Automatic firearm facts for kids
An automatic firearm is a type of gun that keeps shooting bullets as long as you hold down the trigger and there are still bullets left.
When an automatic weapon fires, it automatically takes out the empty bullet casing from inside the gun. It then throws this empty casing out from the side of the gun. After that, it quickly loads a new bullet into place, ready to fire again. This all happens very fast, without the shooter having to do anything but hold the trigger.
How Automatic Guns Are Used
Sometimes, when people talk about an "automatic pistol" or "automatic shotgun," they actually mean a semi-automatic gun. A semi-automatic gun fires one bullet each time you pull the trigger. However, there are true fully automatic pistols, like the Steyr TMP, and fully automatic shotguns, such as the Daewoo USAS-12 and the AA-12. When someone says "Automatic rifle", they usually mean a rifle that is fully automatic, not semi-automatic.
In most countries, only the military and police are allowed to use automatic firearms. In places where regular people can own them, there are usually very strict rules about how they can be used.
A fully automatic weapon, often called a machine gun, keeps firing bullets as long as the trigger is held down. It stops when you let go of the trigger or when all the bullets are gone. In some countries, any gun that shoots more than one bullet with a single pull of the trigger is legally considered a machine gun. Some guns can fire a small group of bullets (like three) with one trigger pull. This is called burst fire.
Submachine guns are fully automatic weapons that use smaller pistol bullets. They are light enough for one person to carry and use. Sometimes, they are also called machine pistols.
Related pages
See also
In Spanish: Arma automática para niños
