CBS: Kalashnikov assault rifle designer dead at 94

[China]

Kalashnikov assault rifle designer dead at 94

 

MOSCOW -- Mikhail Kalashnikov, whose work as a weapons designer for the Soviet Union is immortalized in the name of the world's most popular firearm, died Monday at the age of 94.

 

Kalashnikov once aspired to design farm equipment. But even though his most famous invention - the AK-47 assault rifle - sowed havoc instead of crops, he often said he felt personally untroubled by his contribution to bloodshed.

 

"I sleep well. It's the politicians who are to blame for failing to come to an agreement and resorting to violence," he said in 2007.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Mad Mike]

I'll say this... He was one hell of an engineer.

[Chew]

I'll say this... He was one hell of an engineer.

 

right.  god bless 'em.

 

those things can take a beating and keep putting rounds down range.

[Mocountyskins]

And they jam less than the M16

[nonniey]

Meh, he based much of his design on the German StG44 and he had the captured StG44 designers on his team (It was different rifle but having the same guys that designed the StG 44 on his team certainly helped).

[The Sisko]

right. god bless 'em.

those things can take a beating and keep putting rounds down range.

The tradeoff is that you're not likely to hit anything with it outside of at relatively close range. We used to joke about it being made by Mattel but the M-16 is a far superior weapon IMO.

[G.A.C.O.L.B.]

... the M-16 is a far superior weapon IMO.

 

You really think so? I don't have any experience with an AK but I've always heard it was the surperior weapon. That it NEVER jammed. And I know what kind of problems I personally had, and witnessed others having, with the M-16.

[The Sisko]

I'm not saying it's a bad weapon per se. It's just that the AK47 was designed, and quite successfully so, with reliability in mind over pretty much anything else. As a result it's heavier, much less accurate and hence has a much shorter range at which you can effectively engage the enemy. The value of accurate fire cannot be overstated. One well placed shot almost always trumps spraying bullets everywhere, especially if you can make that one shot 200 yards before the enemy can even effectively attempt his. :-)

Among its few advantages, the AK47 is much cheaper to produce. As a result it's become almost ubiquitous around the globe which IMHO has helped fuel numerous conflicts that probably would have fizzled out or never happened without such a weapon. So if you're a child soldier with little training looking to kill defenseless villagers at close range in a poor country without much infrastructure, then yes, it's a better weapon than the M-16.

[nonniey]

You really think so? I don't have any experience with an AK but I've always heard it was the surperior weapon. That it NEVER jammed. And I know what kind of problems I personally had, and witnessed others having, with the M-16.

Depends on the situation - for highly trained professional soldiers (ie Western type Armies)the M16 is a superior weapon (it requires disciplined maintenance) but if you have Armies or forces that are draftees with limited training, an army with cultural limitations or guerillas, the AK 47 is superior.

[AsburySkinsFan]

"I sleep well. It's the politicians who are to blame for failing to come to an agreement and resorting to violence," he said in 2007.

Huge difference between him and men like Nobel and Oppenheimer who at least accepted their part, but then no rain drop ever believes that it is responsible for the flood.

[Slateman]

Meh, he based much of his design on the German StG44 and he had the captured StG44 designers on his team (It was different rifle but having the same guys that designed the StG 44 on his team certainly helped).

 

Except gas operated vs piston operated. And the mechanism itself is quite different.

 

One could argue the Germans took the idea of shortening the cartridge from the Fedorov Avtomat or even the Americans and their M1 Carbine.

[twa]

Heh

 

http://www.duffelblog.com/2013/12/mikhail-kalashnikov-dead/

 

 

MOSCOW — Russia has announced funeral arrangements for Lt. Gen. Mikhail T. Kalashnikov, inventor of the AK-47 assault rifle.

“Comrade Kalashnikov will be buried in a pit of mud with full military honors,” said General-Major Saiga Molot, a spokesman for the Russian army. “After a week, we will exhume his body, clean it off, and put him back to work. We expect that there shall be no issue with his functions.”

Kalashnikov died of complications from a liver transplant operation. The liver Kalashnikov received was allegedly Romanian, but turned out to be a substandard Albanian version.

“It was a successful substitution, but it made him inaccurate and prone to blockage,” said his son, Victor. 

While praised for his simple operation and ruggedness, Kalashnikov is also being remembered for his contributions to over 300 insurgencies, 524 known terrorist groups and at least 18 hostile regime changes.

“We will always be grateful to General Kalashnikov for giving us the inspiration for Kevlar,” said DuPont President and CEO Ellen Kullman. 

more @ link

Read more: http://www.duffelblog.com/2013/12/mikhail-kalashnikov-dead/#ixzz2oPugaKM2