( CNN ) -- The Russian army has ceased ordering the famed Kalashnikov rifle for its arsenal and is waiting on a newer model its manufacturer is developing . The army already has more of the weapons than it requires , Chief of General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia Nikolai Makarov told Russian media . The inventor of the weapon , Mikhail Kalashnikov , 91 , has reportedly been deliberately kept uninformed about the decision . `` We do not want to have it on our conscience and tell him such bad news . He might not live through it , '' Russia 's Izvestia newspaper quoted an unnamed friend of Kalashnikov as saying . The legendary weapon , known for its simplicity of operation and maintenance and reliability in extreme conditions -- be they hot , cold , wet or sandy -- has been the weapon of choice for national armies and paramilitary guerrillas alike . Instantly recognizable by its banana-shaped ammunition magazine , the weapon , also known as the AK-47 , was invented in 1947 -- AK being a Russian acronym for `` Kalashnikov 's machine gun , '' and 47 standing for the year it was invented . The AK-47 , along with its various modifications , has been recognized in the Guinness World Records book as being the world 's most common machine gun . Licensed and unlicensed versions of the rifle are manufactured in several countries . According to the weapon 's manufacturer Izhmash , the rifle is still adopted by armed and special forces in over 100 countries . The weapon was so instrumental in Mozambique 's successful rebel movement that its image was incorporated into the national flag . It is also depicted as part of Zimbabwe 's coat of arms . In 2009 , Kalashnikov told a CNN crew on an excursion to the Izhmash arms assembly plant in the Russian city of Izhevsk that two main qualities describe his machine gun : simplicity and reliability . `` It is a thousand times harder to make simple things than complicated ones , '' he said . `` It is very important because a soldier does n't have university degrees . He needs a simple and reliable weapon . Just as an academic , for that matter , in a combat situation . There 's simply no time to figure how to operate a complicated weapon and press many buttons when the enemy is advancing on you . '' When Kalashnikov turned 90 in 2009 , the day was celebrated in Russia on a scale akin to a national holiday . He was decorated by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev with the country 's highest order , the Hero of Russia . CNN 's Maxim Tkachenko and Mike Sefanov contributed to this story .
Russian army has surplus of Kalashnikovs and is waiting on a newer model . The rifle is the weapon of choice for national armies and paramilitary guerrillas alike . The Kalashnikov is highly regarded for its simplicity of operation and reliability . It's also very cheap to produce, so it can be easily acquired by any country with an industrial base that produces weapons.