The Type A was the FAL bayonet used with the early FAL rifle, which had no muzzle device. The early Type A bayonets had a flat spring catch, but most Type A bayonets had a curved spring catch.

When NATO standardized on the 22 mm. rifle grenade, FN began producing rifles with a 22 mm. combo-device in 1962. This necessitated a new bayonet design, due to the large diameter muzzle device required to accept and launch the 22 mm. rifle grenade. Despite it's obsolescence, the early FAL rifles and Type A bayonet remained in use for many years, seeing combat service with Argentine forces during the 1982 Falklands War.

FN-65 TYPE A