PPSh-41
PPSh-41 with drum magazine.
Type	Submachine gun
Place of origin	Soviet Union
Service history
In service	1941–present
Used by	See Users
Wars	World War II Korean War Chinese Civil War Bay of Pigs Invasion Vietnam War Cambodian Civil War Iraq War
Production history
Designer	Georgi Shpagin
Designed	1941
Manufacturer	Many
Produced	1941–1947
No. built	Around 6,000,000
Variants	See Different kinds of PPSh-41
Specifications
Mass	3.63 kg (8.0 lb) (without magazine)
Length	843 mm (33.2 in)
Barrel length	269 mm (10.6 in)
Rate of fire	900 rounds per minute
Effective firing range	150 meters

The PPSh-41 (Pistolet-Pulemyot Shpagina; Russian: Пистолет-пулемёт Шпагина; "Shpagin machine pistol") is a Soviet submachine gun. It was designed by Georgi Shpagin. The PPSh-41 was supposed to be a cheaper, simpler gun to use than the PPD-40. The PPD-40 was in Soviet service at that time. The PPSh-41 officially replaced the PPD-40 in 1941. The PPSh-41 was supposed to be used by conscripted soldiers with very little training. The PPSh-41 got its ammunition from a magazine. It was also a selective fire submachine gun. It was made mostly of stamped steel. It fired the 7.62×25mm pistol round. The PPSh-41 was used a lot during World War II and the Korean War, as it was the most produced SMG throughout the wars. It was still in use in Vietnam with the Viet Cong as late as 1970 as the Chinese Type 50 (a copy). There were even some PPSh-41's captured by US soldiers as late as the Iraq War.