Astarta 12.7-millimeter sniper rifle. © Georgy Sultanov/TASS
Russia’s High-Precision Systems holding company unveiled a brand new 12.7 mm sniper rifle dubbed the MTs-572 Astarta on August 18.
Vitaly Bulgakov, deputy managing director of High-Precision Systems’s KBP JSC, told reporters on the sideline of the Army-2023 forum, where the Astarta was showcased, that the new sniper rifle has demonstrated unique accuracy during tests.
“During our first tests this rifle showed groups of five shots that hit a tiny area of 1.5 square centimeters. From a distance of 100 meters. This is unique. The bullet’s caliber is 12.7 mm. In other words, it’s like all bullets flew into one tiny hole. One after another,” TASS quoted the executive as saying.
Bulgakov stressed that the Astarta was many times more accurate than the American-made Barrett sniper rifle.
“The rifle is semi-automatic, but at the same time it boasts high accuracy. The Barrett rifle showed an average shot grouping of 6 centimeters. That is, we have surpassed the Americans many times over,” he stated.
Russian special operation forces will be the first to get the new sniper rifle, according to the executive, who didn’t clarify if the rifle will be used in the special military operation zone in Ukraine.
“We are focusing on specialists; it is not needed in the army at a large scale,” Bulgakov said.
The executive added that series production of the Astarte is planned to be launched by the end of this year and about a thousand of such rifles will be produced.
The Army-2023 International Military-Technical Forum is currently being held at the Patriot Congress and Exhibition Center, the Alabino training ground and the Kubinka airfield outside Moscow. Over 60 countries have confirmed the participation of their official military delegations in the forum.
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