The Probert Encyclopaedia of Warfare

AK47

The AK47 is a Soviet gas-operated, selective fire assault rifle. The AK47 was designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1947, and entered service in 1951. In 1959 a modified model was produced, the AKM. The AK47 is an automatic weapon with a cyclic rate of 600 rounds-per-minute and a muzzle velocity of 710 meters-per-second. It is sighted to 800 meters, and has an effective range of 300 meters. The AK47 takes a 7.62 mm x 39 round from a 30-round curved box magazine. The AK47 is produced in two basic models, with a fixed stock and with a folding stock. Both have a 414 mm long barrel, pillar foresight and a U notch rearsight.
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