The Dragunov sniper rifle (formally Russian: Снайперская
винтовка Драгунова, Snayperskaya Vintovka Dragunova (SVD), literally
"Dragunov's sniper rifle") is a semi-automatic sniper
rifle/designated marksman rifle chambered in 7.62×54mmR and developed in the
Soviet Union.
The Dragunov was designed as a squad support weapon, since
according to Soviet and Soviet-derived military doctrines the long-range
engagement ability was lost to ordinary troops when submachine guns and assault
rifles (which are optimized for close-range and medium-range, rapid-fire
combat) were adopted. For that reason it was originally named
"Полуавтоматическая винтовка Драгунова" Dragunov's Semi-automatic
Rifle.
It was selected as the winner of a contest that included
three competing designs: the first was a rifle designed by Sergei Simonov
(known as the SSV-58), the second design, a prototype designated 2B-W10 by
Alexander Konstantinov, and the third rifle, the SVD-137, a design submitted by
Yevgeny Dragunov. Extensive field testing of the rifles conducted in a wide
range of environmental conditions resulted in Dragunov’s proposal being
accepted into service in 1963. An initial pre-production batch consisting of
200 rifles was assembled for evaluation purposes, and from 1964 serial production
was carried out by Izhmash.
Since then, the Dragunov has become the standard squad
support weapon of several countries, including those of the former Warsaw Pact.
Licensed production of the rifle was established in China (Type 79 and Type 85)
and Iran (as a direct copy of the Chinese Type 79).
