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Here’s What You Need to Know About Sniper Rifles Used by Ukrainian Ground Forces

Malyuk assault rifle (Ukraine). 'Zbroya ta Bezpeka' military fair, Kyiv, Ukraine, 2019. (Source: VoidWanderer, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons)

At the same time as Russia’s military keeps pounding Ukraine with missiles and other destructive weapons, the Ukrainian Forces are firing back with weapons that have been explicitly earmarked to liberate their nation from Russian interference.

A cruise of weapons on the Ukrainian combat zones was covered in a special report prepared by SOFREP in 2015. To date, the Ukrainian Forces are magnifying the use of these weapons to fire back against the assaults made by Russian soldiers on its continuing conflict.

AK-47

Ukrainian assault rifle, designed by the National Space Agency of Ukraine. It is l bullpup conversion of the conventional AK-74 design. (Source: Render3superCC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, several of the former countries, such as Ukraine, were left with a large cache of small guns left over from the Red Army, including AK-47s.

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At the same time as Russia’s military keeps pounding Ukraine with missiles and other destructive weapons, the Ukrainian Forces are firing back with weapons that have been explicitly earmarked to liberate their nation from Russian interference.

A cruise of weapons on the Ukrainian combat zones was covered in a special report prepared by SOFREP in 2015. To date, the Ukrainian Forces are magnifying the use of these weapons to fire back against the assaults made by Russian soldiers on its continuing conflict.

AK-47

Ukrainian assault rifle, designed by the National Space Agency of Ukraine. It is l bullpup conversion of the conventional AK-74 design. (Source: Render3superCC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, several of the former countries, such as Ukraine, were left with a large cache of small guns left over from the Red Army, including AK-47s.

The AK-47 was developed to be a compact, dependable, and fully automatic rifle that could be built rapidly and at a low-cost utilizing mass production techniques that were cutting edge in the Soviet Union in the late 1940s. The AK-47 uses a long stroke fuel injection system, typically associated with high levels of dependability in challenging environments. In addition, the gun can withstand high amounts of foreign matter and fouling because it is designed with a big gas piston, ample clearances between moving parts, and a tapered cartridge case. This design also allows the gun to cycle typically.

AKM

Mikhail Kalashnikov, a Soviet inventor of small arms, is credited with developing the assault rifle known as the AKM in 1959. The Kalashnikov rifles are widely used, although this model is the most common. It was designed to succeed the AK-47, which had been on the market for ten years before its introduction.

The AKM, first put into service with the Soviet Army in 1959, is the most common variant of the entire AK series of firearms. It has extensively used most constituent states of the former Warsaw Pact and its African and Asian allied nations, in addition to being shipped overseas and produced in other countries. The AKM was first put into service with the Soviet Army in 1959. In some capacity, the Tula Arms Plant and Izhmash contributed to the manufacturing process of these weapons. Although it was formally superseded in Soviet frontline service by the AK-74 in the late 1970s, the AK-47 is still in use worldwide.

Malyuk

Vulkan assault rifle, Kyiv 2021. (Source: VoidWandererCC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)

The concept of this firearm was given the name Malyuk, a Ukrainian word that can be translated into English as “baby” or “youngster.” It was initially shown off by a business called InterProInvest (IPI) in 2015 and was given the name Malyuk. Although the firm now sells this assault rifle under the name Vulcan or Vulcan-M, it is still commonly referred to by its previous moniker, The Drive reported.

The Malyuk is not a wholly original concept in design. Instead, it is essentially a conventional AK-series rifle that has been reimagined inside a new chassis. This culminates in a firearm that has a barrel that is 16.3 inches long, has an overall length of approximately 28 inches, and weighs just under 8.4 pounds when it is empty.

The breech-handle mechanism was intended to be moved to the appropriate side of the machine, but its design prevented this from happening. In addition, it does not move when fired, so there is no risk of the shooter being hurt.

M4-WAC-47

The WAC-47 looks like an M4 with a longer barrel (16 inches versus 14.5 inches on the M4). It is equipped with a rail system for the sights. It also has an alloy steel structure, a receiver that is split into two halves, and an assembly that is comparable to that of an M4. It appears to be a clone of the M4 rifle due to the moveable buttstock that comes with it. Again, the functions are comparable to those of an M4.

Its most basic configuration features a barrel measuring 400 millimeters (16 inches) in length and is equipped with a box magazine holding 30 rounds of Soviet 7.62 x 39-millimeter ammunition. According to a source from the Kyiv Post, the rifle has an effective range of 400 meters, an accuracy range of 800 meters, and a cyclic rate of 850 rounds per minute. In addition, the rifle’s trigger group enables “safe, semi-automatic, and fully automatic firing modes,” just like its predecessor, the M4A1.

‘Ukraine Declares Weapons Help, But Needs More’

With the variety of weapons, Ukrainian uses in its fight against Russia, the country values the initiatives and the efforts their alliances are investing in them. However, so close to losing everything in the pantry of weapons, Ukraine noted they needed more to sustain the battle as it continued.

The protracted, grueling war for Luhansk revealed Kyiv’s lack of Soviet-era artillery ammunition, observers believe, boosting the necessity of foreign assistance., according to Reuters.

“The problem currently is we have a lot of Soviet weaponry left, which uses 122mm and 152mm calibre[caliber] shells. There’s not a lot of (those shells) in the world, so we are going through a transition to NATO’s 155mm calibre[caliber],” Danilov said.

About SOFREP News Team View All Posts

The SOFREP News Team is a collective of professional military journalists. Brandon Tyler Webb is the SOFREP News Team's Editor-in-Chief. Guy D. McCardle is the SOFREP News Team's Managing Editor. Brandon and Guy both manage the SOFREP News Team.

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