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Kalashnikov AK-12 assault rifle to finish trials soon 52007162

Defence & Security News - Kalashnikov

Kalashnikov AK-12 assault rifle to finish trials soon

The trials of the Kalashnikov AK-12 assault rifle that is planned to be included in the armament suite of the Ratnik advanced combat gear are at the final stage, according to the CEO of the Rostec state corporation, Sergey Chemezov.

The Kalashnikov AK-12 assault rifle

"The trials of the AK-12 assault rifle are continuing. They are planned to be finished at an early date. Once the trials have been completed, Russia`s Ministry of Defense (MoD) will take the relevant decision," Chemezov said.

Two assault rifles are competing to be included in the Ratnik`s armament suite, namely AK-12 developed by the Kalashnikov Group and A-545 developed by the Degtyarev Plant. In April, the Kalashnikov Group`s CEO, Alexey Krivoruchko said that the MoD would choose the organic assault rifle for Ratnik in Autumn 2016. According to the CEO of the Ratnik`s developer and manufacturer (TsNIITochMash design bureau), Dmitry Semizorov, the gear had yet to be brought into service due to the postponement of the assault rifle introduction to its armament suite.

The prototype of the AK-12 assault rifle was revealed in 2012. It has a weight of 3.2 kg, a length of 940 mm (730 mm with folded stock), a firing rate of 650 rds/min, a muzzle velocity of 900 m/s, and a maximum firing range of 1,000 m.

The Degtyarev plant developed the A-545 assault rifle (also designated as AEK-971) in the 1990s. A-545 has a weight of 3.3 kg, a length of 960 mm (720 mm with collapsed stock), a firing rate of 900 rds/min, a muzzle velocity of 880 m/s, and a maximum firing range of 1,000 m. A-545 features balanced automatics recoil system, which shifts mass toward the rifle`s muzzle. As a result, the firearm`s accuracy (in automatic mode) has increased by 50-70% over the AK-12 assault rifle.