The Soviet PSS Pistol and the Rise of Captive-Piston Ammunition Guns

Summary

The article details the Soviet PSS silent pistol, developed in the late 1970s and adopted in 1983 for KGB and GRU clandestine operations. It uniquely uses SP-4 captive-piston ammunition, which traps propellant gases within the cartridge to achieve silence without an external suppressor, allowing for a compact, semi-automatic sidearm with a 6-round magazine.