#KalashnikovConcern

Over recent weeks Kalashnikov Media, of Kalashnikov Concern’s media department, have been treating us to videos looking at some very interesting and historically significant firearms including Mikhail Kalashnikov’s automatic pistol prototype and the  PP-71 SMG.

Although the Russian Kalashnikov assault rifle is the one that is most famous, it is arguably the Chinese Type 56 AK that made the bigger impression on the world in the 1960s and 70s. This rifle was initially developed with Russian technical assistance just before the Sino-Soviet split beginning in 1956, but subsequent development took place without Russian input, leading to an entire family of unique AK variants. The name “Type 56” actually refers to this entire family of Chinese AKs, which includes milled receiver variants derived from the Russian Type 2 AK, as well as stamped versions similar to (but distinct from) the AKM. These guns showed up all over the world, and for many they are THE iconic “AK-47”. They were the primary weapon of the North Vietnamese Army in the latter half of the Vietnam War, were exported by the Chinese to Africa, Asia, and South America. It was the most used AK variant by the mujahideen during the Soviet-Afghan War, up against Russian AK-74 rifles. Too this day remains one of the most common if not the most common AK variant, and it’s the Chinese Type 56 with its distinctive integral spike bayonet that is famously depicted as a symbol of liberation on the Flag of Mozambique.

Kalashnikov Concern have shown off a rare example of Mikhail Kalashnikov’s automatic pistol developed in the late 1940s. Kalashnikov’s pistol was beaten by Igor Stechkin’s entry into the trials, the APS.

The Philippines’ President Rodrigo Duterte announced on 11 October that Russia would donate a substantial amount of defence hardware in support of the Philippine military’s fight against pro-Islamic State militants that have occupied city of Marawi since May. While exactly what equipment will be donated has not yet been confirmed the donation is said to include 5,000 AK-pattern rifles, 1 million rounds of ammunition and 20 military trucks, which would be a substantial boost to the Philippine military’s inventory.

TFB is attending the Arms & Hunting 2017 exhibition held in Moscow, Russia. We’ll be publishing the most interesting news seen during that event. In this article, we’ll take a look at Kalashnikov Concern’s rifle and PCC news and talk about some details of earlier released firearms.

One of the most significant military events in the Russian Patriot Park is ARMY exhibition held annually in August. This year it was especially successful for the Russian companies. Particularly, Rostec State Corporation has signed sales contracts of a total sum of 40 billion rubles (about $692,240,000). As a result of evaluation of the ARMY-2017, Russian largest military and LE products manufacturers will arrange a year-round exhibition in the Patriot Park.

Kalashnikov Media, Kalashnikov Concern’s dedicated media website, has been ramping up its releases recently. Its latest video features a hair-raising demo by Kalashnikov’s demonstration team.

Kalashnikov Concern recently released a new English language video regarding their PL-15K compact pistol, MP-444 pistol, AM-17 and AMB-17 compact assault rifles, and SVCh semiautomatic sniper rifle. By way of a walkthrough from Kalashnikov Concern technical consultant Vladimir Onokoy, the video offers English speakers an important look at the technical features of the new weapons, which were until now something of a mystery to those on this side of the language barrier. The video is embedded below, followed by a written summary:

As you can see from our recent articles, Kalashnikov Concern has introduced a number of new products during the ARMY-2017 exhibition. Besides the firearms which we wrote about in separate articles, there were many other new products that are either not entirely small arms related or are prototypes with a very little information available about. Many of them won’t “qualify” for a separate article, that’s why I’ve decided to combine them in this article.

On display at the recent Russian Army 2017 expo was Kalashnikov’s new AM-17 and AMB-17 compact assault rifles. The AM-17 is a 5.45x39mm caliber improved version of the MA assault rifle introduced last year, designed to fill the same role as the AKS-74U compact assault rifle/personal defense weapon. The AMB-17 is an integrally suppressed variant of the same, firing the 9x39mm dedicated subsonic round first introduced with the AS Val and VSS Vintorez in the 1980s. Pictures of the new rifles have been posted on various social media outlets, such as TFB contributor and small arms expert Max Popenker’s blog.

Kalashnikov Concern’s subsidiary Zala Aero Group has released a counter UAV device named the REX-1. The handheld device is designed to target a UAV/drone’s emergency land function, forcing it to land from a hovering position. Very importantly, it is designed to halt the location functions of a UAV by blocking out various geolocating systems, specifically U.S. GPS, Russian GLONASS, and Chinese BeiDou. Expanding upon its specifications, the device can block various mobile signals such as GSM, 3G, LTE. It can also jam the 900 Mhz range in addition to 2.4 GHz and 5.2-5.8 GHz wi-fi signals. The company says it has a range of one kilometer.

During the ARMY-2017 arms exhibition Kalashnikov Concern has introduced new hunting rifles. Not one or two but five rifles! Thanks to Maxim Popenker, who released a short video review, we can take a look at these new rifles.

This rifle was earlier announced by the Kalashnikov Concern. It was initially called SVK. Recently, Kalashnikov has renamed the rifle to include the designer’s last name (Chukavin) into the designation of this firearm and revealed more details. Now the rifle is called Chukavin Sniper Rifle or SVCh (Снайперская Винтовка Чукавина – СВЧ). Here is a video released by the Kalashnikov Concern:

Jerry Miculek, the legend of rapid firing, is in Russia taking part in the practical shooting Rifle World Championship. In the video released by Kalashnikov Concern, Jerry tries the new pump action AK ( KSZ-223) and looks like he likes the gun.

Kalashnikov Concern has announced about a new upgrade/modernization kit for AK style rifles. It is a drop-in kit which allows converting any stock AK-47/AKM or AK-74 rifle into a bit more modern weapon making it more adjustable and suitable for accessorizing.