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After the Second World War, many lessons had been learned about military firearms. One important one was that the traditional bolt-action rifle with a 10-shot magazine was on its way out. In its place came LMGs such as the FN FAL, the Sten and the AK-47.
Russia's experiences during the war had been mainly confined to reclaiming the vast chunks of land occupied by the Germans in Operation Barbarossa. In this harsh winter climate, semi- and full-automatic rifles quickly came to the fore. No longer did the infantryman have to wait to place each and every shot. Instead, he simply squeezed his trigger and sent twenty-odd rounds in the vague direction of the enemy.
In 1947 a young Soviet tank engineer by the name of Alexei Kalashnikov came up with a design for a new rifle. Unlike the venerable Moisin Nagant which preceded it, this weapon was purely functional. The stock was shortened to become only the butt-stock. The fore-grip was also wooden, but the rest of the rifle was metal. The action offered both semi- and full-auto fire. Most importantly, the action was designed to operate for long periods of time with litle or no maintenance.
This feature of the new rifle was important. The Red Army was composed mainly of conscripted peasants with little or no mechanical know-how. Dismantling and re-assembling the firing mechanism of a complex militray rifle was beyond them. By designing a weapon which did not require stripping, greasing or even oiling, Kalashnikov had guaranteed his success. The Red Army adopted his weapon and named it the AK-47. The 'AK' stood for Kalashnikov's name, the '47' its year of entry into service.
Due to the vast size of the Red Army the AK-47 soon spread across the whole of the Eurasian continent. From Novosibirsk on the east coast of Russia to Moscow in the west, all armed forces in Russia adopted the AK-47. Its reliability became a byword in Soviet military circles. The Warsaw Pact conutries, under Soviet domination, also re-equipped with the new assault rifle.
The term 'assault rifle' was coined to describe the function of the rifle. Assault troops were amongst the first units to be equipped with it, therefore it was used in assaulting enemy-held positions.
Kalashnikov had followed the lively discussions about calibres and rifle specifications after the war with open ears. The Russians has been very impressed with the German 5.45mm Kurz (short) round which had excelled itself in German hands at numerous battles in Soviet territory. Kalashnikov adopted the 7.62x39mm round for his brainchild, but also offered different calibres such as the Russian 5.45.
After the wide distribution of the Kalashnikov to armed forces across Soviet territory and Eastern Europe, illegal copies soon began to appear. In Afghanistan, where Soviet armed forces became embroiled in a war of attrition lasting almost twenty years, Afghan tribesmen took the Kalashnikovs from dead Russians. Soon, illegal arms workshops began reverse-engineering the AK-47 and producing copies in various calibres and formats. The folding stock version chambered in the original 7.62x39 was the most popular. Because of their simplicity and the fact they didn't require maintenance, terrorists adopted the AK-47 as their 'standard' weapon. The average terrorist, mind overflowing with insane religious doctrine, has no idea how to maintain his gun. Kalashnikov's weapon ensured they had a gun which only needed to be fed bullets to work properly. The illegal arms workshops churning out copies of AK-47s in various calibres made sure international terrorist organisations had little problems in sourcing spares for weapons.
More to come soon
