PK machine gun

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PK machine gun
File:PKM machine gun.jpg
PKM with bipod
Typegeneral purpose machine gun
Specifications
Mass8.99kg on bipod, 16.48kg on tripod
Length1,173 mm

The PK is a 7.62mm machine gun designed in the Soviet Union and currently in production in Russia. It is a general purpose machine gun. Its NATO equivalents are the M240 and M60 machine gun. The PK machine gun was introduced in the 1960s and replaced the SGM and DP machine guns in Soviet service.

The original PK (Пулемет Калашникова, "Machine-gun Kalashnikov") was a fully automatic machine gun development of the Kalashnikov automatic rifle design. Currently available as the PKM (Пулемет Калашникова Модернизированный, "Machine-gun Kalashnikov Modernized"), the machine gun fires 7.62 x 54 mm R Eastern Bloc standard ammunition. It is equipped with a simple bipod and is designed as a squad-level support weapon also suitable for installation and vehicle mounting. Its ammunition is not common to the AK-47 and other Soviet weapons carried by infantry units. The AK-47 uses 7.62×39 ammunition. For heavier employment, the PKMS model (ПКМ Степанова, "PKM Stepanova", for the name of the tripod) features a more stable tripod mounting. A special PKMSN2 model fits modern NSPU night sights for low visibility operations.

PKT (ПК Танковый, "PK Tank") is a further development of PK to replace the SGMT Gorunov tank machine gun. Modifications include removal of stock, longer and heavier barrel, added gas regulator and electric solenoid trigger.

The PKM and variants are in production in Russia and currently are exported to many nations. Additionally, various models are manufactured locally around the globe. Yugoslavia produced the PK under license as the M84 (along with the PKT as the M86), and it remains in use with many of its successor states. The PK and its descendants will continue to see service throughout the world for some time.

See also

External links