Season 2 of For All Mankind takes place in 1983, approximately a decade after the finale of Season 1. The United States has maintained Jamestown, the first lunar colony, for ten years. Technological development bought about by NASA's research for lunar missions has resulted in an alternate vision of the 1980s with more advanced technology than what was available in the real-life early 80s being commonplace. However, the Soviet Union also possesses a lunar outpost, Zvezda, not too far from Jamestown and is aggressively expanding their operations on the Moon. Tensions on the Moon between the two superpowers begin to rise, mirroring the ongoing Cold War tensions on Earth.
The following weapons were used in Season 2 of the television series For All Mankind:
When Ed Baldwin (Joel Kinnaman) visits Molly Cobb (Sonya Walger) at her home in "Pathfinder" (S2E04), a holstered Smith & Wesson Model 19 is seen hanging next to her bathtub.
The crew of the next-generation NASA space shuttle Pathfinder are provided Colt M1911A1 pistols as part of their survival kits. When questioning why they are being given pistols, the astronauts are told that they are to be used in the event the shuttle lands in hostile territory and that Soviet cosmonauts have been provided firearms for decades. In reality, Soviet cosmonauts were indeed routinely provided Makarov PM pistols in their survival kits and later, the specially-designed TP-82 survival pistol.
In "Best-Laid Plans" (S2E06), Soviet troops are seen holding AKM assault rifles when American astronauts arrive at Star City, a cosmonaut training facility in Russia.
The Soviet cosmonauts who assault Jamestown in "Triage" (S2E09) and "The Grey" (S2E10) are armed with AK-type rifles. These rifles lack the ribbed dust cover and slanted muzzle brake of the AKM and are fitted with the side-folding wire stock seen on East German and Romanian AKs.
When the Soviet cosmonauts on the Moon begin encroaching on sites of valuable resources discovered by the Americans, the decision is made to bring firearms to the Moon to arm the Jamestown astronauts. They are provided hybrid M16 rifles, first seen in "The Weight" (S2E05). The rifles appear to consist of A1 uppers, A2 lowers, handguards, barrels and flash hiders, along with anachronistic M4 stocks.
Error creating thumbnail: File missingM16A2 - 5.56x45mm NATOError creating thumbnail: File missingM16A1 - 5.56x45mm NATOError creating thumbnail: File missingM4A1 - 5.56x45mm NATOError creating thumbnail: File missingAn M16 is secured in a crate for transport to the Moon in "The Weight" (S2E05). This rifle appears to be fitted with a Colt 4x carry handle scope.Error creating thumbnail: File missingA full view of the above scene, depicting US Marines slated to head to Jamestown as a security detail handling M16s. The rifles are described as being painted with a special heat-resistant white paint to protect them from thermal damage on the lunar surface. They are also fitted with technically anachronistic collapsible LE-style M4 stocks - the earlier XM177 collapsible stock would be a bit more period correct.Error creating thumbnail: File missingA better view of the receiver and stock. The protrusion at the bottom of the stock is a modification to allow the rifle to be shouldered easier when the user is in a bulky space suit.Error creating thumbnail: File missingUS Marine Vance Paulson (Connor Tillman) takes aim with an M16 during target practice in "Best-Laid Plans" (S2E06) and shortly after becomes the first human being to discharge a firearm on the Moon.Error creating thumbnail: File missingThe Marines armed with M16s in "Don't be Cruel" (S2E07) when they arrive to reclaim Site 357 Bravo, a valuable lithium deposit that the Soviet cosmonauts of Zvezda claim jumped.Error creating thumbnail: File missingMarines armed with M16s investigate a disturbance in "And Here's to You" (S2E08).Error creating thumbnail: File missingPaulson holds his rifle in "The Grey" (S2E10).
M1 Garand
Honor guards fire a salute during a funeral in "The Grey" (S2E10). While the rifles they use are seen only very briefly and at a distance, based on the context and the fact they fire semi-automatically, it can be assumed they are M1 Garands.
Error creating thumbnail: File missingM1 Garand - .30-06Error creating thumbnail: File missingUS Marines fire a salute during a funeral with what are most likely M1 Garands. The letterboxing and very low quality of this image is intentional in order to give it the appearance of being recorded on VHS tape.
In the beginning of "Every Little Thing" (S2E01), a montage of newspaper headlines depicts several alternate history events in For All Mankind's timeline. In one photograph, an assassin is seen with a Port Said submachine gun, an Egyptian licensed copy of the Carl Gustav M/45.
Error creating thumbnail: File missingPort Said SMG - an Egyptian licensed copy of Carl Gustav M/45 Submachine Gun - 9x19mmError creating thumbnail: File missingThis is a real photograph of the assassination of Anwar Sadat, president of Egypt, on October 6, 1981. It depicts an Islamic fundamentalist Egyptian soldier firing a Port Said SMG into the reviewing stand containing Sadat during a military parade in Cairo. In the For All Mankind universe, Sadat survives this attack, but in real life, he was killed along with ten others.Error creating thumbnail: File missingThe original, unobstructed, photo. While the photo used on the show is cropped, the full photo depicts other assassins armed with 7.62x39mm AK rifles, presumably Maadi AKM copies.
Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-23
A Sukhoi Su-15 interceptor aircraft destroys a Korean Airlines Boeing 747 in "Don't be Cruel" (S2E07), a portrayal of the real-life Korean Air Lines Flight 007 shootdown that occurred on September 1, 1983. Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-23L autocannons can be seen in gunpods affixed under the fuselage.
