Walk into any military surplus store or scroll through grainy combat footage from the last forty years, and you’ll see it. That long-barreled, "club-foot" stock AK variant leaning against a mud wall or poking out of a BMP hatch. That’s the RPK. For decades, the russia squad machine gun has basically been an AKM on steroids. It was a simple solution to a complex problem: how do you give a squad more lead-shoveling power without making them carry a thirty-pound beast?
But honestly, things are changing fast. The classic RPK-74 and even the fancy new RPK-16 are hitting a wall. The Russian military is finally admitting that an "automatic rifle" isn't quite the same thing as a "true machine gun." If you’ve been following the recent shifts in the Donbas or the Zaporozhye region, you've probably heard whispers about the RPL-20. It's the first real belt-fed light machine gun the Russians have bothered with at the squad level since the 1960s.
The Identity Crisis of the RPK
The RPK (Ruchnoy Pulemet Kalashnikova) was born from a desire for "commonality." In the Soviet mind, if every soldier knows how to run an AK, every soldier knows how to run the squad’s support weapon. You’ve got the same trigger, the same gas system, the same mags. It’s genius for logistics.
But there’s a catch. A big one.
Because the RPK is based on the AK, it fires from a closed bolt. This means when you stop shooting, a round stays in the hot chamber. If the barrel gets too hot—which happens fast when you’re suppressing a treeline—that round can "cook off" and fire all by itself. Plus, the barrel is fixed. You can’t just pop it off and swap in a cool one like you can on a Western M249 SAW or a Russian PKM.
Then there’s the magazine issue. The RPK-74 typically uses 45-round sticks. They’re long, they’re awkward in the dirt, and they run dry in about four seconds of sustained fire. Sure, they made 95-round drums for the RPK-16, but soldiers have complained they're heavy, rattle like a tin of rocks, and aren't exactly the most reliable things in the world.
The RPK-16: A Short-Lived Experiment?
Around 2016, Kalashnikov Concern tried to fix the "identity crisis" with the RPK-16. It looked cool. It had Picatinny rails, a telescoping stock, and a "quick-change" barrel system.
Well, "quick" is a relative term.
You actually had to do some minor disassembly to swap the barrels. It wasn't something you'd do while bullets were snapping over your head. It was more about configuring the gun before a mission—short barrel for urban clearing, long barrel for open fields. While Spetsnaz units liked the modularity, the regular infantry still felt undergunned. They wanted something that could keep shooting until the enemy stopped moving.
Enter the RPL-20: The Game Changer
This is where the russia squad machine gun narrative takes a hard left turn. In 2020, they unveiled the RPL-20. It’s not an AK.
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It’s a dedicated, belt-fed light machine gun chambered in the standard 5.45x39mm round. This is huge because it finally ditches the magazine-fed limitations. You’ve got 100- or 200-round non-disintegrating belts tucked into soft "cams" or pouches.
- Belt-fed power: No more reloading every three bursts.
- Open-bolt operation: It stays cooler and won't cook off rounds.
- Interchangeable barrels: Two lengths (590mm and 415mm) that actually swap out.
- Weight: It’s roughly 5.2 to 5.5 kg. That’s remarkably light for a belt-fed gun—lighter than a loaded M249.
Reports from the field in 2025 and early 2026 suggest that Russian paratroopers (VDV) are already using these in active combat zones. They’re using them to bridge the gap between the standard rifleman and the guy carrying the big 7.62x54mmR PKM. It gives a small assault group massive suppressive capability without the weight penalty of a "general purpose" machine gun.
Why Not Just Use the PKM?
You might wonder why they don't just give everyone the PKM. It's legendary, after all. Ask any veteran—the PKM is arguably the best machine gun ever made. But the PKM is a beast. The ammo is heavy. The gun is long.
A squad needs something intermediate. Something that uses the same ammo as the rest of the guys so they can share mags if things get hairy. The russia squad machine gun has to be portable enough for a guy to sprint across a field, dive into a trench, and start laying down fire immediately. The RPK was okay at that, but the RPL-20 is built for it.
What Most People Get Wrong
A lot of "couch generals" think the RPK is useless. It’s not. It’s actually incredibly accurate for a machine gun. Because it has that heavy barrel and a bipod, it acts sort of like a "Designated Marksman Rifle" that can go full-auto. In many Russian squads, the RPK gunner isn't just spraying; he's picking off targets at 500 meters that the guys with standard AK-12s can't quite hit.
But accuracy doesn't win every fight. Sometimes you just need "volume of fire." You need the enemy to keep their heads down while your buddies move up with RPGs. That's where the old magazine-fed systems failed and why the belt-fed RPL-20 is taking over the throne.
Summary of the Current Arsenal
If you look at a Russian infantry platoon today, you're seeing a weird mix of the old and the new.
- RPK-74M: The old reliable. Plastic furniture, folding stock, 5.45mm. Still the most common.
- RPK-16: The "tactical" upgrade. Mostly seen with specialized units or "Assault" squads.
- RPL-20: The new kid on the block. Belt-fed, high capacity, currently being field-tested in high-intensity combat.
- PKM / Pecheneg: The "big brothers." 7.62x54mmR. These aren't squad guns technically, but in modern "Storm" units, you'll often see one attached directly to a squad for extra punch.
Actionable Insights for Enthusiasts
If you're studying the evolution of these weapons or looking into the technical side of modern infantry gear, keep your eyes on the feedback coming out of the RPL-20's state trials.
- Check the Feed Systems: Watch for how the new "soft" ammo boxes hold up in mud and sub-zero temperatures.
- Weight vs. Heat: See if the 5.2kg frame can actually handle the heat of a 200-round belt without the receiver warping.
- Logistics: The transition from magazines to belts requires a whole new set of pouches and a different way of carrying combat loads.
The era of the "big AK" as the primary russia squad machine gun is slowly ending. It’s being replaced by specialized tools that actually fit the "Light Machine Gun" label. The RPK won't disappear—Russia has millions of them in warehouses—but the tip of the spear has moved on to the belt-fed future.
To stay ahead of these developments, monitor the official releases from Kalashnikov Concern and independent field reports from the VDV. The shift toward the RPL-20 marks the most significant change in Russian small arms doctrine in over sixty years.