The APS-5 underwater rifle (Автомат Подводный Специальный Avtomat Podvodny Spetsialnyy, lit. "specialized underwater assault rifle")[1] was a Soviet amphibious assault rifle designed by Vladimir Simonov, Pyotr Serdyukov and E.M. Simonov in 1970 and produced by TsNIITochMash and the Tula Arms Plant since 1975.
History[]
Due to the rising threat of frogmen in naval bases, anti-frogmen techniques were soon developed; for example, in the Soviet Union at the time, to stop enemy frogmen, other frogmen were sent out to neutralize their threats. Unfortunately, they were quite poorly armed; the frogmen were armed with an AK-74 and a knife. As the AK-74 could only be used above water, the only weapon they could use for underwater attacks was a knife, which was rather pathetic compared to a gun.
In order to prevent this, the SPP-1 underwater pistol was developed, but was soon proven to be better for close-range encounters than ranged encounters. As such, Vladimir Simonov set out to develop an amphibious assault rifle to fulfill the same purpose. Accepted for service in the mid 1970s, Simonov received a state award in 1983 for the production of this firearm.
The APS is slowly being phased out of service in the Russian military, and the ASM-DT and ADS amphibious rifle were designed to replace it; in fact, the ADS is slowly replacing the APS in Russian service.
Design Details[]
The APS' action is quite similar to that of an AK, but with a few modifications. In order for the APS to work underwater, there is room for the flow of the water to be pushed by the moving components of the action and by the gas produced by the cartridge's propellant. The rear of the receiver is also open to assist with the ability for it to work underwater.
A perforated gas tube with a shield is present on the APS to help break up bubbles caused by firing, helping to ease aiming and allow for stealthier firing due to less bubbles produced. The APS also has different sights when compared to a normal AK. The APS also has a gas regulator, which allows it to fire both above and underwater. Note that firing an APS above water is not recommended, as it wears the barrel down much faster than normal (barrel life is 180 shots above water compared to 2000 shots underwater) and reduces the weapon's effective range to just 50 metres (160 feet; 55 yards).
Ammunition[]
The APS uses a 5.66×39mm dart. The steel dart is based on the 5.45×39mm cartridge that was lengthened slightly to fit the sharp-fronted steel bolt. A second variant of the cartridge has a small rocket engine in it which produces a visible streak in the water when firing.
Variants[]
- QBS-06
A Chinese version of the APS underwater rifle.