Everyone wants peace, therefore, according to a Roman proverb, they are preparing for war. All this is done in its own way, in particular, Italy has been working on the Soldato Futuro program ("Soldier of the Future") since the mid-2000s. In the course of its implementation, by order and with funding from the Italian Ministry of Defense, a new assault rifle was created at Beretta to replace the outdated AR-70/90.
The ARX-160 assault rifle, in accordance with the latest trends in the development of small arms, was created according to a modular scheme with the ability to quickly re-equip a specific unit to the desired configuration. Also, it was originally provided for compatibility with various tactical "body kit". The cartridge for the ARX-160 remains the same as for the earlier Italian assault rifles - 5, 65x45 mm NATO.
The bulk of the parts, in particular, almost the entire receiver, forend and firing mechanism housing, are made of reinforced impact-resistant plastic. The body of the weapon is divided into the receiver itself, made integral with the forend and the trigger body, connected to the pistol grip and the magazine receiver.
The firing mechanism is made according to the trigger scheme. There are two shooting modes, single and automatic. Two flags of the fire translator, at the same time performing the functions of a non-automatic safety device, are located above the pistol grip in the thumb reach.
Automatic rifle ARX-160 is not as futuristic as the appearance, but more traditional and works at the expense of powder gases, the piston stroke is short. The barrel locking mechanism is also not new - a rotary bolt with seven lugs. Of particular interest is that part of the bolt group, which is responsible for the extraction of spent cartridges. In the “out of the box” state, the ejection of the shells is carried out through the window on the right side of the machine. If necessary, the shooter can switch the extraction mechanism, and the sleeves will fly out through the window on the left side. To do this, you need to press a special pin in the back of the receiver with any sharp object, such as a bullet. Extractor switching is possible at almost any time.
Another interesting innovation for the Beretta rifles applied to the ARX-160 is the interchangeable barrel. It is possible to use a short 12 "barrel (305 mm), a standard 16" (405 mm) or a special thick-walled 20 "(508 mm) long. Replacement is possible at any time, for this you need to put the bolt on hold, press the button on the right side of the machine and remove the barrel. Installing a new one is carried out in the reverse order.
The rifle is supplied with ammunition from standard (STANAG 4179) magazines. The standard ones have a capacity of 30 rounds, but other designs of the same standard are allowed, for example, Beta C-Mag.
ARX-160 comes with a folding telescopic aluminum stock. It folds to the right side of the machine, five-stage length adjustment with a lock. The Picatinny rail is located along the entire length of the upper part of the receiver. Another much shorter bar is on the underside of the forend. The elements of the standard diopter sight have convenient picatinny-compatible bases, so they can be removed when installing another sight.
Since 2009, when the ARX-160 was put into service, it has been supplied to the troops. The first to receive a new assault rifle were the special forces of the Italian ministries of defense and internal affairs. The full transfer of all the country's security forces to the ARX-160 should occur by the middle of this decade.
