Private security in Iraq - choice of weapon AK47?

Shawn nailed it on the head. bringing your own weapons in is a lot more complicated than you may think. it is FAR easier to send in a scout before your contract starts, build a relationship with a local, and buy up a stash of an available local arms. Afghanistan has just a few AKs laying around. combine the availability of the firearms with the abundance of ammunition and a local contact who doesn't have to cut red tape, and you have a team that will rarely be short on supplies.

i wasn't deployed, but i have spoken to those who have been, and according to them this is apparently the most was common practice...


shawn said:
In a few books I have read, they said it was local purchase. It is hard to get import permits for weapons so they just bought what was available.

Shawn
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Beer_drinker said:
Or maybe they are just lazy, no need to clean the sand out of an ak everyday, lol
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Im from Iraq and Ive had the pleasure of shooting the great AK47.

These people think the AK47 is the greatest gun in the world, full auto, dirt cheap ammo, can kill people, never needs cleaning, 100rd mag. Its a universal gun, it can do almost everything.

Finally, the gun can be found (Russian) for less than 300 USD.
 
The u.s department of defense hires a lot of firms for the middle east, and the make sure the firms issue ar platforms, that's y those guys use them, if you are not a u.s citizen and therefore do not have secret clearance you wont be working for d.o.d, you will be there on behalf of a company that requires security and holds no legal power, therefore you buy rifles when you get boots on the ground, if the company has not already done that for you. And an ak in good condition is around 200 bucks so when the contract is up you can just throw it in the dirt and get on the plane with being out too much
 
I am the seargent of a 3 man tactical response force at one of Canada's largest shopping centres. I am a master of ninjitsu and 3 other martial arts which allows me to wear the special boots for climbing walls. I choose the AK-47 to help me watch over your pathetic lives like a GOD.
 
There's a couple on here I believe that have done the whole security contractor thing, I haven't been on in a while so I don't know how active they are, or if they'll bother to come in and repeat something they've probably explained a dozen times over already.

But I imagine some reasons for carrying an AK have already been explained, the company may not be able to/may not bother with getting permits done for importing weapons, and just buy up local ones, or their contract might dictate what weapons they can/cannot use. I've met guys who've used AKs and ARs, not on a nice day on a range, but in ####ty conditions while being shot at, all of them are universal in their praise of the AR, all of them have a low opinion of the AK in comparison.

Not that it's bad, just not as good as the AR is in terms of sights, ergonomics, etc. As for reliability, ARs are reliable, just keep it decently lubed and clean it once in a while. Anyone halfway competent will be doing the same with an AK anyways.
 
I don't know about Iraq - But in Afghanistan, the American Contractors that we had working with us for a bit were using AK's. The reason? Difficulty in re-supply from their company. That's it. They all indicated that they would have preferred to use the AR platform, were it readily available.

I won't name the company - but it wasn't one of the big ones.
 
Seyek said:
Not that it's bad, just not as good as the AR is in terms of sights, ergonomics, etc. As for reliability, ARs are reliable, just keep it decently lubed and clean it once in a while. Anyone halfway competent will be doing the same with an AK anyways.
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You should not lube it in the desert. Gun should be dry so dust doesn't stick - same as when in the far north.
 
Petrock said:
Be weary the AR kool aid. There is absolutely nothing wrong with a well maintained AK.

I would also carry one, without optics, in a place like Iraq where dirt is fine and everywhere. There is the ability to take mags/ammo from locals and you attract a fair bit less attention with the AK than the AR. Dependability is the uttmost when lives are at stake.
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Agreed. Nothing wrong with an AK, especially in that part of the world
 
I am friendly with several guys who served

In foriegn Armies that issue the AK or a derivative of one kind or another. Not one of them had a bad word to say about them. And from what I have heard the newer ak with the 5.45 round is quite accurate. And in the middle east where there a over a million of them I don't see why you would not use one. but that is my opinion take it for what it is worth.
 
skirsons said:
You should not lube it in the desert. Gun should be dry so dust doesn't stick - same as when in the far north.
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I disagree, Keep the outside of the weapon dry by all means, but I lubricate the internals heavily and clean it after every patrol. And I never had one malfunction overseas, cant say the same for "run it dry" so everything siezes up with dust crowd. At the worst the lube mixes with the little bit of dust that gets in the weapon and it will operate much better then a dry weapon with poo dust in it.
 
skirsons said:
You should not lube it in the desert. Gun should be dry so dust doesn't stick - same as when in the far north.
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You don't lube it in the north, at least not with CLP for example, because of the cold. The lube will thicken and won't really work as lube anymore.

At least that's my understanding.

As for lube in the desert, for ARs, lube it generously. This is based on guys who've been over, and sharing such info on forums like this, army.ca, lightfighter, etc. As well as the experiences of my own friends who've been over. Here's a quick little bit partly explaining it from KevinB here on this forum:

KevinB said:
The M16FOW is pretty much a closed system - so lube will not attract that much dirt interior to the weapon other than what gets in anyway -- and dirt and not lube = stoppages -- when it is wet - the lube can transfer the crap away from the area it may bind in.

I was told lots of lube by some folks in 1993 while deployed - however I did not listen and had assumed they where f'ing with me, took me over 10 years to realize they had it nailed back then.
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To answer the question rather than speculate based either biase for one system or another system or what have you. The answer is rather simple. Some contracts specify the type of weapons system the contractors will use. Primarily these were DOD contracts. Some contracts had clauses that provided you with weapons. Some contracts required you to provide your own weapons. All weapons operated by private security in Iraq and Afghanistan have to be registered with the host nation as part of the regulations concerning private security companies.

Some companies were required to register whatever they held at a fix time. So whatever was on hand was registered. It is very difficult to import new weapons or register additional firearms. Most companies have a fixed cap on the types and natures of the firearms that they can hold.

So for a private security company guarding a construction crew working on the road. From a business point of view. Do you need a $300 AK or a $1500 AR? Given that the majority of your employees are local guys. It makes sense to have an AK.

If you are a private security company, and have a contract doing close protection for a dignitary. Likely you will have ARs and look like the sterotypical blackwater type. In most cases, it is written into the contract what they will wear and how they will dress.

So, in a nut shell...it all depends on the contract, the size of the security company, and likely the nature of the work.

As an aside, calling private security companies(PSC), private military companies(PMC), demonstrates a general lack of understanding of what PSCs do and PMCs do. PSCs are legal in most countries, PMCs are not. What they do are completely different. They are not the same. There are very few PMC companies operating in the world. There are lots of PSCs operating, evening in Canada.

I hope that clarifies the discussion a bit.
 
Gunnerlove said:
Wrong and wrong.

Quality lube is the solution to both environs.
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Agreed. My first go I tried using Graphite powder, and it didn't work so bad, but I read certain articles that made me realize that it was a no-no.

After that, went to the proper application of CLP, and I never had a stoppage.
 
Des said:
Agreed. My first go I tried using Graphite powder, and it didn't work so bad, but I read certain articles that made me realize that it was a no-no.

After that, went to the proper application of CLP, and I never had a stoppage.
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Graphite is the right choice for Arctic/extreme cold environments, though. Graphite doesn't freeze - any liquid lube eventually will.
 
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