The PKM is a Soviet general-purpose machine gun, an improved version of the earlier PK machine gun designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov's design bureau and adopted by Soviet forces in 1969, chambered for the same 7.62x54mmR rimmed rifle cartridge used by earlier Soviet rifles such as the Mosin-Nagant, giving it a longer effective range than rifle-caliber assault weapons like the AK-47 while remaining light enough for a single soldier to carry and fire from a bipod. Belt-fed and gas-operated, the PKM can be quickly reconfigured between a lightweight infantry role on its integral bipod and a heavier sustained-fire role mounted on a tripod or vehicle mount, giving Soviet and later Russian forces a flexible squad and company-level support weapon comparable to Western general-purpose machine guns of the same era. Produced in vast numbers and widely exported, the PKM and its licensed and unlicensed derivatives remain in active service with dozens of countries' armed forces and numerous non-state armed groups worldwide well into the twenty-first century.
Facts
Classification
Service Status Weapon ClassGeneral-purpose machine gun 1 Introduced Year Weapon Class
Weapon Class (category) FAQs
What is the difference between the PK and the PKM machine guns?
The PK came in 1961 and the improved PKM in 1969.
The original PK machine gun was introduced in 1961, and the improved PKM variant was introduced in 1969. The design came from the Soviet Union and is currently in production in Russia.
Connections
Operated By
Source Military Factory: Kalashnikov PKM (Pulemyot Kalashnikova Modernizirovany) General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) / Light Machine Gun (LMG)
Source Military Factory: Kalashnikov PKM (Pulemyot Kalashnikova Modernizirovany) General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) / Light Machine Gun (LMG)
Source Military Factory: Kalashnikov PKM (Pulemyot Kalashnikova Modernizirovany) General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) / Light Machine Gun (LMG)
Source Military Factory: Kalashnikov PKM (Pulemyot Kalashnikova Modernizirovany) General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) / Light Machine Gun (LMG)
Source Military Factory: Kalashnikov PKM (Pulemyot Kalashnikova Modernizirovany) General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) / Light Machine Gun (LMG)
Source Military Factory: Kalashnikov PKM (Pulemyot Kalashnikova Modernizirovany) General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) / Light Machine Gun (LMG)
Source Military Factory: Kalashnikov PKM (Pulemyot Kalashnikova Modernizirovany) General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) / Light Machine Gun (LMG)
Source Military Factory: Kalashnikov PKM (Pulemyot Kalashnikova Modernizirovany) General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) / Light Machine Gun (LMG)
Used In
Iraq War, Wars Source Military Factory: Kalashnikov PKM (Pulemyot Kalashnikova Modernizirovany) General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) / Light Machine Gun (LMG)
Source Military Factory: Kalashnikov PKM (Pulemyot Kalashnikova Modernizirovany) General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) / Light Machine Gun (LMG)
In the Other Atlases
Manufactured By
Also in Business Atlas: the manufacturer of this subject.
Source Wikipedia: PK machine guntier 2
Sources
1. Wikipedia: PK machine gun
WikipediaLead section
The PK (Russian: Пулемёт Калашникова, romanized: Pulemyot Kalashnikova, lit. 'Kalashnikov's machine gun'), is a belt-fed general-purpose machine gun, chambered for the 7.62×54mmR rimmed cartridge.
lead section, paragraph 2
Designed in the Soviet Union and currently in production in Russia, the original PK machine gun was introduced in 1961 and the improved PKM variant was introduced in 1969.
service status
Produced in vast numbers and widely exported, the PKM and its licensed and unlicensed derivatives remain in active service with dozens of countries' armed forces and numerous non-state armed groups worldwide well into the twenty-first century
caliber
The PKM is a Soviet general-purpose machine gun, an improved version of the earlier PK machine gun designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov's design bureau and adopted by Soviet forces in 1969, chambered for the same 7.62x54mmR rimmed rifle cartridge used by earlier Soviet rifles such as the Mosin-Nagant, giving it a longer effective range than rifle-caliber assault weapons like the AK-47 while remaining light enough for a single soldier to carry and fire from a bipod
View the Source 2. Wikidata: PKM
Wikidata Q112187233, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source Military Factory: Kalashnikov PKM (Pulemyot Kalashnikova Modernizirovany) General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) / Light Machine Gun (LMG)
Military FactoryOperated By: People's Liberation Army, Operators list
Afghanistan; Albania; Algeria; Armenia; Azerbaijan; Bangladesh; Belarus; Bulgaria; Cambodia; Cape Verde; China; Croatia; Cuba; Czech Republic; Democratic Republic of the Congo; East Germany; Egypt; Finland; Georgia; Greece; Hungary; India; Iran; Iraq; Israel; Kazakstan; Kyrgyzstan; Mali; Moldova; Nicaragua; North Korea; Panama; Poland; Romania; Russia; Republic of the Congo; Serbia; Slovakia; Soviet Union; Sri Lanka; Tajikistan; Turkmenistan; Turkey; Ukraine; Uzbekistan; Vietnam; Yugoslavia; Zimbabwe
Operated By: Egyptian Armed Forces, Operators list
Afghanistan; Albania; Algeria; Armenia; Azerbaijan; Bangladesh; Belarus; Bulgaria; Cambodia; Cape Verde; China; Croatia; Cuba; Czech Republic; Democratic Republic of the Congo; East Germany; Egypt; Finland; Georgia; Greece; Hungary; India; Iran; Iraq; Israel; Kazakstan; Kyrgyzstan; Mali; Moldova; Nicaragua; North Korea; Panama; Poland; Romania; Russia; Republic of the Congo; Serbia; Slovakia; Soviet Union; Sri Lanka; Tajikistan; Turkmenistan; Turkey; Ukraine; Uzbekistan; Vietnam; Yugoslavia; Zimbabwe
Operated By: Finnish Defence Forces, Operators list
Afghanistan; Albania; Algeria; Armenia; Azerbaijan; Bangladesh; Belarus; Bulgaria; Cambodia; Cape Verde; China; Croatia; Cuba; Czech Republic; Democratic Republic of the Congo; East Germany; Egypt; Finland; Georgia; Greece; Hungary; India; Iran; Iraq; Israel; Kazakstan; Kyrgyzstan; Mali; Moldova; Nicaragua; North Korea; Panama; Poland; Romania; Russia; Republic of the Congo; Serbia; Slovakia; Soviet Union; Sri Lanka; Tajikistan; Turkmenistan; Turkey; Ukraine; Uzbekistan; Vietnam; Yugoslavia; Zimbabwe
Operated By: Israeli Defense Forces, Operators list
Afghanistan; Albania; Algeria; Armenia; Azerbaijan; Bangladesh; Belarus; Bulgaria; Cambodia; Cape Verde; China; Croatia; Cuba; Czech Republic; Democratic Republic of the Congo; East Germany; Egypt; Finland; Georgia; Greece; Hungary; India; Iran; Iraq; Israel; Kazakstan; Kyrgyzstan; Mali; Moldova; Nicaragua; North Korea; Panama; Poland; Romania; Russia; Republic of the Congo; Serbia; Slovakia; Soviet Union; Sri Lanka; Tajikistan; Turkmenistan; Turkey; Ukraine; Uzbekistan; Vietnam; Yugoslavia; Zimbabwe
Operated By: Russian Armed Forces, Operators list
Afghanistan; Albania; Algeria; Armenia; Azerbaijan; Bangladesh; Belarus; Bulgaria; Cambodia; Cape Verde; China; Croatia; Cuba; Czech Republic; Democratic Republic of the Congo; East Germany; Egypt; Finland; Georgia; Greece; Hungary; India; Iran; Iraq; Israel; Kazakstan; Kyrgyzstan; Mali; Moldova; Nicaragua; North Korea; Panama; Poland; Romania; Russia; Republic of the Congo; Serbia; Slovakia; Soviet Union; Sri Lanka; Tajikistan; Turkmenistan; Turkey; Ukraine; Uzbekistan; Vietnam; Yugoslavia; Zimbabwe
Operated By: Soviet Armed Forces, Operators list
Afghanistan; Albania; Algeria; Armenia; Azerbaijan; Bangladesh; Belarus; Bulgaria; Cambodia; Cape Verde; China; Croatia; Cuba; Czech Republic; Democratic Republic of the Congo; East Germany; Egypt; Finland; Georgia; Greece; Hungary; India; Iran; Iraq; Israel; Kazakstan; Kyrgyzstan; Mali; Moldova; Nicaragua; North Korea; Panama; Poland; Romania; Russia; Republic of the Congo; Serbia; Slovakia; Soviet Union; Sri Lanka; Tajikistan; Turkmenistan; Turkey; Ukraine; Uzbekistan; Vietnam; Yugoslavia; Zimbabwe
Operated By: Turkish Armed Forces, Operators list
Afghanistan; Albania; Algeria; Armenia; Azerbaijan; Bangladesh; Belarus; Bulgaria; Cambodia; Cape Verde; China; Croatia; Cuba; Czech Republic; Democratic Republic of the Congo; East Germany; Egypt; Finland; Georgia; Greece; Hungary; India; Iran; Iraq; Israel; Kazakstan; Kyrgyzstan; Mali; Moldova; Nicaragua; North Korea; Panama; Poland; Romania; Russia; Republic of the Congo; Serbia; Slovakia; Soviet Union; Sri Lanka; Tajikistan; Turkmenistan; Turkey; Ukraine; Uzbekistan; Vietnam; Yugoslavia; Zimbabwe
Operated By: Vietnam People's Army, Operators list
Afghanistan; Albania; Algeria; Armenia; Azerbaijan; Bangladesh; Belarus; Bulgaria; Cambodia; Cape Verde; China; Croatia; Cuba; Czech Republic; Democratic Republic of the Congo; East Germany; Egypt; Finland; Georgia; Greece; Hungary; India; Iran; Iraq; Israel; Kazakstan; Kyrgyzstan; Mali; Moldova; Nicaragua; North Korea; Panama; Poland; Romania; Russia; Republic of the Congo; Serbia; Slovakia; Soviet Union; Sri Lanka; Tajikistan; Turkmenistan; Turkey; Ukraine; Uzbekistan; Vietnam; Yugoslavia; Zimbabwe
Used In: Iraq War, Collections list
IRAQI FREEDOM ARMS
Used In: Russo-Ukrainian War, Collections list
RUSSO-UKRAINIAN WAR
In Group: General-Purpose and Medium Machine Guns, Header classification line
General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) / Light Machine Gun (LMG)
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