A service pistol is any handgun issued to military personnel.
Typically service pistols are revolvers or semi-automatic pistols issued to officers, non-commissioned officers and rear-echelon support personnel for self defense, though service pistols may also be issued to special forces as a backup for their primary weapons. Pistols are not typically issued to front-line infantry.
Before firearms were commonplace, officers typically carried swords instead.
Read more about Service Pistol: History, Modern Issue, See Also
Famous quotes containing the words service and/or pistol:
“The ability to think straight, some knowledge of the past, some vision of the future, some skill to do useful service, some urge to fit that service into the well-being of the community,—these are the most vital things education must try to produce.”
—Virginia Crocheron Gildersleeve (1877–1965)
“Johnson did not answer ...; but talking for victory and determined to be master of the field, he had recourse to the device which Goldsmith imputed to him in the witty words of one of Cibber’s comedies. “There is no arguing with Johnson; for when his pistol misses fire, he knocks you down with the butt end of it.””
—Samuel Johnson (1709–1784)