Kalashnikov Looks Beyond Small Arms

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The recently re-branded Russian defense group Kalashnikov Concern is reportedly looking to diversify its product line beyond small arms.

The company is Russia's biggest arms-maker and the name is known worldwide thanks to the popularity of the AK-47 assault rifle.

The firm was created in 2013 by the merging of the Izhmash Industrial Association and Izhevsk Mechanical Plant (the former remains the brand name for sporting rifles).

As IHS reported on Wednesday, the company plans to acquire missile-maker NPO Precision Systems and Technologies:

The acquisition -- which remains subject to government approval -- was announced on 12 April.

NPO Precision Systems and Technologies is a developer of short-range missiles and airborne and ground-based anti-aircraft systems.

Kalashnikov described the move as consistent with its strategy of diversifying its interests by 2020.


Russian firearm designs have turned up in bigger numbers at U.S. gun shows, thanks in part to a partnership between Kalashnikov Concern and RWC Group LLC, based in Tullytown, Pennsylvania, which operates under the brand name Kalashnikov USA.

For example, at this year's SHOT Show in Las Vegas, Kalashnikov USA displayed a new rifle design, called the AK-Alfa, presumably named after the Russian special forces Alpha Group.

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