The Star Model S was a Spanish

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 semi-automatic pistol manufactured by Star Bonifacio Echeverria, S.A.

Star Bonifacio Echeverria, S.A.

Star Bonifacio Echeverria, S.A. was a manufacturer of small arms in the Basque region of Spain from about 1905 until 1997.-Bonifacio Echeverria and the ancestry of Star:...

 and designed to use the .380 ACP

.380 ACP

The .380 ACP pistol cartridge is a rimless, straight-walled pistol cartridge developed by firearms designer John Browning. The cartridge headspaces on the mouth of the case. It was introduced in 1908 by Colt, and has been a popular self-defense cartridge ever since...

 cartridge

Cartridge (firearms)

A cartridge, also called a round, packages the bullet, gunpowder and primer into a single metallic case precisely made to fit the firing chamber of a firearm. The primer is a small charge of impact-sensitive chemical that may be located at the center of the case head or at its rim . Electrically...

. Like many semi-automatic handguns, the basic design of the Star Model S is based on the .45 calibre Colt 1911. But it is much smaller, lighter, and lacks some of the safety features of the Colt pistol. It is this lightness and lack of safety features that make this a fast gun.

At one time the Star Model S was the official sidearm of the Spanish Foreign Legion

Spanish Legion

The Spanish Legion , formerly Spanish Foreign Legion, is an elite unit of the Spanish Army and Spain's Rapid Reaction Force. Founded as the Tercio de Extranjeros , it was originally intended as a Spanish equivalent of the French Foreign Legion, but in practice it recruited almost exclusively...

. The Star Model S was imported into the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 by the Interarms company of Alexandria

Alexandria

Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...

, Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

. Interarms went out of business in early 1990s at about the same time the Star company went out of business. The Star Model S is no longer manufactured.