"I know what you are thinking!" Sparkin raised the Bobosha in his hand and smiled with a knowing expression: "You may think that we only need to replace the submachine gun bullets with rifle bullets...
Then we can not only deal with distant enemies, but also shoot bullets for close combat! No, Comrade Shulka, that is a machine gun, you cannot hold a machine gun and engage in close combat with the enemy!"
Sparkin was right. It is true that you cannot hold a machine gun in close combat with the enemy. Its recoil makes it impossible to hold it up and shoot like a submachine gun. It can also charge forward while holding up the gun and shoot at any time.
But that's not what Shulka wants to say.
"No, Comrade Sparkin!" Shulka casually took out a bullet and held it in his hand, saying, "I mean, it's time to develop a new type of bullet!"
Sparkin couldn't help being surprised: "Develop a new type of bullet?"
"Yes, Comrade Sparkin!" Shulka said: "There are generally two types of ammunition for small arms, one is rifle ammunition and the other is pistol ammunition. The former is used for rifles and machine guns, and the latter is used for pistols and submachine guns.
There is no problem with rifle ammunition used in machine guns. It can provide long-range firepower for troops, but there is always a problem of excessive power when used by ordinary soldiers!"
"Excessive power?" Sparkin looked at Shulka doubtfully.
This is another practical issue, so it’s no wonder Sparkin doesn’t know about it.
"Yes, there is excess power!" Shurka said: "To be precise, this was a problem in World War I. During World War I, the enemy and us fought more trench warfare, with distances far from each other, and
Each other was hiding in the trenches to aim at the target, so they asked for rifles with long range and high power!"
"Isn't this a good thing?" Sparkin asked puzzledly.
"Of course it's a good thing!" Shulka replied: "But the consequence is that rifle bullets cannot be fired continuously like a submachine gun!"
Sparkin said "Oh": "You mean, we should find a balance point between rifle bullets and pistol bullets? It can have a longer range, and the recoil can be endured by a single soldier in succession.
Within the range!”
"Yes!" Shulka nodded, it was easier to talk to smart people.
This is the intermediate power bullet, which is the bullet used in assault rifles.
Compared to developing assault rifles, bullets are more important.
There is a saying that "look at the bullet first before looking at the gun", that is, if you want to know whether a gun is a good gun and how its performance is, the first thing you should look at is the bullet, not the gun. The bullet determines many things, such as power and rate of fire.
Wait, a gun is actually a tool for firing bullets. If it doesn't have some major flaws, its performance is largely determined by the bullet.
And if you try to develop an assault rifle based on the two existing bullets without developing intermediate-power bullets, it is basically impossible and has no practical significance... Using rifle bullets becomes a machine gun with recoil, and using pistol bullets
It becomes a submachine gun with insufficient power and a short range.
The Soviet Union was lagging behind in this regard. They waited until the Germans used the assault rifle, the stg44, on the battlefield and was captured by the Soviet army, and then they suddenly realized that they should start developing "intermediate power bullets."
Therefore, the ak47 failed to catch up with World War II. When it was developed, World War II had ended nearly two years ago.
This issue needs to be dug deeper, and it also involves tactical issues in World War I and World War II:
There were no tanks during World War I. To be precise, tanks did not appear until the end of World War I. However, there was basically no infantry-tank coordination and they were not used on the battlefield on a large scale.
At this time, in addition to hiding in the trenches and shooting at each other, the infantry fighting consisted of group charges without cover.
In the case of a group charge, the battle often takes place at a greater distance... When you see the enemy starting to charge in a group from a distance, the other side will blast with cannons and guns, but when you get closer, it will be too late.
So of course soldiers demand rifles with longer range and more power, so all countries commonly use rifle bullets with a range of up to one thousand meters.
In fact, one thousand meters can really play a role at this time. Thousands of rifles have been fired, and dense bullets fly towards the charging enemies. A blind cat can kill several enemies if it encounters a dead mouse.
But things were different when the war developed into World War II.
The difference between World War II and World War I lies in the extensive use of tanks, and swarm charges have been abandoned by various countries.
As a result, rifles with a range of 1,000 meters soon became ineffective... The enemy leaped forward in skirmish formations, and even had tanks to cover them. The situation where long-distance shooting could hit the target or suppress the enemy like in World War I basically no longer existed.
Even with the cooperation of tanks and other equipment, the combat distance has become closer and closer.
According to statistics, 70% of the battles in World War II took place within 400 meters.
This distance is awkward for existing equipment:
The rifle is too powerful and has a long range, which creates a lot of waste... Bullets with a 400-meter range can do the job, so why do they need a 1,000-meter range? Anyway, they can hit the target and kill it. A bigger hole will still do the job.
Do smaller holes matter?
Waste is secondary, after all, war is all about attrition, and the key point is its recoil, which leaves no room for improvement.
The power of submachine guns is too small and the range is short, most of them only have a range of 150 meters.
As a result, a fire gap was formed between 150 meters and 400 meters.
Sparkin thought about it for a while, and then said: "This is a big problem, do you understand?"
"Yes, I know!" Shulka nodded.
Of course he knew that developing a new type of bullet would mean rebuilding an entire production line. Even after that, three types of bullets would be common in the army, which would also be a new problem for logistics.
"But I think it's worth it!" Shulka said: "It must also be the trend of war development! Because... the research and development of weapons and equipment is to serve the war, rather than conversely hoping that the war or soldiers will adapt to outdated equipment.
system!"
Sparkin nodded silently: "If you choose the latter, that is, you hope to let the soldiers adapt to the old equipment system, then they will be defeated by the enemy, that is, they will be eliminated by the enemy!"
"Yes, Comrade Sparkin!" Shulka said: "This is the survival of the fittest, the law of the jungle of nature. Many people think that we humans have transcended this law, but there is no other! Human beings are just...
They’re just playing this game using a war situation!”
Spakin let out a long sigh, looked at Shulka with admiration, and said: "That's right, Comrade Shulka! So, if you don't want to be eliminated by the enemy... I think it's best to start this new model now