SADU ASSAULT RIFLE
TAVOR and VEPR just mated...?
At the "Weapons and Security expo 2008", the same Ukrainian company responsible for the 5'45x39mm VEPR prototype bull-pup assault rifle has introduced the enhanced "Vulcan" rifle, which bears extreme similarities with both VEPR and the Israeli IWI "Tavor" rifle system. The license for the manufacture of the "Tavor" rifles themselves, and of both the Negev light machinegun and the GALAT'Z ("Galil Sniper") marksman rifle, have been granted by Israel Weapon Industries, Ltd. to RPC Fort of Ukraine. Yuriy Lutsenko, head of Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, announced on October 1st, 2008 that the RPC Fort -manufactured TAVOR rifles will enter service with the Ukrainian military and police special units. The new "Vulcan" rifle, chamberable in 5'45x39mm, 7'62x39mm and 5'56x45mm, being more advanced than the VEPR prototype, is more likely to gain the acceptance that the VEPR couldn't (and this led to the demise of the project). Hopes of the National Space Agency of Ukraine, tasked to the VEPR/Vulcan rifle project, is that the "Vulcan" may be developed to become the standard assault rifle for regular forces; manufacture and distribution of the Vulcan may also be cheaper than widespread acceptance and distribution of the Tavor, since the "Vulcan" still uses several AK-47/AK-74 parts in its construction. The "Vulcan" rifle is also significantly more versatile than its VEPR predecessor, featuring an integrated Picatinny rail for optics and NATO-standard attachments, and a specific flash hider for quick-attach/detach sound suppressor. The "Vulcan" rifle also doesn't features any longer the AK bolt with cocking handle located in correspondence with the ejection window, which resulted in a hassle for left-handed operation.
Photographs and information from: Pierangelo Tendas
Website by:
E-Image Agency
