(UnitedVoice.com) – There are people who make a major impact on the world whose name might not always be known. Gaston Glock, the inventor of the Glock pistol, was one of those people. The Austrian engineer recently passed away, but his invention lives on.
On December 27, Glock passed away, according to his company’s website. The billionaire engineer had an incredible life story. He was born in Vienna, Austria, in 1929. At the end of WWII, he was conscripted into the Wehrmacht, Adolf Hitler’s military. Although he was forced into service, he didn’t support the Nazi cause.
After the war was over, he managed a car radiator factory. He and his first wife, Helga Glock, ran a small business in their garage where they made curtain rods, knives, and door hinges. Then, one day in 1980, Glock overheard a conversation between two Austrian Army officers. They were talking about a potential contract for a new pistol, so he joined the conversation.
Later, Glock, who was in his 50s, spoke to military experts and then designed a lightweight 9mm semiautomatic pistol. The gun was partially made with plastic and could fire 18 rounds. Users were able to reload the weapon easily through a magazine in its handle. Glock designed the gun so that it could be fired even if its user dropped it on concrete, left it in a pile of snow, or if it was soaking wet. Best of all, it was easy and cheap to produce.
The Glock was born.
The Glock pistol is now used in 48 countries and two-thirds of the police departments across America. The weapon is often seen in television shows, movies, and music videos.
While Glock’s gun spread across the globe and made him billions of dollars, he was not someone who enjoyed the limelight. In 1999, he was thrust into the headlines when one of his financial advisers, Charles Ewert, embezzled money from him and then hired a French mercenary to murder him. Glock, who was 67 years old, fought back and knocked the assassin out. Ewert and his failed hitman were later convicted of attempted murder and sent to prison.
Glock divorced his wife in 2011 and married Kathrin Tschikof, a woman in her 30s. That set off several legal battles with his ex-wife. He is survived by his three children and second wife.
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