AEK-971
The AEK-971 (Russian: Автомат единый Кокшарова 971, "Automatic (rifle), Universal, (of) Koksharov, 971) is a selective fire 5.45×39mm assault rifle that was developed at the Kovrov Mechanical Plant (KMZ) by chief designer Stanislav Ivanovich Koksharov (Cyrilic: Станислав Иванович Кокшаров), also known as Sergey Koksharov, in the late 1970s and 1980s (currently manufactured by Degtyarev Plant).
| AEK-971 | |
|---|---|
AEK-971 5.45×39mm balanced-recoil assault rifle | |
| Type | Assault rifle |
| Place of origin | Soviet Union |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1980–present 2018–present (KORD rifle) |
| Used by | See Users |
| Wars | Second Chechen war 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Stanislav Koksharov |
| Designed | 1978 |
| Manufacturer | Kovrovskiy Mekhanicheskiy Zavod (original) Degtyarev plant (current) |
| Produced | 1990–present |
| Variants | See Variants |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 3.3 kg (7.3 lb) unloaded (AEK-971) 3.3 kg (7.3 lb) unloaded (AEK-972) 3.25 kg (7.2 lb) unloaded (AEK-973) |
| Length | 960 mm (37.8 in) with stock unfolded 720 mm (28.3 in) with stock folded |
| Barrel length | 420 mm (16.5 in) |
| Cartridge | 5.45×39mm (AEK-971, AEK-971S, KORD 6P67) 5.56×45mm NATO (AEK-972) 7.62×39mm (AEK-973, AEK-973S, KORD 6P68) |
| Action | Gas-operated, rotating bolt, balanced recoil system (BARS) |
| Rate of fire | Cyclic: 900 rounds/min Practical: Automatic: 100 rounds/min Semi-auto: 40 rounds/min |
| Muzzle velocity | 880 m/s (2,887 ft/s) (AEK-971, AEK-971S) 850 m/s (2,789 ft/s) (AEK-972) 700 m/s (2,297 ft/s) (AEK-973, AEK-973S) |
| Effective firing range | 500 m (547 yd) |
| Maximum firing range | 100–1,000 m (109–1,094 yd) sight adjustments |
| Feed system | AEK-971, AEK-971S, KORD 6P67: 5.45×39mm AK-74 and RPK-74 magazines AEK-972: 5.56×45mm NATO AK-101, AK-102 carbine and AK-108 magazines AEK-973, AEK-973S, KORD 6P68: 7.62×39mm AK-47, AKM and RPK magazines Note: In standard configuration all of the rifles uses a 30-round detachable box magazine and are capable of using the 60-round detachable casket magazine. |
| Sights | AEK-971: Adjustable iron sights, hooded front post and rear notch on a scaled tangent KORD 6P67: Iron sights that consist of a rotary rear drum aperture and an integrated Picatinny rail for various optics |
The AEK-971 is also available in 5.56×45mm NATO, designated as the AEK-972 and in 7.62×39mm, designated as the AEK-973.
The KORD 6P67 and KORD 6P68 is a successor variant of the AEK-971 and AEK-973 respectively, that was announced on 23 December 2014, which features numerous internal and external improvements over its predecessor and was adopted by the Russian military for special forces.