The submachine-gun is a compact automatic weapon firing pistol ammunition, designed for short-range assault and close-quarter fighting. After 1934 the Red Army issued their soldiers with the Degtyarev PPD submachine-gun. It used a drum magazine holding 71 rounds of 7.62mm pistol ammunition. In 1940 it was replaced by a new model that improved the magazine and its method of attachment. Army officers liked the Degtyarev because it was simple to operate and its firepower encouraged their men to act aggressively against the German invaders.