Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper)
- Category
- Carbine
- Barrel
- 458 mm
- Weight, empty
- 2.36 kg
- Introduced
- 1942
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Inland M1A1 Carbine was the folding-stock 'Paratrooper' version of the U.S. M1 Carbine, the only small arm developed specifically for American airborne forces in World War II. Built exclusively by the Inland Division of General Motors, it replaced the standard wooden buttstock with a left-folding steel wire stock and pistol grip, reducing overall length to about 635 mm (25 in) when folded for jumps. Inland produced roughly 140,000 M1A1 carbines in two runs during late 1942 and 1944; they were issued first to the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions and later across U.S. Army Airborne and Marine units.
Designed for paratroopers who needed a compact shoulder weapon that could be carried during a jump, the M1A1's wire folding stock became an icon of WWII airborne troops.
Inland was the only WWII contractor to build the M1A1 paratrooper variant. The folding stock is held by a spring-loaded cam rather than a positive lock. All wartime M1A1 stocks were walnut.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Inland Division of General Motors
- Category
- Carbine
- Country
- United States
- Status
- Out of production
- Produced
- 1942 to 1944
- Variant of
- Paratrooper
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 458 mm
- Overall length
- 905 mm
- Height
- 120 mm
- Width
- 32 mm
- Weight, empty
- 2.36 kg
- Weight, loaded
- 2.65 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Gas operated short stroke
- Firing mechanism
- Hammer fired
- Trigger
- Single stage
- Capacity
- 15
- Magazine
- Detachable box
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Frame
- Steel
- Barrel
- Steel
- Stock
- Wood
- Finish
- Parkerized
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 607 m/s
- Muzzle energy
- 1311 J
- Effective range
- 275 m
- Maximum range
- 1829 m
- Rate of fire
- 40 rpm
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
No load solved for this record yetThe flight path is computed from a cartridge and a bullet. This record has no ammunition filed against its chambering, so there is nothing to solve.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Folding wire stock
Short stroke gas piston
Rotating bolt
Detachable box magazine- Lightweight design
Pistol grip
Adjustable rear sight
Blade front sight
Sling swivels
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty weightAmong 409 carbines | 2.36 kg | 3.00 kg | Lighter than about 90% |
| Overall lengthAmong 407 carbines | 905 mm | 895 mm | Longer than about 60% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 423 carbines | 458 mm | 406 mm | Longer than about 70% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 423 carbines | 15 | 21 | Holds fewer rounds than about 60% |
Answers
Questions about the Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper)
How much does the Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper) weigh?
The Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper) weighs 2.36 kg (5.20 lb) empty and 2.65 kg (5.84 lb) loaded.
What caliber is the Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper)?
The Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper) is chambered in .30 Carbine.
How many rounds does the Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper) hold?
The Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper) holds 15 rounds, fed from a detachable box magazine.
How long is the Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper)?
The Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper) is 905 mm (35.6 in) long overall, with a 458 mm (18.0 in) barrel.
Who makes the Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper)?
The Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper) is made by Inland Division of General Motors (United States). It was designed by Frederick Humeston / William Roemer (Winchester) / Inland engineering.
When was the Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper) introduced?
The Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper) was introduced in 1942 and discontinued in 1944.
How does the Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper) operate?
The Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper) uses a gas operated short stroke action, and its firing mechanism is hammer fired.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
In service
- United States Army (Airborne)
- 1942
- United States Marine Corps
- 1943
Provenance
Confidence in this record
85%
Stockists
Where to buy
Offers link straight to the shop. GunSpec never takes the order.
No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/m1-carbine-paratrooper' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "m1-carbine-paratrooper", "name": "Inland M1A1 Carbine (Paratrooper)", "manufacturer": { "id": "inland", "name": "Inland Division of General Motors", "countryCode": "US", "foundedYear": 1923, "website": null, "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "updatedAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "version": "747d851c0f23a53f7858af5f6f0d8fda25b38a1c3db22199555396d7ea3690f0" }, "category": { "id": "carbine", "name": "Carbine", "description": "Shortened rifles for close-quarters use" }, "country_of_origin": "US", "year_introduced": 1942, "barrel_length_mm": 458, "weight_empty_g": 2360, "action_type": "gas_operated_short_stroke"}