At present, new types of small arms are being developed in our country. The most famous projects of this kind are submachine guns, offered for inclusion in the "Ratnik" outfit. In addition to them, other shooting complexes are being created. Thus, the Central Research Institute of Precision Engineering (TSNIITOCHMASH, Klimovsk) is developing a new sniper rifle intended for the Russian armed forces and other customers.
According to domestic media reports, the project "Accuracy", developed by TsNIITOCHMASH specialists on an initiative basis, has entered its final phase. According to unnamed sources, cited by various publications, the main work on the project of a promising sniper rifle is coming to an end. Already this year, it is planned to transfer the new weapon to state tests, after which the question of acceptance into service will be decided. Details of the new project have not yet been reported. Only some of the features of the promising rifle complex are known, which do not allow any serious conclusions to be drawn.
The development of a new sniper rifle became known at the end of 2013. Then the leaders of the Central Research Institute of Precision Engineering argued that the enterprise is proactively creating a promising high-precision shooting system, which is supposed to be offered to the armed forces in the future. The main operators of these weapons should be snipers of special units and riflemen serving in other structures.
At the beginning of December last year, General Director of TsNIITOCHMASH Dmitry Semizorov spoke about the progress of the new project. According to him, the rifle created as part of the Accuracy project will effectively hit targets at ranges of up to 1.5 km. In order to ensure such parameters, it is proposed to use non-standard ammunition for domestic weapons. Variants of the rifle are being created, designed to use cartridges 7, 62x51 mm NATO and 8, 6x70 mm Lapua Magnum. Such cartridges, actively used by foreign developers of high-precision weapons, should provide the new rifle with high performance.
According to reports, the reason for the creation of two versions of the rifle, designed for different ammunition, were some of the features of bullet ballistics. So, to ensure the highest possible accuracy at ranges up to 500 m, it is proposed to use a 7.62-mm rifle, and to hit targets at long distances, it is planned to use the 8.6x70 mm Lapua Magnum cartridge. Thus, the customer will be able to choose the modification of the rifle that best suits his requirements.
In December last year, it was reported that TSNIITOCHMASH was completing the production of prototypes of rifles created under the Precision program. In the near future, it was planned to complete all the work and send the weapon for testing. During 2015, it was supposed to conduct preliminary state tests and offer a new development to the customer represented by the Ministry of Defense.
Unfortunately, there is no detailed information about the project "Accuracy". We only know the purpose of the rifles, the offered cartridges and the approximate characteristics of the firing range. All other information has not yet been released and is probably classified. Such a lack of information does not allow making serious conclusions about the new project. One can only try to imagine what the new weapon will be like and for what purpose it is being created.
Statements regarding the proposed ammunition and firing range allow assumptions about the intended purpose of the rifle. Probably, the "Accuracy" rifle is not created to replace the existing ones in the SVD troops, used by the so-called. infantry snipers. Apparently, this weapon will be designed to supplement or gradually replace the high-precision sniper rifles available in special forces like the ORSIS T-5000 and its foreign counterparts. In view of the high complexity of the production of such weapons and the existence of a sufficiently large number of competitors, there is reason for concern. It cannot be ruled out that the new domestic rifle will not be able to break into the market and take its place in the arsenals of special forces, which has already been taken by other weapons.
Some news about the creation of new sniper rifles raises certain questions. So, on February 23, the Interfax news agency, citing a source in the Military-Industrial Commission of Russia, reported that recently a new sniper complex was demonstrated in the city of Klimovsk. A new ammunition was developed for it, the characteristics of which are not specified. It is claimed that this rifle is capable of hitting targets at ranges up to 1400 m. Whether this rifle is the very system being developed as part of the Accuracy project is unknown.
