I read a great blog post, from all places, the New York Times, on the types of guns captured from the Taliban by US and Allied forces. The author examines a sample of each weapon and draws some interesting conclusions about the motivations for their use by the Taliban.
http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/15/whats-inside-a-taliban-gun-locker/
Today's post is not an assessment of the Taliban and how well or poorly they fight against US soldiers. Rather, it examines how one force maintains their weapons, which ones they use and how it applies historically and for other insurgents.
The takeaways..
The AK47 can be used for years, but has problems with range and effectiveness after hard use.
Common calibers are much more important then diversity, technology or effectiveness.
An museum piece can not only remain useful, it may be preferred.
The Taliban are using AK47, PK, Mosin Nagants and Lee Enfield rifles. Most of the weapons have seen heavy service and many are subject to field repairs. Almost all were maintianed well internally, but were battered and dinged.
What is interesting is the commonality of the Mosin Nagant and Enfield bolt rifles. Both have been in service one place or another for over a century. While the Afghans were seen using these rifles during the Soviet invasion of 1979, most fighters today are carrying the ubiquitous AK rifle. However, in some areas, the old bolt guns are preferred for their long range sniper capability.
This is an interesting article and which can give all of us pause to thought. There are also comparisons for similar offerings here in the US.
For instance, while the 7.62 x 39 or 54 cartridge is not as common in the US, the 30-06 is and would be fireable from the Mosin and Enfield's peer, the Springfield '03 rifle it's offspring, the M1 Garand.
In addition, the .223 catridge is common in all AR pattern rifles and can be found nearly everywhere in the states. The same cannot be said for several other cartridges which lends itself to preparation advice; stocking the calibers and firearms which would be common and ubiquitous.
Check out the article, it is very in depth and surprising considering the source.
Friday, September 17, 2010
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