I can understand if an AK47's effective aimed range is that low, but I thought the russian version of the .308 went a lot further than 300 meters...?
The limitation for the standard AK47/AKM rifle with 16-inch barrel is mainly the sights; Though the AKsight is graduated out to 1000 meters and that of the AKM to 800, there's no windage adjustment at the rear sight, and their sight notch is pretty coarse; 300 meters is a more realistic number...and the AK magazine even makes a supported prone position less effective.
The longer 24-inch barrel of the RPK squad automatic weapon version of the AK is fitted with adjustment for windage easily set by the operator, and the longer barrel offers both better ballistic performance from the M43 cartridge and the longer sight radius making longer range fire more effective....and the bipod fitted helps as well. Hits on man-sized targets at half a kilometer are quite possible with the RPK, and a short burst may result in a beaten zone with a better than 50% chance of a hit on a single individual out as far as half that again, well beyond what the usual AK can manage. And if a 1P29 4x telescopic sight is fitted, target acquisition becomes even faster and more effective, with adjustment for range being automatically compensated.
The PSO-1 4x telescopic sight generally found atop the SVD sniper's rifle is calibrated for a 1000-meter range for a humanoid target 1.7 meters tall, and the chevron-pattern reticle allows quick and easy choices of elevation at varying range without adjustment of the scope. That's a little farther than the best usual accuracy of a SVD, but the cartridge is certainly effective at that range, and some shooters are very, very good with their SVDs. I would not bet my life that a Dragonov-equipped sniper couldn't make that shot. And there are also more powerful and more modern telescopic and electrooptical sighting units that can be as easily attached to the SVD's side mounting rail as easily as the PSO-1 can be removed from it with the throw of a lever. But 600-800 meters with a SVD and PSO-4 is pretty easy meat.
The SVD *Oar* is not as handy a carbine as an AKM or AK74, weighing almost twice as much, but offering around three times the effective range. And while the old Soviet motor-rifle regiment's forces had only one SVD per platoon, the Russians in Chechnya have often included a SVD, sometimes two, per squad.
