Vietnam: Captain Michael Harvey, US Army MP, inspects a captured National Liberation Front (Viet Cong) AK-47, 1968

The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova. It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an 'AK', or, in Russian slang, Kalash.

Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year of World War II (1945). After the war in 1946, the AK-46 was presented for official military trials. In 1947 the fixed-stock version was introduced into service with select units of the Soviet Army.

An early development of the design was the AKS-47 (S—Skladnoy or 'folding'), which was equipped with an underfolding metal shoulder stock. In 1949, the AK-47 was officially accepted by the Soviet Armed Forces and used by the majority of the member states of the Warsaw Pact.

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Supplier: CPA Media Co. Ltd.

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Pictures From History

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INDOCHINA WARS