AK-47 inventor: U.S. troops in Iraq prefer my rifle to theirs

Reuters ^ | April 17 2006

[jmc1969]

Mikhail Kalashnikov, designer of the world's most popular assault rifle, says that U.S. soldiers in Iraq are using his invention in preference to their own weapons, proving that his gun is still the best.

"Even after lying in a swamp you can pick up this rifle, aim it and shoot. That's the best job description there is for a gun. Real soldiers know that and understand it," the 86-year-old gunmaker told a weekend news conference in Moscow.

"In Vietnam, American soldiers threw away their M-16 rifles and used [Kalashnikov] AK-47s from dead Vietnamese soldiers, with bullets they captured. That was because the climate is different to America, where M-16s may work properly," he said.

"Look what's happening now: every day on television we see that the Americans in Iraq have my machine guns and assault rifles in their armored vehicles. Even there American rifles don't work properly."

Some U.S. troops in Iraq have reportedly taken to using AK-47s in preference to the standard-issue M-16. The Cold War-era gun, renowned for its durability and easy handling, is plentiful in Iraq.

[JamesP81]

That's not true. The AK does not have better stopping power.

Actually, it does. It delivers more foot pounds of kinetic energy to the target than the .223 remington. The projectile, however, is slower and won't penetrate as deeply as the higher velocity .223 does.

[Puppage]

Tell that to the hog I shot with one last season

I never said it couldn't stop.

[JamesP81]

I know a guy who has an M14. Maybe the finest rifle in history.

[TXBSAFH]

I talked to my friend adn he tells me also that the AK was a better stopper in the field. But if I was going in to combat I would want a M-14 for anything but urban and a 12 ga for urban warfare.

[TexasTransplant]

>>>"Dressed out at 160 lb. A buddy and I were taking down our stands when we saw him, my buddy hit him 3 times with a mini 14 and the hog was still getting up. 1 round from an AK he went down. All rounds were in the flank just behind the shoulder"<<<<

Not doubting the stopping power of your AK but why would you butcher a feral hog that was over 200lbs at least, anything over about 120lbs is barely fit fare for a buzzard.

:^)

TT

[Leatherneck_MT]

No he's right. The AK is a POS accuracy wise, but it does hit harder, will go through walls that an M16 won't and will continue to fire in situations the M16 won't. For Urban Combat overall the AK is a far better weapon.

[afnamvet]

Yhe only AKs I saw were burnt by napalm.

[kAcknor]

Kalashnikov is not wrong.

No, he's not.

Hey, we built the best aircraft, cars, computers, and the Soviet Union collapsed under the weight of our vastly superior economy. But in this one case, they done good. The was and continues and the gold standard of assault weapons for reliability, longevity, and numbers in use.

So? Mikhail done good.

What's so hard about saying it?

[SWAMPSNIPER]

We aren't comparing it to the M-14.
An AK in a mudhole, however, is a lot more reliable than an M-16 in a mudhole.

[TXBSAFH]

Sausage meat. 1 part each fatty beef, hog, deer, with garlic, onion and cayanne (sp?0 pepper. Yum.

[Praxeus]

Well.. after 3 rounds, a 22 could have finished him. Hard to tell at that point.

[Praxeus]

lol

[TXBSAFH]

None of the 223 rounds made it to the vitals. They were deflected the ak round went right through a rib to the lung. I remember tracing one the grazes off a rib.

[Mikey_1962]

The model T of Assault Rifles:

It rattles and bangs but get get you where you want to go.

It is no replacement for the M-4 or M-16!

[Mathews]

Wait a second... you're talking 7.62mm Vs. 5.56mm (.223 cal). There is a huge difference and the 7.62 DOES have much more stopping power. Granted, the lightness of the 5.56 will allow it to hit someone in the shoulder and exit through their big toe, but one hit by a 7.62 goes down... DOWN HARD!!

[longtermmemmory]

actually he has a point.

Consider, his rifle may not be so accurate or long range BUT it is good for the soldier who is not doing maintenance or does not want to deal with the discipline of accuracy.

Consider how that region does not maintain the weapons they buy.

[HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity]

It may be the better gun.

But freedom is the better philosophy...

----------------------------------------

"The weirdness never ends..."
© 2006 HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity

[mad_as_he$$]

Geez I thought he was dead. The Military channel put the AK and the M-16A2 up against each other in head to head shoot off. The M-16 won all around - mostly on accuracy. IMHO the M-16 is best all around but to complicated for many people. However, there have been days when i would of liked to have a 30 cal. weapon.

[Dick Vomer]

my dad preferred a shotgun best of all...at least while he was in Chu Li and Da Nang.

[stevio]

All these posts and not a single picture. Tsk tsk.