Vasily Degtyarev
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Vasily Alekseyevich Degtyarev (Russian: Васи́лий Алексе́евич Дегтярёв; January 2, 1880, Tula – January 16, 1949, Moscow) was a Russian weapons designer, Major General of the Engineering and Artillery Service, Doctor of Technical Sciences (1940), and Hero of Socialist Labor (1940, he received the second such award in the history just two weeks later than Joseph Stalin himself). He became a CPSU member in 1941.
Vasily Degtyarev was the one to head the first Soviet firearms design bureau. He created several types of machine guns, submachine guns and anti-tank guns.
Vasily Degtyarev was awarded the State Award of the USSR in 1941, 1942, 1944, and 1949 (posthumously). He was also awarded three Orders of Lenin, four other orders and different medals.
[edit] Contributions
- In 1927, the Red Army was equipped with the 7.62 mm light machine gun called ДП, or DP-28 (Russian: Дегтярёва Пехотный Degtyarev's infantry (machine gun)). This design also led to
- Degtyarev also designed a few models of submachine guns, the best of which would be adopted by the Soviet Army in 1934 (modernized in 1940) as the ППД PPD-40 (from Пистолет-пулемёт Дегтярёва, Degtyarev's submachine gun).
- In 1930, Degtyarev designed his 12.7 mm large-caliber machine gun, the ДК, or DK (Дегтярёва Крупнокалиберный). In 1938, this machine gun was upgraded by Georgi Shpagin and called ДШК (DShK) (Дегтярёва Шпагина Крупнокалиберный).
- In 1939, Degtyarev designed his heavy machine gun called ДС, or DS (Дегтярёва Станковый). The DS-39 was issued to the Red Army and used in the Russo-Finnish War of 1939-1940. The belt feed mechanism damaged the cartridge cases and the gun was found too complicated and liable to malfunctions and was withdrawn from service.
- During the Great Patriotic War, the Soviet Army adopted Degtyarev's 14.5 mm anti-tank rifle the ПТРД, or PTRD (Противотанковое Ружьё Дегтярёва) and 1944 light machine gun.
[edit] See also
- Degtyarev plant (in Kovrov)
- RPD
