World War Two was the most significant conflict in the history of humanity and, as a result,
created the largest stockpile of weapons ever seen. However, when the dust settled and the
world had to move on, where did all those guns, tanks, planes, and artillery pieces go?
For the most part, the vast majority of this equipment continued to see service in conflicts
during the Cold War. But as time went on and more advanced weapons were developed,
these old pieces of equipment were placed in storage, being replaced by their modern
variants on the battlefield. But as history has shown, every now and again, these weapons will
be pressed back into service, and still, even in the year 2022, there are several conflicts
where these weapons are still used in combat. The first and most obvious one is the current
war in Ukraine. Regardless of the conflict's politics, one cannot deny that both sides are
throwing everything they have into it. But with the massive casualties and mobilization
on both sides, there aren’t enough modern weapons to go around, especially for Ukraine.
After the invasion, the Ukrainian government scrambled to arm its citizen as fast as possible.
While the frontline units and reservists got the more modern weapons like AK-74 and AK-47 rifles,
the citizen militias that volunteered to fight with little to no training mostly got issued older
weapons from their World War Two stockpiles. As far as handguns are concerned, most troops
far from the front lines are issued with the TT-30 pistol. Chambered in 7.62x25 Tokarev,
this venerable pistol saw frontline service in the hands of Soviet forces throughout the
entirety of the Second World War and beyond. Many of the pistols there today continued to
see service as sidearms during the early parts of the Cold War and were put into storage when
newer handguns like the Makarov were issued. The Ukrainians have used a much larger variety
of weapons for their primary infantry weapons. Because of the massive amount of submachine
guns used in World War Two, countless thousands were stockpiled and stored
for a later date. Among these examples are the PPD-40, PPSH-41, and PPS-43 submachine guns.
The PPD-40 was the first mass-produced Soviet submachine gun. It was chambered in the same
7.62x25mm round as the TT-30 and was intended to be issued in large numbers as a force multiplier
for its infantry squads. However, the invasion of the Soviet Union prevented
large numbers of them from being made since they were expensive and time-consuming to manufacture.
Because of this, the historic PPSH-41 submachine gun replaced it. Its cheaper parts and easier
manufacturing process made it the most used submachine gun in the Soviet military. The
PPS-43 was a Soviet-produced copy of the PPSH-41 first designed during the Siege of Leningrad,
where no factories were left to produce weapons. This design was similar to the
PPSH but stripped it down to its absolute bare minimum to save on production costs.
All three submachine guns have been used in Ukrainian since 2014, and the 2022 invasion
only increased their use. Russian separatist troops have also used the PPSH-41 extensively.
Ukrainian and separatist forces have also used many Mosin Nagant rifles.
The M91/30 Mosin Nagant was the standard issue rifle of the Red Army during World War Two. Though
its use as the standard infantry rifle has phased out, both sides have utilized the scoped versions
as a cheap and efficient sniping force multiplier. With the fighting leaving most urban areas now,
sniping has become even more prevalent, with long-range engagements becoming commonplace.
The Ukrainians have also issued their reserves of SVT-40 rifles. The SVT-40 was the first
gas-operated, semi-automatic rifle mass-produced by the Soviets in World War Two. It was a
fantastic rifle that won the praises of its users, and the Red Army could never get enough of them.
It was so good that when the Germans captured them, they issued them to their own troops and
used them as the basis to produce the G43 rifle. While Ukraine does have about 12,000 of these
rifles, we have seen no proof that they’ve been issued to troops on the front lines.
It’s likely they have been issued to reserve and police units, just like the TT-30. However,
a WWII machine gun that has seen plenty of action is the M1910/30 Maxim heavy machine gun.
The M1910/30 Maxim machine gun is based on the same Maxim machine gun model that saw extensive
use by all sides during the First World War. After the end of that war, the Soviet military
continued using a newer version of it that came out during the 1930s, and they continued
producing it until the end of the war in 1945. Ukraine has said they have about 35,000 of these
machine guns in service and have used them since the 2014 conflict in the Donbas. But with the war
ramping up, these machine guns have seen plenty of frontline combat use due to their reliability and
accurate, sustained fire over long distances. Another machine gun used by both sides of the
conflict is the DP-28 machine gun. Known for its iconic plate-shaped magazine on top of the
receiver, it became the standard light machine gun for the Soviets during World War Two and beyond.
Though it’s unclear how many are in service, we do know that Ukraine does have a small stockpile
of DP-28s ready to be used when the time is right. Small arms aren’t the only World War Two weapons
still in service. Believe it or not, some World War Two tanks are still being used to this day!
The IS-3 was a Soviet heavy tank produced near the end of WWII and meant to be a tank destroyer with
its large gun and thick armor. In 2014, separatist militias found spare parts for one of the IS-3
tanks still on display at a local museum and got it running. While this was several years ago,
there are likely more examples of WWII tanks still being used in combat, and with the enormous
amounts of tanks being destroyed each day, both sides are bringing more and more out of storage.
So who knows, there could be more out there today that just have not been captured on film.
Speaking of being captured on film, another conflict has seen many WWII weapons being used
in the hands of frontline fighters. During the early days of the Syrian civil war,
Free Syrian Army fighters were seen wielding various weapons, including
MAS 36 rifles and Beretta 38 machine pistols. While the presence of this WWII French infantry
rifle and Italian machine pistol can be explained as leftovers from the WWII battles in the area,
perhaps most surprising was the appearance of thousands of STG-44
rifles in the hands of rebel troops. The STG-44 was Germany’s first fully
automatic assault rifle. With its mid-range cartridge and detachable 30-round magazines,
the Germans hoped that the weapon would give German troops enough firepower to sway the
tides of the war in their favor. While the rifle was too little too late, after the war,
surviving copies were kept in storage by Warsaw Pact countries, including East Germany.
In 1964, East Germany still had about 5,000 of these rifles, and when they wanted to
upgrade their army with newer weapons, they needed to sell something to make some cash.
When they approached the Syrian government, they agreed to take them off their hands,
and that was the last the world saw of those rifles until video footage emerged in 2012.
It turns out that the rebels found shipping containers holding thousands
of these rifles and tens of thousands of rounds of ammunition. While it has been a long time,
more than likely, at least a few of these rifles are still in rebel hands today,
battling government forces in the country's north. Another Middle Eastern country that has seen
widespread use of WWII infantry weapons is the rebels in Libya. During the Libyan civil wars of
the past decade, rebel commanders estimated that about ten percent of their troops were
armed with weapons not seen in use since WWII. The most common rifles used were Italian M91 Carcano
rifles and carbines, with Lee Enfield rifles and Webley revolvers also seeing combat time.
A few videos even emerged of fighters wielding German MP-40 submachine guns. Even though a
ceasefire has been in place since 2020, it’s likely that at least some rebel troops still have
limited stocks of these weapons stashed away. But some countries still use these World War
Two weapons because no other better or more reliable models have been made to replace them.
The DShK first came into production in 1938 as a portable anti-aircraft and anti-material heavy
machine gun. It saw widespread use during WWII and after the war and became one of the most
successful export models of heavy machine guns. Having been produced from 1938 until 1980, this
is one of the most popular machine guns employed across the planet. While we cannot tell how old
each machine gun is, it’s more than likely that a handful still in service were present during WWII.
Another heavy machine produced before WWII and still used today is the US M2 Browning .50
caliber machine gun. This machine gun has been the all-purpose general machine gun on tanks,
planes, ships, armored vehicles, and entrenched positions for generations of American troops.
Dozens of countries worldwide also use it, and some WWII models are still around. Just
a few years ago, Marines based out of Okinawa, Japan, were servicing older M2
machine guns and found one that was almost a hundred years old and still in service!
North Korea also employs a large number of WWII weapons both in frontline units and in reserve.
During an artillery firing demonstration a few years ago, Chinese media noted that the
entirety of the 7th and 9th Field Armies of North Korea were equipped with Soviet-produced M1937
152mm heavy artillery pieces. The Soviets stopped making these guns during WWII,
and though they saw heavy use during the war, most were put into storage or donated
to countries like North Korea after the war. The North Korean army is also similar to the
Ukrainian army in that they have a large quantity of surplus WWII firearms on hand. From Japanese
Arisaka rifles and Nambu pistols to Russian Mosin Nagants and American weapons captured during the
Korean War, the People’s Militia has a colossal mix of WWII weapons to draw from in case of a war.
Infantry weapons are not the only WWII weapon systems still in service today. The Philippine
Navy still uses several US warships that saw combat during WWII. The tank landing ship
BRP Laguna, formerly known as USS LST-230, was commissioned in 1943 and saw combat during the
Normandy invasion as well as the invasion of southern France during Operation Dragoon
several months later. After the war, the US military sold it off to Japan,
who then sold it to the Philippines during the 1970s, where it’s still used to this today.
Another ship called the BRP Magat Salamat also saw service in the Pacific theater during World
War Two. Known then as the USS Gayety, she was commissioned in late 1944 for the purpose of
serving in the Okinawa campaign where she suffered a near miss from a Japanese 500-pound bomb.
After the war, the US donated her to the South Vietnamese navy. After the fall of Saigon,
the South Vietnamese crew took the USS Gayety to the Philippines before the communists could
capture the ship, and ever since 1975, she has seen continual service in the Philippine navy.
Though most WWII aircraft still in use today are restored ones normally owned by museums,
there is one aircraft that still sees use to this day. The C-47 Skytrain was one of the most common
and versatile transport aircraft during the Second World War. After the war was over,
it saw extensive use during the Cold War, but as time went on, militaries around the globe
started retiring them. However, three countries still use them to this day.
The first of them is South Africa. During the 1970s and 80s, they needed to upgrade
their maritime reconnaissance aircraft, and the C-47 was a suitable replacement for the mission.
After being retrofitted in the US with better engines, complex communications, and electronic
warfare equipment, the plane was pressed into service and still sees use to this day.
The Royal Thai army also uses several C-47s in a more traditional logistics role. The Columbian air
force also has about six C-47s in its inventory, and these are the most interesting of the bunch.
The Columbians have converted all of their C-47 aircraft into mobile gunships. Adding several
.50 caliber miniguns, these aircraft rain death from above onto the insurgents the country still
fights. While the Columbians upgraded the planes with newer engines and equipment, the airframes
are all from WWII, including one that dropped American paratroopers into Normandy on D-Day!