Know more about AK-47, AK-56 Rifles

New Delhi: The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the USSR by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova . AK-47 stands for Avtomat (meaning automatic) Kalashnikov (name of the designer, Mikhail Kalashnikov) and 47 being the year 1947 (the year it was introduced in service). This gun was designed in the Soviet Union.It was officially accepted by the Soviet Armed Forces in 1949 and used by the majority of the member states of the Warsaw Pact. The AK-47 was initially designed for ease of operation and repair by glove-wearing Soviet soldiers in Arctic conditions thus it is very soldier friendly and can be used in any possible condition, even underwater and under mud. Its simple design and high reliability makes it one of the most highly produced weapons in the world.The Type 56 assault rifle commonly known as AK-56 is the Chinese copy of the Kalashnikov AK-47 and AKM assault rifle,which has been manufactured since 1956. The postfix 56 stands for 1956, the year since when it was manufactured.It was produced by State Factory 66 between 1956 and 1973, then by Norinco from 1973 onwards.There is a common perception among people that AK-56 is a newer version of AK-47 but it is not so. The only visible difference between the AK-47 and the AK-56 is that the AK-56 has a fully enclosed, hooded front sight whereas the AK-47 sports a partially enclosed front sight. Some versions of the AK-56 also have a folding spike bayonet whereas the AK-47 has a detachable knife bayonet. Apart from these it is almost impossible to visually distinguish between the rifles.Both the guns have similar dimensions but the AK-56 assault rifle is a bit lighter, weighing 3.8 kg compared to the 4.3 kg weight of the AK-47 rifle. They both use 7.62 mm cartridges and have a 30 round feed system meaning that one magazine can hold up to 30 bullets. The AK-47 is also compatible with a 40 round box or 75 round drum magazine. Here the box and drum refers to the shape of the magazine. Both of them have a gas-operated, rotating bolt firing action. Gas-operated loading action uses the pressure of gas inside the cartridge to eject the spent case and mount a new cartridge. They both have a maximum effective range of about 400 metres.