On Wednesday, August 25, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, after visiting the shooting center in the Patriot Park, instructed to speed up state tests of promising small arms and protective equipment for VKS pilots.
The chief designer of the Kalashnikov Concern, Sergey Urzhumtsev, told the minister about technical solutions for the development of a system for the wearable emergency reserve of aircrew of the Aerospace Forces. This system, among other things, includes a compact Lebedev PLC pistol for self-defense of the pilot and a vest with a set of defensive grenades. Shoigu was also shown a new submachine gun for PPK-20 pilots with a device for low-noise shooting, a new folding butt and a magazine for 30 rounds. The Minister was also presented with a new semi-automatic sniper rifle and a modern hand-held rocket-propelled grenade launcher with 40 mm ammunition.
Having familiarized himself with these weapons and heard the report of the chief designer on the prospects for putting new combat equipment into operation, Shoigu instructed to complete state tests of new products not in 2023, as the minister was informed at the weapons demonstration, but next year.
In general, Shoigu was satisfied with the new weapons developments. "After all, they did it! And how many years have we been talking about this, since 2012. This is exactly the set we ordered," the minister said after the presentations at the shooting complex.
The head of the military department was also shown sets of the latest bulletproof vests. The developers of the protective equipment said that they fulfilled the Minister's instructions to improve its ergonomics without reducing the protective area and other characteristics. Now bulletproof vests, having a sufficient area of bulletproof protection, do not interfere with movement on the battlefield. The equipment is quickly adjusted to the parameters of a person, while the main weight load of the vest falls on the belt, and not on the shoulders. "We are talking, first of all, about the optimal distribution of weight, and not only about its reduction," the Defense minister was explained at the stand.
"Well done! After all, you can! Thank you!", - Shoigu thanked the developers of bulletproof vests.
Yuri Gavrilov