In Pakistan, just as in the US, compact firearms such as submachine guns and carbines chambered in pistol calibre cartridges are a hot ticket. They are also popular in neighbouring Afghanistan. Pistol calibre ammunition is widely available, affordable, manufactured domestically and licenses for firearms chambered in it are relatively easy to acquire. This is a major factor in their popularity. In this article we’ll examine some of the pistol calibre AK-pattern firearms which have grown in popularity in the region in recent years.
Darra Adam Khel
The STEN Gun: Darra & Khyber-Pass Edition
The British STEN 9×19mm submachine gun, is one of the iconic firearms of World War Two. The weapon’s name comes from the names of the weapon’s main designers: the ST from Major Reginald V. Shepherd and Harold Turpin, with the EN from the RSAF Enfield arms factory where it was developed. With over four million, of various patterns being made during World War Two, this was once a firearm which could be easily found. It was a cheap, simple and relatively reliable design, born of necessity rather than anything else. It was such a crude and rugged piece of kit that it was famously nicknamed the ‘Plumbers nightmare’ amongst others.
A Look Back in Time: Darra Adamkhel During The Soviet-Afghan War – 1983
The focus of this article is a video which has been around for some time, yet seems to be somewhat obscure. So far, I have yet to see it shared amongst the firearm community interested in the Pak-Afghan region’s cottage manufacturing of small-arms. A total of 37 years, as of 2020, have elapsed since it was made and although the quality isn’t great, it is a glimpse into the distant past, a look at what process are still the same and what has changed since then.
Bren Light Machine Guns In The Pak-Afghan Region
The Bren Light Machine Gun, most notable for its use during World War Two, with British and Commonwealth forces. It is an iconic piece of small arms history, its rugged and reliable design meant that it stayed in use for many years and in various calibres, from the late 1930s well up to the 1990s with the British military. It did see some limited use by other groups and militaries up until the mid-2000’s also. From our field work it now appears that there still a number of British Bren and Czech ZB vz.26-pattern guns in the Darra region.
The Afghan Mujahideen’s ‘Poison-Bullet’ – Then and Now
The 5.45×39mm intermediate round is of course not new, it has been around since the early 70’s when it was developed in Russia for the new AK project, later called the AK-74. This potent round was nicknamed the poison-bullet by Mujahideen in Afghanistan, during the Soviet-Afghan conflict of 1979-1989, due to its tremendous wounding effects on its target. Since then, the round has only gained in popularity within the Pak-Afghan region whilst other areas of the former Soviet-Union have moved away to different cartridges such as the NATO standard 5.56×45mm. The venerable 5.45 round is still in use by a small number of militaries, most notably the Russians.
The 8mm Mauser AK of the Pak-Afghan Region
The infamous 7.92 × 57 mm Mauser AK-type self-loading rifle from the Pak-Afghan region, known locally as the ‘8mm AK’ and G3 in Pakistan. A handful of images have been floating around for a number of years. I have been lucky enough to inspect a few examples on both the manufacturing side and in private hands over the past few years.
Darra AKM Rifles with AR-15 Features
Daniel Hughes is a Research Assistant with Armament Research Services. He has worked on several OSINT projects examining the use of arms and munitions in the Middle East and Central Asia.
The town of Darra Adam Khel in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has been involved in the craft production of firearms for over a century. The craft production that takes place in Darra provides an important source of small arms and light weapons for many regional actors. Continued monitoring of open and closed source media in the region has yielded many interesting data. One such observation is the increasing popularity of AKM-pattern self-loading rifles which imitate the appearance—and some of the features—of the 5.56 × 45 mm AR-15 self-loading rifle. These Darra ‘AKM-15’ rifles are explored below.
The Last Gunsmiths of The Khyber Pass
Fog clings to a never-ending row of low-rise buildings down the length of a dusty road, it’s early, around eight o’clock on a cool April morning. The fog clears and voices breakthrough and you see the first glimpses of the large bazaar, sounds of shutters slamming open, doors being unlocked and people greeting each other as their day starts. The occasional chatter of gunfire can be heard as firearms are test fired nearby.
Darra Adam Khel. This bustling town is situated in modern-day Pakistan, a stone’s throw from the Pak-Afghan border. What makes it so special? You may ask and the answer lies within the myriad of myths and legends put out over the years.
The most famous Pakistani Kalashnikov from Darra Adam Khel
This post originally appeared on The Firearm Blog in August of 2018,but has since been updated with some new content.
Every field has its own mysteries and mystifications. And if we are talking about the history of Soviet small arms, the biggest puzzle is the notorious AKMSU. If you look it up on Russian gun websites, you can find a lot of fascinating information, for example:
The AK Milled Faux-Stamped Receiver Types of Darra & The Khyber Pass
An often-misunderstood topic in regards to Darra-E / ‘Khyber’ AK’s, is the type or variation of receivers that are produced in the Pak-Afghan, FATA, tribal region. Particularly noted are a variation of milled receiver that are machined and fashioned in such a sense, they imitate a standard stamped receiver so well that at a glance you would not be able tell if it was a genuine stamped receiver or not.