The ORЁLEXPO showcasing the items on offer from Russian small arms manufacturers opened at the Gostiny Dvor exhibition center in central Moscow on October 12. It’s safe to say that exhibition stands with sniper rifles became one of the event's main eye-catchers.
Lobaev Arms Rolls Out First-Class Rifles
Lobaev Arms, a private company, presented several sophisticated sniper rifles and munitions at the four-day event, including the DXL-5 Opustoshitel (Ravager) rifle in various modifications, which is successfully used by Russian troops in the special military operation in Ukraine.
Lobaev Arms spokesman Alexey Storozhuk told Sputnik that the company “fully caters to the needs of the special operation's troops with a range of firearms, from small-caliber options like the 4.9 kg [Opustoshitel rifle] to heavy rifles weighing 12.4 kg (with a range of up to 2,200 meters, or 1,300 miles), which are fitted with a domestically-made 12.7 x 108 mm cartridge.”
Storozhuk stressed that if equipped with a steel core, this cartridge would easily penetrate an enemy armored personnel carrier.
According to him, the Russian servicemen taking part in the special operation can get and use the 12.7 x 108 mm cartridges in combat situations, “no matter where they are deployed.” He explained that the cartridge is currently used instead of NATO’s Cheytac analogue and consists of brass and steel parts, which are made in Russia.
Separately, Storozhuk mentioned the Lobaev Arms-made long-range DXL-4 Sevastopol sniper rifle, which was on display at the ORЁLEXPO exhibition. He added that such rifles would be delivered to a yet-to-be-formed unit of Russian snipers in the special operation zone, a project that was earlier initiated by Crimea’s head Sergey Aksyonov.
Lobaev Arms' DXL-5 Opustoshitel (Ravager) rifle
© Sputnik
Apart from the Opustoshitel and the Sevastopol, Lobaev Arms displayed the long-range Dominator sniper rifle that the company touts as “a special version equipped with the most effective system for reducing unmasking factors."
The Lobayev Arms spokesman also singled out the company’s long-range SVLK-14 Sumrak (Twilight) sniper rifle, which has a range of up to 2,000 meters (1.500 miles). In 2017, the bullet fired by this rifle hit the target a staggering 4,210 meters (2,600 miles) away, setting a world record that has never been broken since then.
Storozhuk additionally underscored the company’s drive to replace foreign rifle scopes, such as those produced by NightForce, with domestically-made optical sights in the near future.
Kalashnikov Small Arms
The Kalashnikov Concern, which produces about 95% of all small arms in Russia, showcased a series of shotguns at ORЁLEXPO.
They included the Tiger 308-02 7.62mm shotgun, the TR3 self-loading carbine chambered for 5.45×39 rounds, and the MP-155T semi-automatic smoothbore shotgun.
Anti-Drone Gun
Also on display at ORЁLEXPO was a new LPD-830 anti-drone gun, developed by the St. Petersburg-based holding Laboratory for Combating Industrial Espionage (PPSh Laboratory) and used by Russian soldiers in the special operation zone.
The firearm is designed to suppress communication channels and data transmission from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), including FPV (first-person view) drones, as well as to disable navigation channel of these vehicles.
Russia's LPD-830 anti-drone gun. File photo
© Sputnik
The LPD-830 can be used to disrupt the flight of an UAV in prohibited areas, unauthorized transmission of a drone data to the operator, as well as to block radio actuation devices based on Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS, Glonass, Beidou and Galileo.
The lightweight gun is capable of effectively suppressing enemy UAVs at a distance of one kilometer (620 miles). The LPD-830 can run on one battery for 60 minutes.
New Optical Sight
The Russian group of companies Navigator in turn presented its modified version of the all-weather Venox Patriot LRF 2.0 optical sight with a recognition range of up to 2,800 meters (1,700 miles) at ORЁLEXPO.
The Venox Patriot is fitted with the AMOLED display and the built-in laser rangefinder, which enables the detection of a target at a distance of up to 1,200 meters (745 miles) and makes necessary corrections based on the data from the built-in ballistic table of a rifle’s cartridge.