The man who designed AK-47 assault rifle, 94-year-old Mikhail Kalashnikov, is hospitalized

MOSCOW – Russian officials say that the 94-year-old designer of the AK-47 assault rifle has been hospitalized.

The health department of the province of Udmurtia said in Monday’s statement carried by the Interfax news agency that Mikhail Kalashnikov is in an emergency unit. It said Kalashnikov was rushed to the hospital Sunday, but didn’t elaborate on his condition.

Kalashnikov spent two weeks at a local cardiology clinic in May and was later flown in Moscow for further treatment.

The AK-47 is the world’s most popular firearm with an estimated 100 million spread worldwide. Its name stands for “Avtomat Kalashnikova,” or Kalashnikov’s automatic, and the year it went into production.

Kalashnikov continued working at least into his 80s as chief designer at the plant that first built the AK-47.

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