Other Definitions
assault rifle (dict)
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Assault RifleAssault rifles are selective fire intermediate-power rifles. Mission The typical mission of an assault rifle is to provide fire support at ranges up to 400 meters by ordinary troops. Doctrines about the desirability of this rifle vary. Studies by the U.S. Army indicate that most conflicts between soldiers occur at ranges of 100 meters or less. Russian doctrine asserts that the typical soldier is unable to aim beyond 400 meters, and therefore 400 m should be the ultimate aimed range of a rifle for massed fire. As a massed military weapon, assault rifles share common features: low weight, hand grips positioned for good instinctive pointing (for unaimed "intuitive" fire), bayonet lugs (to provide lethality without ammunition), selectable fire rates, high reliability, large magazines, and simplified operation. Many lightweight semi-automatic civilian rifles, meant only for personal defence use, provide similar features but omit fully-automatic fire and bayonet lugs. Assault rifles typically cause injuries more often than death. Doctrines vary concerning this effect. The U.S. military states that this is an intentional goal. Enemy logistics are overloaded with wounded, and the lack of deaths is seen by the enemy and those pulling the trigger as more merciful, enabling average troops to pull the trigger with less guilt. Some Russian accounts state that the lower lethality is an accidental side-effect of the cartridge's smaller powder charge, which they tried to overcome by making the bullet more lethal at lower energies. (See 5.45 x 39 mm M74 for details). Most assault rifles are capable of fully automatic fire, and many do not include finite bursts. The idea is that a trained soldier can effectively use aimed automatic bursts without fear of "spray and pray". History The first true assault rifle was probably the Italian-made Cei-Rigotti, its gas based operating system expelled 900 Rounds per minute of 6.5x52mm munition from a 25 round box magazine. Developed in the 1890s, but it never entered military service. The first service assault rifle was the Russian Federov Avtomat of 1916 chambered for the Japanese Arisaka 6.5x50mm rifle cartridge, which due to supply problems was only used in small numbers. After these early starts, the idea of the assault rifle was mostly left dormant. An attempt to provide soldiers with a rifle with an intermediate-power ammunition and heavier than submachine guns (too weak and with too short a range due to the pistol ammunition), but lighter than long rifles (uncomfortable to shoot, and difficult to control on full-automatic because of the powerful ammunition and more expensive to design and manufacture), by the Italian arms company Beretta resulted with its MAB 38 (Moschetto Automatico Beretta 1938). This was developed at the same time as the US M1/M2 carbine (the M2 version had selective fire). The MAB 38 used a Fiocchi 9M38 cartridge, a higher-powered 9 mm Parabellum, which could provide a longer range. The useful range was about 200 m, although it was declared at 500 m. The MAB 38 was a multipurpose weapon. The U.S. M1 carbine cartidge had superior range to a submachine gun and is intended as a Personal defense weapon. It was not only much more usefull then the 1911A1 service pistol as a back-up weapon, but proved to popular among front line soldiers as well, with millions being used alongside the full-sized M1 Garand rifles in WWII, Korea, and a notable use in Vietnam. The The cartidge lacked hitting power at the in the latter stages of its effective range, but it was a easy weapon to get a second shot with due to a high practical rate of fire. The cartidge had inferior hitting power to many rounds, even larger pistol rounds, but this is because small rifle rounds tend to perform worse then large pistol rounds at close range, the advantage is only at longer range. The M1 Carbine cartdige is not a pistol round, it is matched and designed to be fired from the M1's 18 inch (458 mm) barrel. Pistol rounds are designed to be fired 4-8 inch barrels typically, from pistols or submachine guns. The rounded head and lack of tapering do not mean it is pistol round, rifle rounds historically had round tops, and even in WWII the Italians still used a round top bullet. For example, one of the most powerfull rifle rounds ever made, the .60 Action Express designed for killing large wild animals does not have tapering and has a rounded head. The automatic version of the M1, the M2 meats all the qualifications for being a assault rifle, and its effective range differs from weapons like the AK-47 less it differs from it the most full power rifle. In Germany there had been interest in lighter infantry weapons. Later, in Nazi Germany the need for a lighter weapon was manifested by the adoption of the K98k in 1935, it was a shortened version of a carbine of the much older Mauser rifles. At first they were still using the 8x57JS and 8mm Mauser. The 7.92x30mm cartridge was the best of that production, and in 1941 it was improved to 7,9x33mm Infanterie Kurz Patrone. In 1942 it was improved again as Maschinekarbiner Patrone S and in 1943 Pistolen Patrone 43mE, then finally Infanterie Kurz Patrone 43. All these names follow the complicated developments in the Machinenkarabiner('machine carbine') program that resulted in the (Mkb42(H) and (W), MP43, MP44, and StG44). In 1942 Walther presented the Maschinenkarabiner (automatic carabine, abbr. MK), named MKb42(W). In the same year, Haenel presented the MKb42(H), designed by Hugo Schmeisser as a result of this program. Rheinmetall-Borsig (some said Krieghoff) presented its FG-42 (Fallschirmjaeger Gewehr 42) though this was was in a different role, and using a heavy 8x57 mm cartridge. The FG-42 was sponsored by Hermann Gring. War-time tests in Russia indicated the MKb42(H) was the best of the three. Schmeisser developed it first as the MP43, then MP43/1 and finally as the STG 44 Sturmgewehr. It immediately entered large scale production. More than 5,000 pieces had been produced by February 1944, 55,000 by the following November. Statistical studies of real battles performed by the U.S. Army indicated that combat beyond 200 yards is rare. The Russians saw no reason to make a rifle that shoots beyond a rifleman's ability to aim. Therefore a lighter, less-powerful cartridge could be effective. This permitted a lighter rifle and enabled troops to carry more ammunition, making them more autonomous. The lighter ammunition would use far less cargo capacity on trains, trucks, ships and helicopters. This reduced the cost of resupply. In addition, the smaller size and easy handling of an assault rifle would reduce the burden on tank crews, support troops, and units with missions other than front line combat. All of these led to the widespread adoption of assault rifles. Near the end of WWII, American and Soviet development of the assault rifle continued as the individual histories of the M-16 and AK47. In the US, the term has recently been modified as "assault weapon" and applied (for political reasons) to various semi-automatic firearms. Arms manufacturers had for decades advertised the supposed resemblance of their civilian products to military weapons. Effects on doctrine and organization When assault rifles were adopted, ordinary troops became less able to fire accurately at long ranges. Russian and Russian-derived doctrines include squad-level snipers, while the U.S. and its derived doctrines maintain a sniper team at battalion level. Unrelated Terms In the United States, the term 'assault weapon' is used in certain groups primarily to to describe a collection of semi-automatic firearms that have certain features, such as a clip larger then ten rounds or a folding stock. It has been used primarily in relation to a specific Gun law, a bill commonly known as the 'Assault Weapons Ban', although automatic (select fire) weapons, including assault rifle's have been under heavy restrictions since the 1930s in the US. See also External links
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