AKsu-47
Summary
| Country | 🇨🇳 Ex-USSR |
| Category | Submachine gun |
| Manufacturer | CIS |
Technical specifications
| AKsu-47 | |
|---|---|
| Fire Rate | 730 rounds/min. |
| Caliber | 5.45 x 39 mm |
| Magazine | 30 rounds |
| Length | 735 mm (28.9 in) |
| Weight | 3.2 kg (7.1 lb) |
| Range | 300 m (984 ft) |
Description
The AK-74 (Автомат Калашникова образца 1974 года) is an assault rifle designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1974 as a successor to the AKM. While primarily associated with the Soviet Union, it has been used by many countries since the 1970s. It is chambered for the 5.45×39mm cartridge, which replaced the 7.62×39mm cartridge used in Kalashnikov's earlier automatic weapons for the Soviet Armed Forces. Licensed copies were produced in Bulgaria, the former East Germany, Romania, Azerbaijan and North Korea.
The AK-74 is an adaptation of the 7.62×39mm AKM assault rifle, with design improvements resulting from the conversion to the 5.45×39mm cartridge. Some early models are reported to have been converted AKMs. The operating mechanism during firing and reloading is identical to that of the AKM, employing a long-stroke piston and rotating bolt. Compared with the AKM, the AK-74 features:
- a chrome-lined barrel with a different twist rate
- a redesigned front sight base and gas block, installed at a 90° angle
- a distinctive standard muzzle brake designed to counteract muzzle rise, climb, and lateral shift, and reduce recoil
It uses an adjustable notched rear tangent sight calibrated from 100 to 1,000 meters, and a front post sight. A battle zero setting corresponds to a 400m zero for the 5.45x39mm cartridge. Optical sights were developed, mounted via a side rail bracket. New furniture was introduced, initially laminated wood, later fiberglass-reinforced polyamide. Accessories include a bayonet, quick-loading device, magazines, stripper clips, maintenance kit, cleaning rod, and sling. The 5.45×39mm cartridge is relatively light and high velocity, producing low bolt thrust and recoil. Magazines are detachable box type, initially steel-reinforced AG-4S composite, later steel-reinforced ABS plastic, transitioning through various colors and surface finishes. A raised rib on magazines prevents their use in 7.62x39mm AKs. RPK-74 45-round magazines are interchangeable.
Variants of the AK-74 include:
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Night-fighting configurations (AK-74N, AKS-74N, AKS-74UN, AK-74N2, AKS-74N2) equipped with a side dovetail rail for optics.
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AKS-74, a variant with a side-folding metal triangular shoulder stock, developed alongside the basic AK-74.
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AK-74M, a modernised variant produced from 1991, featuring a side-folding glass-filled polyamide stock, improved muzzle device, reinforced dust cover, redesigned guide rod retainer, and a side-rail bracket for optics. An upgrade kit, AK-74M UUK, provides rails for accessories.
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AKS-74U, a shortened carbine variant adopted in 1979, bridging the gap between submachine gun and assault rifle, intended for special forces, airborne, rear-echelon units, and vehicle crews, featuring a short barrel and different sight configuration.
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AKS-74UB, a sound-suppressed variant of the AKS-74U.
Post-AK-74M developments include the AK-100 series (based on AK-74M, often for export) and the AK-200 series and AK-12 families (incorporating features like Picatinny rails and ergonomic improvements), some of which were adopted by the Russian military.
The rifle first saw service with Soviet forces in the Soviet–Afghan War from 1979.
As of 2021, most countries of the former Soviet Union use the rifle. Users include Afghanistan, Angola, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Burundi, Chad, Cyprus, Cuba, Egypt, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Guatemala, Ivory Coast, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Lithuania, Madagascar, Moldova, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Somalia, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen, and Zambia. Former users include the Soviet Union, Ba'athist Iraq, Ba'athist Syria, Bulgaria, Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, Croatia, East Germany, and Germany. Entities with limited recognition and non-state users also use the firearm, including Abkhazia, Donetsk People's Republic, Luhansk People's Republic, South Ossetia, Transnistria, Aum Shinrikyo, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Kurdistan Workers' Party, Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, and the Lord's Resistance Army.