In the course of the wars in Afghanistan and Chechnya, the domestic armed forces managed to gain sufficient experience to somewhat change their views on modern weapons. The tactical situation sometimes requires approaching or even going beyond the recommended modes and parameters of the weapon's operation. In particular, it was in this way that some of the shortcomings of the RPK-74 light machine gun and the single PKM were revealed. The first, due to the low-impulse cartridge 5, 45x39 mm, had insufficient firepower, and the second, having a sufficient firing range, penetrating and lethal action (cartridge 7, 62x54R), was too hot. It was constantly required to take breaks in shooting, and then change the barrel. What price the crews of machine guns and their units had to pay for all this, only the combatants themselves know, but in the end the command decided to make life easier for the machine gunners.
In the mid-90s of the last century, the Ministry of Defense announced a competition for the creation of a light machine gun chambered for 7, 62x54R, which has the same characteristics as the PKM, but more "heat resistant". In addition, to facilitate the launch of new weapons in the series (there were not the best times for the defense), it was required to achieve maximum unification of the new machine gun with the existing PKM. Two design enterprises participated in the competition - the Klimovsky Central Research Institute Tochmash with its "Pecheneg" and the Kovrovsky Mechanical Plant with the AEK-999 "Barsuk" project.
Automation AEK-999 was taken from the original PKM without changes. Also, the receiver, the ammunition supply system and the butt were transferred to the new machine gun from the old one. The main characteristics, such as the rate of fire, remained at the level of the prototype machine gun. All design changes concerned the barrel and related parts. The barrel itself was made of new material. To increase survivability, they decided to use a steel alloy previously used only for the manufacture of automatic rapid-fire aircraft guns. In addition, the barrel-to-receiver mount was changed. From the breech part of the barrel to about half of its length, a longitudinally located ribbing was placed, and a metal channel was added on top of the barrel along the entire length. The ribs of the improvised radiator were covered with a plastic forend, making it possible to carry the machine gun not only by the handle. In addition, the fore-end allows you to shoot from the AEK-999 from the hip, although because of the mass of the machine gun with cartridges it is not easy, because even the own weight of the "Badger" is 8, 7 kilograms. The innovations around the barrel resulted in the following performance improvements:
- the length of the continuous queue has increased. Different sources say the figure is 500-650 shots;
- an efficient cooling system made it possible to abandon a spare barrel;
- the channel above the barrel does not allow the heated air to rise directly through the aiming line, which saves the shooter from "mirages" and increases the accuracy of shooting.
You can also install a specially created low-noise firing device (PMS) on the barrel, designed to solve two problems at once. Firstly, the machine gun stops stunning the shooter (the bulk of the powder gases are thrown forward only, which reduces the noise going towards the soldier), and secondly, the PMS provides camouflage - at a distance of 400 to 600 meters from the position of the machine gunner, depending on terrain and other conditions, the sound of shots is practically inaudible. In addition, when using night sights, the flame escaping from the barrel does not interfere with normal aiming. In the first photographs that became public, "Badger" was captured with a PMS on the barrel, which is why a rumor spread among weapon lovers about a silencer structurally connected to the barrel, as, for example, on the VSS rifle. However, the low-noise firing device, if necessary, can be removed and replaced with a standard PKM flame arrester.
Often machine gunners noted the inconvenient design of the bipod on the PKM. The carpet designers took this into account and equipped the "Badger" with modified bipods. After appropriate research, the bipod was moved farther from the muzzle, and the mount design was changed in such a way that it had less effect on the balance of the weapon. As a result, the bipod became not only stronger and more comfortable, but also the accuracy of the battle improved.
In 1999, comparative tests of Barsuk and Pechenega began. As a result, the Ministry of Defense chose the TsNII Tochmash machine gun for adoption, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs was interested in Kovrov's development. For military tests in the special forces of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, a small batch of AEK-999 was made. However, shortly thereafter, weapons production at the Kovrov Mechanical Plant was curtailed and the Barsuk did not go into mass production. There is no exact data on the number of AEK-999 currently in operation, but there is every reason to believe that, at least, most of them have already exhausted their resource.
