dagger or poignard with a foil grip
developed by William Ewart Fairbairn and Eric Anthony
Sykes in Shanghai based on concepts which the two men
initiated before World War II while serving on the Shanghai
Municipal Police in China.[1] F-S fighting knife – ring grip pattern

The F-S fighting knife was made famous during World War II Type Dagger
when issued to British Commandos, the Airborne Forces, the Place of origin United Kingdom
SAS and many other units, especially for the Normandy
Service history
landings in June 1944. With its acutely tapered, sharply
In service 1941–present
pointed blade, the F-S fighting knife is frequently described
as a stiletto, a weapon optimised for thrusting,[2] although Used by See Users
the F-S knife is capable of being used to inflict slash cuts Wars World War II – present
upon an opponent when its cutting edges are sharpened
Production history
according to specification.[3] The Wilkinson Sword Company
Designer William Ewart Fairbairn
made the knife with minor pommel and grip design
and Eric Anthony Sykes
variations.
Designed 1941
The F-S knife is strongly associated with the British
Manufacturer Wilkinson Sword Ltd
commandos and the US Office of Strategic Services (OSS)
Produced 1941
and Marine Raiders (who based their issued knife on the
Fairbairn-Sykes), among other special Specifications
forces/clandestine/raiding units. It features in the insignia of Length 11.5 inches (29 cm)
the British Royal Marines, the Belgian Commandos, the Blade length 7 inches (18 cm)
Dutch Commando Corps, founded in the UK during World
War II, and the Australian 1st Commando and 2nd
Blade type Dagger
Commando Regiments, and the United States Army Rangers,
both founded with the help of the British Commandos. Large Hilt type Metal
numbers of Fairbairn Sykes knives of varying types, including Scabbard/sheath Metal
some with wooden grips, were used by the 3rd Canadian Head type Metal
Infantry Division that landed on Juno Beach on "D" Day and
Haft type Metal
by the men of the 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion who
jumped and fought on the same day. A solid gold F-S fighting knife is part of the commandos' memorial at
Westminster Abbey.

The first batch of fifty F-S fighting knives were produced in January 1941 by Wilkinson Sword Ltd after Fairbairn and
Sykes had travelled to their factory from the Special Training Centre at Lochailort in November 1940 to discuss their
ideas for a fighting knife.[4]

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Contents
Design
Copies
OSS version
Other knives by Fairbairn F-S fighting knife diagram from
Users FMFRP 12-80, Kill or Get Killed, by
Rex Applegate, who worked with
See also
Fairbairn
References
Further reading
External links

Design
The F-S fighting knife was designed exclusively for surprise attack and fighting,
with a slender blade that can easily penetrate a ribcage. The vase handle grants
precise grip, and the blade's design is especially suited to its use as a fighting knife.
Fairbairn's rationale is in his book Get Tough! (1942).

In close-quarters fighting there is no more deadly weapon than the

knife. In choosing a knife there are two important factors to bear in
mind: balance and keenness. The hilt should fit easily in your hand,
and the blade should not be so heavy that it tends to drag the hilt
from your fingers in a loose grip. It is essential that the blade have a
sharp stabbing point and good cutting edges, because an artery torn
through (as against a clean cut) tends to contract and stop the
bleeding. If a main artery is cleanly severed, the wounded man will
quickly lose consciousness and die.[5]

The Fairbairn-Sykes was produced in several patterns. The Shanghai knife on

which it was based was only about 5.5 in (14 cm) long in the blade. First pattern
knives have a 6.5 in (17 cm) blade with a flat area, or ricasso, at the top of the blade
Fairbairn–Sykes fighting
which was not present on the original design and the presence of which has not
knife at Fort William
been explained by the manufacturers, under the S-shaped crossguard. Second-
Museum
pattern knives have a slightly longer blade (just less than 7 in (18 cm)), 2 in
(5.1 cm)-wide oval crossguard, knurled pattern grip, and rounded ball, and may be
stamped "ENGLAND" (a US legal requirement when importing the surplus knives after WWII, as they had to show the
country of origin) on the handle side of the cross guard. Some may also be stamped with a "Broad Arrow" /|\ British
issue mark and a number (e.g., 21) on the opposite handle side of the cross guard. Third-pattern knives also have a
similarly sized seven-inch blade, but the handle was redesigned to be a ringed grip. This ringed grip is reputed to have
distressed one of the original designers as it unbalanced the weapon and made harder to hold when wet, but it was
used by the manufacturers as it was simple to produce and could be cast from a cheaper and more plentiful alloy

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instead of using up scarce quantities of brass stock which were, of course, required for ammunition casings and other
such vital applications. William Rodgers, as part of the Egginton Group, now also produce an all-black "sterile"
version of the knife, which is devoid of any markings showing maker for NATO use.

The length of the blade was chosen to give several inches of blade to penetrate the body after passing through the 3 in
(7.6 cm) of the thickest clothing that was anticipated to be worn in the war, namely that of Soviet greatcoats. Later
production runs of the F-S fighting knife have a blade length that is about 7.5 in (19 cm).

In all cases the handle had a distinctive foil-like grip to enable a number of handling options. Many variations on the
F-S fighting knife exist in regard to size of blade and particularly of handle. The design has influenced the design of
knives throughout the many decades since its introduction.

Copies
Because of the success of the Fairbairn-Sykes Knife in World War II and in the wars in Korea and Vietnam, many
companies made their own versions of the F-S fighting knife, such as the 1966 Gerber Mark II.

Almost two million of the British knives were made. Early production runs were extremely limited and demand was
high, with many British troops attempting to buy their own.

OSS version
The OSS Stiletto was a double-edged knife based on the Fairbairn–Sykes
fighting knife. It was so admired that the US military created several other
fighting knives based on it. The US Office of Strategic Services's knife
manufacturing bid was approximately one-fifteenth of the British
equivalent, but the US version of the knife, manufactured by Landers,
Frary & Clark, of New Britain, Connecticut was improperly tempered and
inferior to the British F-S Fighting Knife in materials and workmanship.
Its reputation suffered accordingly.[3] A total of 20,000 units of the OSS
version were produced. The OSS dagger was officially replaced in service
in 1944 by the US M3 Fighting Knife.[6] The scabbard for the OSS Stiletto Representation of the knife used by
looks like a pancake spatula but this is because of the design so that can be the OSS with its distinctive
worn high or low on the belt, or angled either left or right. In theory this scabbard. Collection of the CIA
gave a very adaptable mounting system, but the sheet metal was like a Museum.
knife itself, especially to a parachutist.

Other knives by Fairbairn

General Robert T. Frederick of the Devil's Brigade (First Special Service Force) is credited with a similar weapon, the
"V-42 Commando Knife" V-42 Stiletto, itself a derivation of the F-S design. The V-42 was manufactured by W. R. Case
& Sons Cutlery Co. in the US circa 1942-43 and is distinguished mainly by its markings and the presence of a small,
scored indentation for the wielder's thumb, to aid in orienting the knife for thrusting. Fairbairn has been given full or
partial credit for the design of several other fighting knives, including the smatchet.

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Users

United Kingdom

Royal Marines
Personnel who have completed the All Arms Commando Course
France

Commandos Marine
Personnel who have completed the Stage Commando in Lorient
Poland

1st Independent Parachute Brigade

1 Samodzielna Kompania Commando / 6 Troop No. 10 Commando
Belgium Member of the Cambodian
911 ParaCommando on
ParaCommando Brigade USS Essex with a F-S
Canada Commando dagger on his
webbing belt.
Canadian Armed Forces
Cambodia

911 Special Forces

Indonesia

Kopassus
Malaysia

Grup Gerak Khas

PASKAU
Singapore

Singapore Commandos

See also
Applegate-Fairbairn fighting knife
BC-41
Corvo—Chilean Commando Knife
Cuchillo De Paracaidista—Argentine Paratrooper Knife
List of daggers
Ranger Memorial—American monument featuring the Fairbairn-Sykes
Stiletto
Smatchet
V-42 Stiletto
"Yank" Levy fighting knife
M3 fighting knife
NR-40

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References
1. Chambers, John W., OSS Training in the National Parks and Service Abroad in World War II, Washington, D.C.,
US National Park Service (2008), p. 191: Fairbairn joined the Shanghai Municipal Police (SMP) in 1907. During
his service with the International Police in Shanghai, Fairbairn reportedly engaged in hundreds of street fights in
the course of his duties over a twenty-year career. Much of his body, arms, legs, torso, even the palms of his
hands, was covered with scars from knife wounds from those fights.
2. Dunlop, Richard, Behind Japanese Lines: With the OSS in Burma, New York: Time Life Co., ISBN 0-8094-8579-
6, ISBN 978-0-8094-8579-6 (1991): "Fairbairn had invented a stiletto as precise as a surgeon's scalpel. He
wielded it with a flashing, slashing vigor that invariably proved fatal to an opponent. 'Why is it so long and thin?' I
asked him one day in a question period during my own course of instruction. 'It doesn't have a cutting edge.' 'It
doesn't leave any marks on the body,' he replied. 'Scarcely more than a tiny drop of blood.' "
3. Cassidy, William L., A Brief History of the Fairbairn–Sykes Fighting Knife (http://fl-websites.com/time/fs/fshistory.ht
m) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20120109084712/http://fl-websites.com/time/fs/fshistory.htm) 2012-01-
09 at the Wayback Machine
4. Allan, Stuart. Commando Country. Edinburgh: National Museums Scotland, 2007. ISBN 978-1-905267-14-9.
5. Fairbairn, W.E. (December 1996) [1942]. Get Tough (new ed.). Boulder, Colo.: Paladin Press. ISBN 0-87364-002-
0.
6. Chambers, John W., OSS Training in the National Parks and Service Abroad in World War II, Washington, DC,
US National Park Service (2008), p. 191

Further reading
Buerlein, Robert. (2002). Allied Military Fighting Knives: And The Men Who Made Them Famous. Paladin Press.
ISBN 1-58160-290-1
Flook, Ron. (1999). British and Commonwealth Military Knives. Howell Press Inc. ISBN 1-57427-092-3
Locken, Alan. (1995). The Collectors Guide to the Fairbairn Sykes Fighting Knife. Alan W Locken.
Peter-Michel, Wolfgang: The Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting Knife: Collecting Britain's Most Iconic Dagger. Schiffer
Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-7643-3763-7
Wilkinson-Latham, Robert. (2009). Wilkinsons and the F.S. Fighting Knife. 2nd ed. Pooley Sword Publishing.
ISBN 978-1-84336-156-5

External links
Fighting knives used by British commandos and SOE during WW2 (http://www.gotavapen.se/gota/artiklar/fs/fs_kn
ife1.htm)
The Fairbairn Sykes Fighting Knives (http://www.fairbairnsykesfightingknives.com/)

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