Soldier of Fortune Magazine The Journal of Professional Adventurers
by Austin Lee
In the 1970s, Israel aided South Africa in obtaining Galil pattern rifles to replace South Africa’s FN-FAL/R1 battle rifle, which had been in service since the 1960s.
The Israelis had just replaced their version of the FAL with the Galil platform after facing issues with the FAL during the Six-Day War and later in the Yom Kippur War (1973). The main complaints about the FAL were that it was considered too heavy; the 7.62×51 standard 20-round magazine capacity was seen as a limiting factor; and the amount of ammunition an individual soldier could carry was limited to approximately 160 rounds (eight magazines).
The author’s South African R4 (LM4) with SOG Classic knife on a real nice SOF bed.
The tight tolerances and high cost of production of the FN-FAL were seen as its Achilles’ heel in the end. While accuracy was generally good, stoppages became more frequent as fighting moved from Rhodesia and South Africa proper into South West Africa (Namibia). Similar to the Israelis’ environmental challenges – such as blowing sand, hot arid rocky terrain, and the threat of saltwater corrosion from coastal regions – the Galil’s simplistic internal design was appealing for troops who had to maintain them in the harsh South African environments.
Facing international arms embargoes at the time, South Africa initially purchased Galil ARM rifles directly from Israel Military Industries (IMI), with Israel providing technical support and a licensing agreement to enable domestic production, as few nations were willing to trade arms with the apartheid-era government of South Africa. South Africa was still subject to a United Nations arms embargo, with Israel and Taiwan being its main foreign allies.
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The Israeli Galil ARM was adopted by South Africa in 1975, with the first Israeli-made guns issued in 1977, primarily to SADF paratroopers, reconnaissance commandos, and mechanized infantry.
Production of the R4 by Lyttelton Engineering Works (LEW, now Denel Land Systems) began in 1976. The first R4s from LEW were exact copies of the Galil ARM, as the license with IMI stipulated no changes to the Israeli design. Any improvements incorporated by the Israelis were passed on to LEW, which had to implement them.
High adventure at the ready, with the author’s South African LM4 (civilian semi-automatic version) and Browning Hi-Power.
With the licensing agreement ending in 1979, the SADF had enough experience with the rifle to develop modifications better suited to South Africans. LEW adapted the Galil ARM into the R4 rifle with changes like a high-strength polymer stock lengthened by 1 inch for the South Africans’ longer arms, a larger front sight hood, a smaller front sight post, a 35-round polymer magazine, and a longer handguard. These are the main visual differences between the two, with smaller, less noticeable differences like selector markings, gas tube, and grenade ring on the flash hider. With IMI’s help, South Africa gained the ability to manufacture the R4 rifle domestically, ensuring quality tolerances and sustainable small arms production independently.
During the 1980s, approximately 420,000 units were made. The R4, further integrated into modern military operations with the SANDF, remains in service today, having been battle-tested and proven in many regional conflicts since the Border War. The R4 is one of three Galil variants produced by South Africa.
The R4 18” barrel (ARM)
The R5 13” barrel (SAR)
The R6 11” barrel (sSAR)
I’ll be doing a follow up on the R5 and R6.
The South African variants are some of my personal favorites of the Galil lineage. The R4, South Africa’s Galil-derived rifle, born under apartheid-era embargoes and honed in the Border War, remains a steadfast cornerstone of the SANDF’s arsenal.
Austin Lee is the proprietor of Galilhub, and is a gunsmith and a competitive shooter.
