Dragunov (SVD-63) sniper rifle

This article is about the weapon. For other uses, see AK-47 (disambiguation).

AK-47[N 1]
AK-47 Type 2A with ribbed stamped-steel magazine and 6H2 bayonet
Type	Assault rifle
Place of origin	Soviet Union
Service history
In service	1949–present (worldwide) 1949–1978 (Soviet Union)
Used by	See Users
Wars	Hungarian Revolution of 1956[1] Colombian conflict Moro Conflict South African Border War Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 War of Attrition Six-Day War Yom Kippur War Ogaden War Vietnam War Laotian Civil War Cambodian Civil War Cambodian–Vietnamese War Sino-Vietnamese War Sri Lankan Civil War Chadian–Libyan conflict Afghan Civil War Afghan-Soviet War 1982 Ethiopian-Somali Border War First Liberian Civil War Second Liberian Civil War First Sudanese Civil War Second Sudanese Civil War South Sudanese Civil War Somali Civil War Algerian Civil War Abkhaz–Georgian conflict Georgian–Ossetian conflict Georgian Civil War Tajikistani Civil War Transnistria War East Prigorodny Conflict 1991–1992 South Ossetia War War in Abkhazia (1992–1993) War in Abkhazia (1998) First Chechen War Second Chechen War War in Afghanistan Iran–Iraq War Gulf War Lebanese Civil War South Lebanon conflict (1985–2000) Yugoslav Wars Croatian War Bosnian War Iraq War First Congo War Second Congo War Mexican Drug War 2006 Lebanese War Russo-Georgian War Insurgency in the North Caucasus Northern Mali Conflict Libyan Civil War Second Libyan Civil War Boko Haram insurgency Syrian Civil War Iraqi Civil War (2014–present) Yemeni Civil War (2015–present) Saudi-led intervention in Yemen (2015–present) Conflict in Najran, Jizan and Asir
Production history
Designer	Mikhail Kalashnikov
Designed	1946–1948[2]
Manufacturer	Kalashnikov Concern and various others including Norinco
Produced	1949–present
No. built	≈ 75 million AK-47s, 100 millionKalashnikov-familyweapons.[3][4]
Variants	See Variants
Specifications
Weight	Without magazine: 3.47 kg (7.7 lb) Magazine, empty: 0.43 kg (0.95 lb) (early issue)[5] 0.33 kg (0.73 lb) (steel)[6] 0.25 kg (0.55 lb) (plastic)[7] 0.17 kg (0.37 lb) (light alloy)[6]
Length	Fixed wooden stock: 880 mm (35 in)[7] 875 mm (34.4 in) folding stock extended 645 mm (25.4 in) stock folded[5]
Barrel length	Overall length: 415 mm (16.3 in)[7] Rifled bore length: 369 mm (14.5 in)[7]
Cartridge	7.62×39mm
Action	Gas-operated, rotating bolt
Rate of fire	Cyclic rate of fire: 600 rds/min[7] Combat rate of fire: Semi-auto 40 rds/min[7] Bursts 100 rds/min[7]
Muzzle velocity	715 m/s (2,350 ft/s)[7]
Effective firing range	350 m (380 yd)[7]
Feed system	30-round detachable box magazine[7] There are also 5- 10-, 20- and 40-round box and 75- and 100-round drum magazines available
Sights	100–800 m adjustable iron sights Sight radius: 378 mm (14.9 in)[7]

The AK-47, or AK as it is officially known (Russian: Автома́т Кала́шникова, tr. Avtomát Kaláshnikova, lit. Kalashnikov's Automatic Rifle), also known as the Kalashnikov, is a gas-operated, 7.62×39mmassault rifle, developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is the originating firearm of the Kalashnikov rifle (or "AK") family.

Design work on the AK-47 began in 1945. In 1946, the AK-47 was presented for official military trials, and in 1948, the fixed-stock version was introduced into active service with selected units of the Soviet Army. An early development of the design was the AKS (S—Skladnoy or "folding"), which was equipped with an underfolding metal shoulder stock. In early 1949, the AK-47 was officially accepted by the Soviet Armed Forces^[8] and used by the majority of the member states of the Warsaw Pact.

Even after almost seven decades, the model and its variants remain the most popular and widely used assault rifles in the world because of their substantial reliability under harsh conditions, low production costs compared to contemporary Western weapons, availability in virtually every geographic region and ease of use. The AK-47 has been manufactured in many countries and has seen service with armed forces as well asirregular forces and insurgencies worldwide, and was the basis for developing many other types of individual, crew-served and specialised firearms. As of 2004, "Of the estimated 500 million firearms worldwide, approximately 100 million belong to the Kalashnikov family, three-quarters of which are AK-47s".^[3]