Misr assault rifle
Egyptian assault rifle
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Misr (Arabic: مصر, lit. 'Egypt') is an Egyptian copy of the AKM, manufactured by Factory 54 of the Maadi Company for Engineering Industries in Cairo for the Egyptian Army and for export sales.[2] They have been exported overseas.[3]
| Misr/Maadi | |
|---|---|
 A Maadi ARM. | |
| Type | Assault rifle |
| Place of origin |  Egypt |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1960s–present |
| Wars | War of Attrition Yom Kippur War Gulf war Sinai insurgency |
| Production history | |
| Designed | 1959-Present |
| Manufacturer | Factory 54, Maadi Company for Engineering Industries |
| No. built | 50,000 (1985)[1] |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 3.1 kg (6.8 lb) |
| Length | 880 mm (34.6 in) wooden stock (ARM, and RML) 1,000 mm (39.4 in) wooden stock (RML only) 902 mm (35.5 in) metal stock extended / 655 mm (25.8 in) stock folded (AKMS) |
| Barrel length | 415 mm (16.3 in) |
| Cartridge | 7.62x39mm |
| Action | Gas operated, rotating bolt |
| Rate of fire | 600 rounds/min |
| Muzzle velocity | 715 m/s (2,346 ft/s) |
| Effective firing range | 100–1,000 m sight adjustments |
| Feed system | 30-round box magazine, 60 round box magazine, 100 round drum |
| Sights | Rear sight notch on sliding tangent, front post 378 mm (14.9 in) sight radius Compatible with most NATO optical sights. |
History
AK variants have been manufactured in Egypt shortly after the country aligned itself with the Soviet Union[4] from 1959.[5] The Soviets worked closely with the Egyptians with their technical staff trained in Russia, but ended in 1972 after Soviet representatives were kicked out.[4]
A large number of MISR assault rifles were imported to the US during the 1980s and became the most common AKM seen in Hollywood films.[6][7][8]
Design
The standard Misr rifle has a wooden forward handguard and buttstock while the pistol grip and upper handguard are plastic.[3]
The differences between the AKMS and the Misr are the use a different folding stock, the use of plastic for the handguard and pistol grip rather than wood and a modified upper receiver that accepts most US and NATO optics. It can also use the Maadi UBGL.[9]
Variants
ARM
Semi-automatic version,[5] sold as a sporting firearm to the civilian market.[3] The Maadi variants in various guises have also been imported into the US as modified sporting variants in significant numbers.
Maadi
The military version, used by Egyptian forces is a license-produced version of the AKM with a side folding stock, chrome-plated bore and either 30-round box or 75-round drum magazine.
Users
Afghanistan: Used by Afghan National Police.[10]
Egypt: Egyptian Armed Forces, Egyptian National Police and Central Security Forces.[citation needed]
Rwanda: 450 Misr rifles.[11]
