AP-17 Automatic Rifle
| AP-17 Automatic Rifle | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Automatic Rifle |
| Place of origin |  Republic of Syara |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1915-1945 |
| Used by | Republic of Syara |
| Wars | Syaran intervention in the Ruvelkan Civil War Siduri War |
| Production history | |
| Produced | 1915-1938 |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 4.4 kilograms |
| Length | 1,045 mm |
| Cartridge | 6x50mm |
| Action | Short recoil operation |
| Rate of fire | 350-400 rounds/minute |
| Muzzle velocity | 860 meters/second |
| Feed system | 25-round detachable box |
| Sights | Iron sights |
The AP-17 Automatic Rifle was a select-fire infantry rifle employed by the Republic of Syara from 1915-1945.
Originally envisioned as a semi-automatic rifle, the AP-17 was a product of the 1912 Syaran military reforms, based on the experience of the Armed Forces of the Syaran Republic during the Third Chryse War. The need to improve infantry firepower and flexibility in a world increasingly dominated by automatic weapons such as machine guns led to a number of designs being floated to the Supreme Headquarters of the Army of the Syaran Republic in Zovahr, including what would eventually become the AP-17.
The AP-17 was envisioned as a cross between a traditional infantrymans' rifle and a machine gun, providing increased volume of fire while remaining as versatile as a rifle. Early testing of prototypes led to the realization that any service weapon fitting this category required a new cartridge, leading to the development of the rimless 6x50mm Syaran, which was more compact than the 8x50mm found in the P-89 standard issue rifle. During development, the concept of a automatic rifle overtook the initial desire for a semi-automatic weapon to balance out the development of the P-18. Testing of the AP-17 produced mixed results with regards to reliability and heating, while production proved difficult owing the complex internal mechanism required for automatic fire; the AP-17 operated on a short recoil, locked-breech closed bolt firing pattern, which was achieve by a pair of symmetrical plates mounted to either side of the breech and held in place by a sheet metal cover. Each cover held two lugs, one square and one round, positioned on either side of the breech, ensuring the barrel and bolt were latched together through recesses on the bolt. The plates tilt slightly down after about ten millimeters of recoil, which unlock the bolt.
The AP-17 was introduced in 1915 and saw sporadic usage throughout the next few decades within the Syaran Army. A total of 100,000 were produced, which fell far behind the some ~35 million bolt action rifles the Syaran army acquired between 1915-1938. In combat the AP-17 earned mixed review; it's complex internal mechanism made it prone to jamming and failure, especially under automatic fire which resulted in most Syaran soldiers employing it only in semi-automatic fire. Burst-fire was found to be reliably accurate, but heating issues with the barrel provided a limit on its longevity on the battlefield. It's potential utility was nevertheless appreciated by many Syaran commanders, who often armed troops expected to assault through enemy fortifications with the AP-17 to increase their firepower. The AP-17 saw sporadic use against the Cacertian Empire in the Divide War, against Ruvelkan combatants during the Ruvelkan Civil War, and against the Common Axis during the Siduri War. Captured models occasionally found their ways into enemy hands.
By definition, the AP-17 is technically the first ever operational assault rifle, although its design and intended usage places it closer to the light machine gun than the traditionally understood assault rifles of the modern day. Despite on some levels being a revolutionary design, the AP-17 was consistently held back by shortcomings in both its design and its usage, lacking a clear doctrinal role and who's inherent complexity made it an unreliable platform. Foreign forces who acquired copies of the AP-17 general shared similar sentiments, holding that the weapon was too prone to jamming and mechanical failure for consistent battlefield performance. Syaran experience with the AP-17's unreliability proved a major driving force for future emphasis on reliability and ease of usage for next generation automatic rifles, as demonstrated by the P-53 assault rifle.