The AK-47 is a Soviet-designed select-fire assault rifle chambered in 7.62×39mm (cartridge model 1943), officially adopted by the Soviet Armed Forces in 1949. The variant in this catalogue is the Type 3 configuration, featuring a machined milled-steel receiver and fixed stock at 870mm overall length with a cyclic rate of 600 rounds per minute.
The AK-47 became the standard infantry weapon for motorized rifle and airborne units across Warsaw Pact member states. From the late 1950s onward, it was progressively replaced in Soviet service by the AKM – a lighter stamped-receiver modernization of the same design – while remaining in licensed production and continued supply to allied forces. Armed forces across Africa, the Middle East, and Asia that received Soviet military assistance during this period were equipped with the AK-47 and continue to maintain 7.62×39mm Soviet-standard supply chains and trained maintenance infrastructure. Procurement inquiries for this platform are typically driven by logistical continuity: replacing units within existing eastern-origin armament programs without requiring caliber transition or personnel retraining.
Compatible 7.62×39mm cartridges are listed separately in the Atlas supply catalogue alongside additional 7.62×39mm assault rifle configurations in the assault rifles section.
Available for institutional procurement by ministries of defence, authorized defence contractors, and licensed importers. Inquiries must include product designation, required quantity, country of final destination, intended end-use declaration, and applicable end-user certificate (EUC) or import authorization.