Specialists will increase the weapon’s accuracy with new sights
MOSCOW, June 15.
/TASS/. The Bazalt Research and Production Association (part of the Techmash
Group within the state tech corporation Rostec) is working on upgrading the
RPG-7V2 grenade launcher to boost its firing accuracy, Bazalt Design Bureau
Chief Nikolai Sereda told reporters on Tuesday.
"The RPG-7V2 has
already been accepted for service but an upgrade, even for this weapon, is
currently underway under a contract with Russia’s Defense Ministry to boost its
firing accuracy," he said.
Specialists will
increase the grenade launcher’s accuracy with new sights. Today, the RPG-7V2
boasts an accuracy of around 40-50 cm per 150 meters of the direct fire range,
Sereda noted.
"There is the
need to fire to longer ranges, up to a kilometer. And it must hit a tank at
such a distance. Currently, the accuracy at such ranges goes beyond the tank’s
dimensions. That is why a need has emerged to increase this accuracy to get the
capability to hit the target and strike the tank even at a distance of up to 1
km. The firing accuracy is up to five meters," he said.
The legendary Soviet
RPG-7 grenade launcher will celebrate its 60th anniversary on June 15, 2021.
The work on the anti-tank weapon began in 1958. On June 15, 1961, an order was
signed to accept the grenade launcher for service together with the PG-7V
high-explosive charge. Today the RPG-7 grenade launcher is operational in over
80 countries of the world. Many countries also serial-produce both this grenade
launcher and its munitions.
Russian tech firm
launches serial production of latest rounds for RPG-7V2 grenade launchers
The Bazalt Research
and Production Association has launched the serial production of the latest
rounds for the RPG-7V2 grenade launcher with the unconventional method of
striking enemy manpower, Sereda said.
"Another
munition for the RPG-7V2 has now been developed. It has the O1 designation [the
serial production], has passed state trials, and uses unconventional methods of
striking and disabling enemy manpower," he said.
Despite its long
service life, the legendary PRG-7 grenade launcher has bright prospects, he
said.
"I believe that
this grenade launcher has a big future at least for the next 30 years, which is
linked with upgrading the grenade launcher itself and developing ever new
rounds that enhance it," he stressed.
For his part, head of
the Defense Ministry’s 204th military representative office Colonel Leonid
Maslennikov emphasized that the RPG-7 with its new rounds was a
third-generation grenade launcher.
"The new rounds
have boosted the scope of the grenade launcher’s application. Today these are
not only anti-tank munitions but also thermobaric and fragmentation charges
that strike both the enemy’s armor and manpower," he said.
Rostec to develop
more efficient munitions for RPG-7 grenade launcher
A new series of
rounds 30% more efficient than previous munitions will be ready for the RPG-V2
grenade launcher in two years, the head of the Bazalt Design Bureau said.
"As for rounds,
more advanced munitions 20-30% more efficient than their predecessors are
undoubtedly being created for the modified RPG-7V2 grenade launcher. A whole
series of rounds is being developed. The timeframe [for the work’s completion]
is at the earliest possible date, and I believe that we can offer it in two or
three years," he noted.
Specialists are
working on boosting the munitions’ armor-piercing, thermobaric and
fragmentation effect, Sereda said.
"More effective
rounds will be capable of hitting a really full range of targets on the
battlefield: from openly deployed manpower to most advanced armored vehicles,
including those with reactive armor," he said.
The munitions for the
RPG-7 grenade launcher available today are capable of striking a whole range of
targets: from enemy tanks and helicopters to manpower. The RPG-7 grenade
launcher has actually turned from an anti-tank weapon into a more versatile one
for striking various targets on the battlefield, he stressed.
Source: ITAR-TASS
15-06-2021
