QBZ-95

China's standard-issue bullpup assault rifle for two decades — chambered for the proprietary 5.8×42 mm round, now being handed down as the QBZ-191 takes over.

Overview

The QBZ-95 (Type 95 Automatic Rifle) is a bullpup assault rifle that served as the primary individual weapon of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) from the late 1990s through the 2010s. Designed around China’s proprietary 5.8×42 mm intermediate cartridge, it offered a short overall length while retaining a full-length barrel, and was produced in the millions by NORINCO and state arsenals. The improved QBZ-95-1 variant addressed early ergonomic shortcomings, but the platform is now being phased down as the conventional-layout QBZ-191 enters service.

Development

China’s small-calibre rifle effort began in the 1980s, paralleling the development of the 5.8×42 mm cartridge. The QBZ-95 was designated in 1995 and first seen publicly during the 1997 Hong Kong handover Modern Firearms. Full-scale adoption by the PLA Ground Force, Navy/Marines, Airborne and People’s Armed Police followed over the next decade, replacing the 7.62×39 mm Type 81 as the standard-issue rifle by about 2006. The updated QBZ-95-1, introduced around 2010–11, addressed feedback from early fielding with a heavier barrel, relocated controls, and a bolt hold-open device.

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