Latest Kalashnikovs to be 'made in India': Russian firm

Rage

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Kalashnikovs to be 'made in India': Russian firm




NEW DELHI: With the 61st anniversary of the famed Kalashnikov AK-47 series around the corner, the Russian manufacturer of the world's best-known assault rifle announced that the latest AK-100 series will be manufactured in India.

The Russian arms company, Izhmash, will shortly issue a licence to an Indian private arms manufacturer with whom negotiations are at an advanced stage. Company spokesperson Alexander Xavarzin said assembling of the AK-103 will begin in a year's time and full-scale manufacturing would start once the technology transfer takes place.

The company hopes to sell the gun to various police and paramilitary forces in the country as well as the army. It will not be exported.


The popularity of the assault rifle can be gauged from the fact that originals account for only 8-12% of the total world sales of the Kalashnikov series - the rest are all Kalashnikov clones being manufactured in several countries, according to the Izhmash spokesperson.

Unlike the AK-47 rifle which has a wooden base, the new generation AK-100 series is much lighter and has a body made of plastic. Xavarzin said the plastic component makes it an all-weather rifle, well suited to Indian conditions where soldiers have to trek at high altitudes for a number of days at a stretch.


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Rage

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Questions to ponder:

- The implications of technology transfer to a private Indian company, as envisaged, for the global sales and presence of this ubiquitous rifle

- The impact on the modernization of our own ill-equipped police forces

- The implications of this, if any, for the F-INSAS rifle
 

tarunraju

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I feel sad for projects such as Arjun-MBT and INSAS. Both face common problems:

1. Both have been strategically crippled by Russian ToT's: be it T-90 or now AK-103
2. Both are facing an uphill struggle, both aren't in the Army's best books.

Come on, encourage local designs. Every country with indigenous weapons industries have had initial failures, but eventually succeeded when the local government and armies sought to encourage them.

That said, AK-103 is a farking awesome rifle.
 

AkhandBharat

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F-INSAS is a future weapons soldier as a system program. Part of the program is manufacturing multiple caliber rifles (with grenade launchers attached to the rifle itself). So that is a separate program for the long term (4-5 years).

Also, the current INSAS rifle is a 5.56 caliber rifle. Maybe India wants to use 7.62 calibre rifles as well for COIN ops. But I dont understand why they dont develop one themselves instead of allowing the Russians to setup shop here.
 

bhramos

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good news,
but Pak uses same 103 series too????????
 

sky

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I feel sad for projects such as Arjun-MBT and INSAS. Both face common problems:

1. Both have been strategically crippled by Russian ToT's: be it T-90 or now AK-103
2. Both are facing an uphill struggle, both aren't in the Army's best books.

Come on, encourage local designs. Every country with indigenous weapons industries have had initial failures, but eventually succeeded when the local government and armies sought to encourage them.

That said, AK-103 is a farking awesome rifle.

I have thought for a while now,the best thing for india and russia is to extend cooperation even futher.I mean india buying a stake in russain arm's manufacturers.This will mean india has a big say in how the company is run and tot concern's can also be addressed.Russia will gain by knowing india has a vested interest in buying russian,and would slow the india @ usa defence partnership. India would futher gain by not only holding a stake in the companies but have a indian on there board of directors as well. Win win for all.
 

tarunraju

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I have thought for a while now,the best thing for india and russia is to extend cooperation even futher.I mean india buying a stake in russain arm's manufacturers.This will mean india has a big say in how the company is run and tot concern's can also be addressed.Russia will gain by knowing india has a vested interest in buying russian,and would slow the india @ usa defence partnership. India would futher gain by not only holding a stake in the companies but have a indian on there board of directors as well. Win win for all.
Although we've proven to be a big and reliable customer to pretty much every Russian defense equipment company, be it the constituents of UAC, or Uralvagonzavod, I don't think India is big enough to buy stakes. In case of this news, India merely got a license to make AKs, one of perhaps dozens of entities to get the same. So the way forward still is to back local designs. Once local designs are encouraged, it will spurt innovation, which will further improve things. In the process of buying equipment from local companies, the government will save tons of money, even more so than buying licenses to make foreign equipment.
 

sky

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Although we've proven to be a big and reliable customer to pretty much every Russian defense equipment company, be it the constituents of UAC, or Uralvagonzavod, I don't think India is big enough to buy stakes. In case of this news, India merely got a license to make AKs, one of perhaps dozens of entities to get the same. So the way forward still is to back local designs. Once local designs are encouraged, it will spurt innovation, which will further improve things. In the process of buying equipment from local companies, the government will save tons of money, even more so than buying licenses to make foreign equipment.

I am talking of say about a 15% stake in a few important companies,maxium 200 million dollars in any bussines.If india has a cap ex budget of 11 billion a year,it's a wise move.India could use it's foreign reserve's to make the investment,which would not even impact govenment spending.

By having a stake in these companies india would get better deal's on defence equipment,less likely for corruption to take place.India could even send it's bright young engineers there on training.

With defence spending due to rise substantially over the next 10 year's it's a price worth paying.India could even stop or make sales to china very expensive so they don't buy defence equipment.

I believe it's the next logical step for india and russia.
 

bengalraider

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What was interesting for me was that the manufacturing as stated shall be done by a private Indian firm, no Indian firm till date has done anything on the scale of building an AK factory.The Indian government should provide a level playing field for this manufacturer vis a vis the PSUs , this shall increase competition and should encourage the gun factory at icchapore to do better and build better. apart from providing for Indian jobs the factory will probably also be able to build a cheaper gun not to mention churn out skilled workers who could be absorbed into similar defense industries,while providing for the rapid modernization of Indian security forces.looks like a win-win situation to me.
 

sob

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F-INSAS is a future weapons soldier as a system program. Part of the program is manufacturing multiple caliber rifles (with grenade launchers attached to the rifle itself). So that is a separate program for the long term (4-5 years).

Also, the current INSAS rifle is a 5.56 caliber rifle. Maybe India wants to use 7.62 calibre rifles as well for COIN ops. But I dont understand why they dont develop one themselves instead of allowing the Russians to setup shop here.
AkhandBharat,

We need to debate on the need for 5.56 Caliber rifle versus 7.62 caliber frifles. Recent reports from Afganistan point out that the British troops want to revert back to the 7.62mm bullets instead of the 5.56 mm bullets as they were found to be ineffective.

Brit bullets too small to beat high on opium Taliban militants - dnaindia.com

The bullets used by British forces to fight the Taliban in Afghanistan has been dubbed too small, because soldiers claim that it requires at least five direct hits to bring down the militants who are high on opium.
According to a report, British soldiers in Afghanistan use small 5.56mm calibre rounds also tail off after 300 metres and can easily be blown off the target. Half of all fire fights in Helmand are fought between 300 and 900 metres.

Meanwhile, Taliban marksmen use powerful 7.62mm ammunition for their AK47 machine guns, The Sun reports.

The report calls for guns that take larger ammunition to replace all standard-issue SA80 rifles - which many believe were exposed as inadequate in Iraq in 2003.

Report co-author Nicholas Drummond, a strategy consultant and ex-Welsh Guards officer, secretly questioned more than 50 soldiers who have fought in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"A British soldier's rifle is not much more useful than a peashooter. He can't attack with any certainty that if he hits the enemy he will kill or incapacitate him," he said.

One soldier in 2nd Battalion, the Rifles in Helmand, shot a Taliban fighter five times and he still got up to dive for cover, researchers were told.


The study claims car doors easily stop the ammunition. It added that Javelin anti-tank missiles - at 100,000 pounds apiece are often fired at lone gunmen. Just one in four British, US and German troops has been issued with guns using 7.62mm ammo.
 

StealthSniper

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I like the Ak-100 series but again we could futher our indigenous efforts and instead of making licenced products from another country we could use our talent and create something that we can customise to our operational parameters. The INSAS might not be the greatest rifle out their but I was hoping we could create different calibre guns from our knowhow from the INSAS.
 

sandeepdg

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As and when this happens, i think it will be a death knell for the INSAS rifles. The Army already doesn't favour them, and being their biggest customer if they switch to the AK-100, then the OFB will lose a lot. I think its high time we start investing our time and money on upgrading the INSAS program to world class rifle system with multiple versions and attachments.
 

K Factor

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As and when this happens, i think it will be a death knell for the INSAS rifles. The Army already doesn't favour them, and being their biggest customer if they switch to the AK-100, then the OFB will lose a lot. I think its high time we start investing our time and money on upgrading the INSAS program to world class rifle system with multiple versions and attachments.
Who said that the Army does not favour them? Don't read too much into the over-enthusiastic seems to know all know nothing Indian media.

Please go through Brigadier Ray's comments on the INSAS.

http://www.defenceforum.in/forum/65714-post22.html
http://www.defenceforum.in/forum/65885-post27.html

He did not find anything wrong with its performance. You think some 2-pence journo writing from his desk knows better?

The reason for plastic clips/magazines not being good is that though due to the transparency, you can easily keep track of the number of bullets, BUT in the extreme cold environment of Himalayas/Kargil, the sub-zero temparatures made the plastic brittle and magazines cracked easily.
 
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This will be a blow not only to INSAS but also to TAVOR, AK'S are the rifle the world loves but is this confirmed??
 

Rahul Singh

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Kalashnikovs to be 'made in India': Russian firm
This news was flashed in news papers during DEFXPO-08...... Wonder, why Russians think, we buy these riffles. IMO in reality by this move they are deliberately trying to kill indigenous programs in order to keep their export market intact.
 

icecoolben

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According to the new defence procurement procedure, private sectors have been promised better participation. They can submit bids for competitive defence contracts by partnering foreign firms and according to indian defence industries policy guidelines. The product design is tropicalised to indian conditions. Field tests are conducted. And the best model is selected. The winner is required to take licence production and build subsequent in-house r&d to upgrade the system through its entire life time.
 

sandeepdg

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Who said that the Army does not favour them? Don't read too much into the over-enthusiastic seems to know all know nothing Indian media.

Please go through Brigadier Ray's comments on the INSAS.

http://www.defenceforum.in/forum/65714-post22.html
http://www.defenceforum.in/forum/65885-post27.html

He did not find anything wrong with its performance. You think some 2-pence journo writing from his desk knows better?

The reason for plastic clips/magazines not being good is that though due to the transparency, you can easily keep track of the number of bullets, BUT in the extreme cold environment of Himalayas/Kargil, the sub-zero temparatures made the plastic brittle and magazines cracked easily.
Kommunist, i never said that the INSAS is a bad rifle. You are right, i read that article by some 2-pence journo as you pointed out, and i think you and i both probably read the same newspaper that prints these articles. Since, i am no expert on assault rifles, i have to rely whatever is printed by the media. Now, that you have pointed out a credible source of info by someone who is highly experienced in these issues, obviously I will take that person's view as the last word ! Also, i know about the magazine part, that info has been around for a while.
But from what i know, the army itself is eager to have Kalashnikovs for its infantry regiments.
 

bhramos

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This will be a blow not only to INSAS but also to TAVOR, AK'S are the rifle the world loves but is this confirmed??
yeah really almost of all the countries in the world,
but the US produce good quality and costly AK's in the world.
 

vijayan

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This is welcomable; But indigenuous make will be far better

It is really happy to see that AKs' will be made in India, but still a product of Pure Indian Make will be far better I believe.
As some one rightly pointed out in this thread, the initial struggles are for the final victory.
:dfi-1:
 

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