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"The AK-47 is a
selective fire, gas operated 7.62x39mm assault
rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by
Mikhail Kalashnikov. The designation AK-47 stands
for Kalashnikov automatic rifle, model of 1947
(Russian: Автомат Калашникова 47, tr. Avtomat
Kalashnikova 47). It is therefore also known as
Avtomat Kalashnikova (or simply 'AK'), Kalashnikov
or Russian jargon Kalash).
Design work on the AK began in 1944. In 1946 a
version of the rifle, the AK-46, was presented for
official military trials, and a year later the
fixed stock version was introduced into service
with select units of the Red Army. An early
development of the design was the AKS-47
(S—Skladnoy or "folding"), which differed in being
equipped with an underfolding metal shoulder
stock. The AK-47 was officially accepted by the
Soviet Armed Forces in 1949 and used by the
majority of the member states of the former Warsaw
Pact."
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