Russian .22 rimfire combat rifles?

Q: I’ve heard that the Russians used .22 rimfire rifles in combat during World War II. It seems to me that the .22 rimfire would have been suitable only for training purposes. 

Did the Russians actually employ .22 rimfire rifles in combat, or was I misinformed?

Henry Mallory

A: Although not intended for combat purposes, .22 rimfire rifles saw extensive use by the Russians during World War II in partisan warfare. Because of its low report, the .22 rimfire was less likely to betray the shooter’s position than the 7.62x53R Russian service rifle, and this made it well suited to partisan operations.

It was used only at relatively short ranges, and head shots were made whenever possible.

Russian training rifles used for this purpose were the Model TOZ-8 single-shot and TOZ-9 box-magazine repeater. 

In addition to their use by the military, these rifles were extensively employed by civilian rifle clubs in the Soviet Union. They also saw some partisan use by Communist forces in Korea.

Some of these rifles were sold as surplus in Australia.