The Type 56 [12] is a Chinese 7.62×39mm assault rifle and Kalashnikov rifle variant.
History
In 1955, the Soviet Union provided China with information and production equipment for the AK and SKS.[13]
Production started in 1956 at State Factory 66 but was eventually handed over to Norinco and PolyTech, who continue to manufacture the rifle primarily for export.
Design
Originally, the Type 56 was a direct, licensed copy of the AK's final iteration, and featured a milled receiver.[14]
The Type 56 features a fixed wooden stock and folding spike bayonet. Starting in the mid-1960s, the guns were manufactured with stamped receivers, much like the then new Soviet AKM.
Visually, most versions of the Type 56 are distinguished from the AK-47 and AKM by the fully enclosed hooded front sight (all other AK pattern rifles, including those made in Russia, have a partially open front sight).
Many versions also feature a folding bayonet attached to the barrel just aft of the muzzle. There are three different types of bayonets made for Type 56 rifles.
Adoption
China
The Type 56 was adopted to replace various WWII-era weapons, including the Mosin-Nagant, Type 38 rifle and M1903 Springfield, as the standard issue rifle in the People's Liberation Army (PLA).
The Type 56 rifle was designated as the "Type 1956 Submachine Gun", as the Type 56 took the role of SMG rather than infantry service rifle in the PLA in its early service years.[15]
Export
During the Cold War period, the Type 56 was exported to many countries and guerrilla forces throughout the world.
Many of these rifles found their way to battlefields in Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East and were used alongside other Kalashnikov pattern weapons from both the Soviet Union as well as the Warsaw Pact nations of Eastern Europe.
Chinese support for North Vietnam before the mid-1960s meant that the Type 56 was frequently encountered by American soldiers in the hands of either
Variants
Norinco production
Type 56-1
Copy of the AKS, with an under-folding steel shoulder stock and the bayonet removed to make the weapon easier to carry.
As with the original Type 56, milled receivers were replaced by stamped receivers in the mid-1960s, making the Type 56-1 an equivalent to the Russian AKMS.
Civilian semi-auto versions (Type 56S-I) may have the spike bayonet added, though it is worth noting that this is not the original military configuration.
Type 06
The Type 06 is an assault rifle manufactured by Poly Technologies to be chambered in 5.56mm NATO.
Type 56-2
Improved variant introduced in 1980, with a side-folding stock and dark orange bakelite furniture. The stock also houses a cleaning kit, which both underfolding AKs (all nations) and other sidefolding AKs lacked, instead requiring a separate pouch. It also allows a traditional detachable bayonet, both AK-47 and AKM styles, as an option in addition to the folding spike style.
Users
Criminal activities
In 1987, Michael Ryan used a legally owned Type 56 rifle, and two other firearms, in the Hungerford massacre in the United Kingdom, in which he shot 32 people, 17 of whom died. The attack led to the passage of Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988, which bans ownership of semi-automatic centre-fire rifles and restricts the use of shotguns.[91]
In the United States, a Type 56 rifle, purchased in Oregon under a false name,[92] was used in the 1989 Stockton schoolyard shooting in which Patrick Purdy fired over 100 rounds to shoot one teacher and 34 children, killing five. The shooting led to the passage of California's Roberti-Roos Assault Weapons Control Act of 1989.[93]
A Type 56S, along with a Type 56S-1, were used by Larry Phillips, Jr. and Emil Mătăsăreanu during the 1997 North Hollywood shootout.[94]
See also
- Type 63 assault rifle
- Type 81 assault rifle
- Type 58 assault rifle
- Type 88 assault rifle
- Misr assault rifle
Bibliography
External links
References
- Rifle - Chinese Type 56 Assault, circa 1960s^
- x.com X (formerly Twitter), retrieved 11 June 2024^
- Small Arms Survey. Small Arms Survey 2012: Moving Targets Cambridge University Press, 2012, retrieved 2018-08-30^