AK-47: The Weapon that Changed the Face of War

by Larry Kahaner

  In traditional automatic weapons, including the AK, the bolt carrier must travel its full length so it can both eject the cartridge from the previously fired round and “strip” or remove the next cartridge from the magazine and put it into place before it can be fired. This trip takes time, and recoil occurs because the second bullet is always fired after the first bullet has left the chamber and is on its way out the barrel. Each firing cycle produces the same progression: a fired bullet, recoil, the next fired bullet. There was no way to prevent recoil with that step-by-step cycle, so Nikonov decided to break this linear progression—at least for the first two bullets.

  In the AN-94, the pulley and cable came into operation when the bolt assembly began its rearward motion. The pulley and cable quickly reversed the bolt’s rearward motion, pulling it forward from the rear and partially loading the next round into the chamber by means of a special feeding tray. As the bolt traveled forward again, this “half loaded” round was already chambered and ready for firing. The result was that two shots felt like one, and there was no recoil until after the second round was fired.

  With no recoil for two full shots, a soldier could hit the same exact spot twice, a feat previously impossible for all but expert marksmen It was essentially a two-round-burst rifle that fired faster and more accurately than any other assault rifle with one pull of the trigger.

  In semiautomatic mode, the rifle operated as any other, but with very low recoil. On full automatic, the results were similar, but with the selector switch pushed into two-shot mode the shooter could become one of the most feared adversaries faced by enemy infantry, even those wearing the most sophisticated body armor. With armor-piercing rounds, a salvo of well-placed two-shot bursts could even penetrate tank armor.

  The rifle was more reliable than the AK, with tests showing the mean number of rounds between failures at forty thousand, compared to thirty thousand for the AK. The rifle had flaws, however. It was not as easy to maintain, and some users said that the sights caught dirt in battle environments. Testers also complained that it could not be fired when the stock was folded over because it covered the trigger. This was an important feature to soldiers in urban situations, because they kept their rifle stocks folded to save space in cramped quarters but they wanted to be ready for action when they emerged. Others grumbled that the pistol grip was not as comfortable as it should be.

  All of these shortcomings were more than made up for by the two-shot burst feature. What could not be overlooked, though, was the price: about five times more expensive to produce than the AK. Although the Russian army adopted the AN-94 as its official infantry rifle in 1997, budget constraints prevented it from being fully deployed. Unless economic conditions improve it will remain in limited production and distribution. So far, only Russia’s SPETSNAZ special forces and elite units police have been issued the AN-94, mainly to fight terrorists.

  Even though his weapon was far superior to the AK, Nikonov’s firearm will never unseat the Kalashnikov as the world’s most deadly and popular rifle, especially among those fighting against establishment armies. It could be decades or more before the AKs now in circulation become decommissioned; and new ones are still being produced, especially by China, Bulgaria, and Romania. These weapons of mass destruction will be with us for a long time.

  AND THEY HAVE BECOME EASIER and cheaper to obtain than ever. Almost anyone can buy one with little effort. During the late summer of 2005, the movie Lord of War was released, starring Nicolas Cage as Yuri Orlov, a Ukrainian immigrant to New York who starts his gun brokering business by dealing a few AKs and ends up a millionaire. Director Andrew Niccol was astonished when he shopped for three thousand replica AKs. Niccol, who also directed Gattaca and The Truman Show, found that he could buy real AKs cheaper than the fakes. All it took was a phone call. When filming ended, Niccol sold the firearms. Without trying, he had become an arms dealer of the world’s most trusted weapon.

  The AK’s longevity may be why Nikonov’s death in May 2003, at age fifty-three, barely made news, even in Russia. Despite his designing arguably the world’s most advanced assault rifle, the official state obituary simply noted, “It is a tremendous loss to the Izhevsk arms-making school.”

  As for Kalashnikov himself, despite his age and growing feebleness, he continues to be the touted celebrity at military and even nonmilitary gun shows. His mission is to drum up interest in Izhmash’s weapons, including the AK-100 series, his son Viktor’s Bizon submachine gun, and even the AN-94, which is often referred to by the name Abakan—but never as the Nikonov.

  In 2002, while he was opening a weapons museum in Suhl, eastern Germany, Kalashnikov’s demeanor changed. In marked contrast to his usually defiant defense that politicians and not arms designers caused wars, he displayed uncharacteristic sorrow and responsibility by announcing, “I’m proud of my invention, but I’m sad that it is used by terrorists. I would prefer to have invented a machine that people could use and that would help farmers with their work—for example, a lawnmower.”

  Unfortunately, Kalashnikov’s lawnmower, an odd-looking, three-wheeled contraption that looks like a weed whacker with a locomotive cow catcher in front, was never manufactured. He built it before lawnmowers were plentiful in the Soviet Union, but he still uses it to cut the grass at his dacha. A model sits on display at the Kalashnikov museum next to his other inventions including a gadget that holds shish kabobs for grilling.

  With its different-sized wheels and blue gaffer’s tape holding its components together, Kalashnikov admits that the clunky lawnmower looks ancient, but he says it functions perfectly.

  It gets the job done.

  NOTES

  EPIGRAPHS

  v In some places, an AK-47 assault rifle Kofi A. Annan, “Small Arms, Big Problems,” International Herald Tribune, July 10, 2001.

  v That rifle hanging on the wall George Orwell, “Don’t Let Colonel Blimp Ruin the Home Guard,” Evening Standard, January, 8, 1941.

  v I’m proud of my invention Kate Connolly, “Kalashnikov: ‘I Wish I’d Made a Lawnmower,’ ” Guardian (UK), July 30, 2002.

  INTRODUCTION

  2 As the Apaches hovered in position Mary Beth Sheridan, “Ground Fire Repels Copter Assault; Two Crewmen Seized by Iraqis as Apache Goes Down,” Washington Post, March 25, 2003.

  3 Why the U.S. military Ibid.

  3 This “way we go to war” Interview with Major General William J. Livsey Jr. at Fort Benning, 1978.

  4 Consider the U.S. Rangers in Mogadishu Jonathan Fryer, “Jingoism Jibe over Black Hawk Down,” BBCNews.com, January 21, 2002.

  CHAPTER 1. PROTECTING THE MOTHERLAND

  12 Mikhail Timofeevich Kalashnikov was born Much of the personal information about Kalashnikov’s early life comes from his autobiography, From a Stranger’s Doorstep to the Kremlin Gates (Moscow: Military Parade, 1997), translated from the Russian. Where possible, all incidents were confirmed with those involved and with other objective historical accounts.

  13 Only a few weeks after shipping out Ibid., 50, 92.

  20 The U.S. military was oblivious William H. Hallahan, Misfire: The History of How America’s Small Arms Have Failed Our Military (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1994), 402-404.

  23 In addition, rather than build components See Kalashnikov, From a Stranger’s Doorstep, 231.

  CHAPTER 2. A REPUTATION BORN IN THE RICE PADDIES

  32 One of the champions of the .30 caliber Edward Clinton Ezell, The Great Rifle Controversy: Search for the Ultimate Infantry Weapon from World War II Through Vietnam and Beyond (Harrisburg, PA.: Stackpole Books, 1984), 49-51.

  34 But the Americans did not keep their promise Hallahan, Misfire, 435-437.

  41 Stoner would not have known Much of the material about Stoner’s efforts to push forward the AR-15 project and resistance from the army came from the Ichord hearings (see page 44 note below) into M-16 malfunctions during the Vietnam War. Stoner also did a series of videotaped interviews for the Smithsonian Institu
tion (as did Kalashnikov) in which he talked about his battles with the army. Also, The Great Rifle Controversy and Misfire, both referenced above, contain extensive documentation about this period. This particular quote can be found in the History Channel’s series Tales of the Gun: The M-16, in which Stoner explains on camera the genesis of the M-16 rifle.

  43 Their luck turned From an October 3, 1968, press conference where George Wallace announced that LeMay had agreed to serve as his vice presidential candidate.

  44 Boutelle’s farm was a shooter’s paradise Report of the Special Subcommittee on the M-16 Rifle Program of the Committee on Armed Forces, House of Representatives, 19th Congress, First Session, October 1967. This was dubbed the Ichord hearings after Missouri representative Richard Ichord, who championed Congress’s inquiry into failures of the M-16 during the Vietnam War.

  47 Whatever his reason, McNamara was clearly angry Report by Preparedness Investigating Subcommittee of the Committee on Armed Services, U.S. Senate, on M-14 Rifle Program, 1961.

  CHAPTER 3. PANDORA’S BOX

  55 The war that Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev Lester Grau, “The Soviet-Afghan Wars: A Superpower Mired in the Mountains,” Journal of Slavic Military Studies, March 2004.

  57 Strategically, the invasion was brilliant Ibid.

  58 The Soviets with their tanks The CIA’s operations in Afghanistan during the Soviet invasion have been well documented. Sources include congressional testimony on CIA operations as well as Charles G. Crogan, “Partners in Time,” World Policy Journal, Summer 1993; and Steven Coll, Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan and Bin Laden from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 (New York: Penguin, 2004), 58.

  58 Soviet weapons designers Val Shilin and Charlie Cutshaw, Legends and Realities of the AK (Boulder, CO: Paladin Press, 2000), 38.

  59 Kalashnikov, well aware of the move Kalashnikov, From a Stranger’s Doorstep, 292.

  59 Making a smaller-caliber weapon Much of the technical data for this section is drawn from Shilin and Cutshaw, Legends and Realities of the AK.

  60 Again, Western intelligence underestimated Edward Clinton Ezell, Kalashnikov: The Arms and the Man: A Revised and Expanded Edition of the AK47 Story (Cobourg, ON: Collector Grade Publications, 2001), 121.

  61 The new bullet consisted of a thin-jacketed point Galen L. Geer, “Jihad in Afghanistan,” Soldier of Fortune, September and October 1980.

  62 Another tactic of the mujahideen David Rooney, Guerrilla: Insurgents, Patriots and Terrorists from Sun Tzu to Bin Laden (London: Brassey’s, 2004), 227-228.

  63 The covert pipeline managed by the CIA Bobi Pirseyedi, The Small Arms Problem in Central Asia: Features and Implications (Geneva: United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research, 2000).

  64 As more and more AKs flooded the region See Coll, Ghost Wars.

  65 Despite the graft, corruption, and skimming The State of the World’s Refugees 1995: Conflict and Reconstruction in Afghanistan, UNHCR. See also Chris Smith, “Light Weapons and Ethnic Conflict in South Asia,” in Jeffrey Boutwell, Michael T. Klare, and Laura W. Reed, eds., Lethal Commerce: The Global Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons (Cambridge, MA: Committee on International Security Studies, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 1995), 64.

  66 Regardless of the large troop numbers See Grau, “Soviet-Afghan Wars.”

  67 Economically, the war’s drain on the faltering A. Z. Hilali, “Afghanistan: The Decline of Soviet Military Strategy and Political Status,” Journal of Slavic Military Studies 12, no. 1 (March 1999): 102.

  68 Just prior to the Soviet withdrawal Henry Kamm, “Pakistani Arms Dealers Hail God and the AK-47,” New York Times, March 8, 1988.

  68 A 1988 story in the Los Angeles Times Mark Fineman, “Ethnic Tensions Grip Hyderbad; Pakistanis Fear for Lives in Kalashnikov Culture,” Los Angeles Times, October 5, 1988.

  68 In Peshawar itself, people reportedly could rent Mary Williams Walsh, “Guns and Gunmen Rule in Pakistan’s Wild West,” Wall Street Journal , June 30, 1987.

  69 This economic and social reliance on AKs Ibid.

  70 When the Albanian government fell Chris McNab, The AK47 (St. Paul, MN: MBI Publishing, 2001), 60.

  70 Now, with the Soviets gone Jane’s Intelligence Review, August 1, 1997.

  70 When the Soviets attacked Afghanistan For an excellent and concise summary of bin Laden’s rise, see Rooney, Guerrilla, 229-241.

  73 In essays from al-Qaeda writers From English translations of al-Qaeda essays cited in Michael Scheure’s “Al-Qaeda’s Tactical Doctrine for the Long War,” Terrorism Focus, March 14, 2006. Scheuer also addressed al-Qaeda doctrine in his book Imperial Hubris: Why the West Is Losing ther War on Terror (Dulles, VA: Potomac Books, 2005).

  CHAPTER 4. THE AFRICAN CREDIT CARD

  76 “A few planeloads of arms” PBS, Frontline/World, “Gun Runners,” May 2002.

  79 Instead of ignoring Taylor Howard Witt, “In Liberian Jungles, Teens Take Charge,” Chicago Tribune, July 15, 1990.

  80 Taylor went further Tom Kamara, “Children Remain Useful,” The Perspective, January 24, 2001.

  80 Taylor’s Small Boy Units Jamie Menutis, “No End to the Ugliness in Liberia,” Alternet, June 24, 2003.

  81 In a perverted context “Up to 15,000 Child Soldiers in Liberia, UN Says,” IRIN News, September 24, 2003. IRIN is the Integrated Regional Information Networks, part of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

  81 The Small Boy Units were often looked Howard Witt, “In Liberian Jungles, Teens Take Charge,” Chicago Tribune, July 15, 1990.

  81 Nobody knows how Taylor got the idea Michael Klare, “The Kalashnikov Age,” Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, January 1999.

  81 During the capital’s siege “Liberia’s Killing Goes On,” Economist, September 15, 1990.

  82 Some international observers, including former U.S. president Jimmy Carter Fadiru B. Koroma, “War in Liberia Threatens to Destablise Region,” Worldpress.org, August 14, 2002.

  82 With the elections drawing world attention P. W. Singer, Children at War (New York Pantheon, 2005), 56.

  84 Despite a UN embargo Ken Silverstein, “Comrades in Arms,” Washington Monthly, January 1, 2002.

  85 To maintain control of these diamond mines Holly Burkhalter, Physicians for Human Rights, testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives Ways and Means Subcommittee on Trade, September 13, 2000.

  85 Taylor repeatedly denied any involvement Tamam Ahmed Jama, “Soaked in Blood,” Al-Ahram Weekly, January 23, 2003.

  86 As the years progressed, Taylor found Alex Vines, Hunting the Illegal Arms Traffickers, report to Norwegian Initiative on Small Arms Transfers, December 6, 2003.

  86 One of the problems encountered by officials Paul Salopek, “Disarming Sierra Leone,” Chicago Tribune, December 23, 2001.

  87 The shame of blood diamonds “A Region in Flames: West Africa Wars,” Economist, July 5, 2003.

  87 One incident, not publicized at the time Kim Sengupta, “British SAS Overpower West Side Boys with Military Precision,” Hamilton (ON) Spectator, September 11, 2000. An entire book detailing the incident is William Fowler, Operation Barras: The SAS Rescue Mission, Sierra Leone 2000 (London: Weidenfeld & Nicholson, 2004).

  88 Although many countries employed child soldiers “Children of the Gun,” Children in Crisis Report, Save the Children, September 2000. Also see Singer, Children at War, 15.

  89 Court testimony has stunned the world Clarence Roy-Macaulay, “Sierra Leoneans Testify on Rebel Abuse,” Associated Press, July 21, 2004.

  90 Reports from the war crimes court showed Terrorist Responses to Improved US Financial Defenses, testimony by Douglas Farah before the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, Committee on Financial Services, February 16, 2005. Farah is also author of an in-depth investigation into blood diamonds and their use by terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda. He makes a convincing case that the September 11, 2001, attacks were funded in part by illegal trading in
these and other precious gems. See Douglas Farah, Blood from Stones: The Secret Financial Network of Terror; (New York: Broadway Books, 2004). See also “9/11 Funds Traced to Taylor,” Africa News, July 22, 2004.

  93 In Somalia, as in many areas of the world “Somali President a ‘Man of Peace,’ ” BBC News World Edition (online), October 14, 2004.

  94 Kalashnikovs poured into Rwanda Stephen D. Goose and Frank Smyth, “Arming Genocide in Rwanda,” Foreign Affairs, September/October 1994.

  95 Most news accounts emphasized Jeffrey Boutwell and Michael T. Klare, “A Scourge of Small Arms,” Scientific American, June 2000.

  95 In mid-July, RPF forces Carter Dougherty, “Rwanda Marks Genocide Anniversary,” Boston Globe, April 8, 2004. See Linda Melvern, A People Betrayed: The Role of the West in Rwanda’s Genocide (London: Zed Books; 2000), for a description of Boutros-Ghali’s role.