US sniper rifles: description and characteristics

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:54

Snipers are considered the elite of the ground forces. According to experts, one accurate shot can drastically change the course of the battle. The target of professional military snipers are enemy officers, machine gunners, grenade launchers, signalmen and operators of anti-tank systems. Accurate sniper fire can not only thin out the enemy ranks, but also undermine the morale, which is important during the battle. Modern US sniper rifles embody the latest technology and innovative design solutions. With the help of these rifle units, you can even “remove” the enemy from a distance of 2 thousand meters. You will find information about which sniper rifles are used in the US Army in this article.

Armalite AR-50

It is a US single-shot high-caliber sniper rifle. The shooting model contains a heavy barrel, on which a multi-channel compensator is installed. The handguard for comfortable use was equipped with adjustable bipods, which the shooter, if necessary, can set to a convenient height. Rifle with pistol grip and lightweighttactical removable butt, the basis for the design of which was the M16 assault rifle. For transportation of weapons, special soft or hard cases are provided. The dispersion index from a distance of 914 m is 20 cm. An optical sight is included with the rifle. There are no open sights in the design of this model. Shooting is carried out with cartridges of caliber 12, 7x99 mm. The total length of the rifle is 151.1 cm, the barrel is 78.8 cm. The weapon weighs no more than 15 kg.

M2010

This US sniper rifle is based on the M24 rifle, which was widely used by the US military in Iraq and Afghanistan. After completing a number of combat missions, their careful analysis, the United States military command turned to gunsmiths with an order to create a rifle for more powerful ammunition. As a result, they designed a rifle unit for the Winchester Magnum 300. In addition, this model is equipped with a muzzle brake and a silent firing device. Before giving the sniper rifle into service with the United States, the developers tested its accuracy. As it turned out, the accuracy of the battle is not less than 1 MOA. However, the M2010 is not without its shortcomings. According to experts, the minus of the rifle is the formation of a too bright flash during the shot. In addition, due to the use of powerful ammunition, the M2010 has a very strong recoil.

Chey Tac M200 Intervention

High-caliber US sniper rifle. Reloading weapons is carried out manually. The shooting model is equipped with additional options: a computer with connected sensors(humidity, wind and temperature sensors), thanks to which the target is hit at a distance of 2 thousand meters. The rifle weighs up to 12 kg. The production of one rifle unit costs the United States 50 thousand dollars.

Barrett M82

Is a sniper system that gained wide popularity among the US military during Operation Desert Storm. Shooting from a self-loading rifle is carried out with the most powerful cartridge of 12.7 x 99 mm NATO sample. The same ammunition is intended for the M2 Browning heavy machine gun. A rifle with a short stroke of the barrel, on which a muzzle brake with an original design is installed. The weight of the weapon is 15 kg. The accuracy of the battle varies from 1.5 to 2 MOA. Due to the fact that with the help of this rifle, enemy lightly armored vehicles, radars, unexploded shells and mines are effectively affected, this model is also called “anti-materiel” by the military.

M24

The US used a Remington 700 to design this sniper rifle. The 609mm barrel is made of stainless steel, which is subject to additional processing during the manufacturing process. Shooting is carried out with NATO 7.62 mm ammunition. For the barrel channel, a 5R drilling developed by Remington with a rifling pitch of 286 mm is provided. If necessary, the butt plate of the rifle can be adjusted by extending it by 7 cm. The weapon is equipped with a Leupold-Stewens M3 Ultra optical sight with a scale,allowing to determine the range of the target and a compensator, the task of which is to take into account the decrease in the trajectory of the fired projectile. The rifle is adapted to fire M118SB sniper cartridges. If the shooter plans to use other cartridges, then pre-zeroing is required for the M24.

M40

The Remington 40XB rifle served as the basis for the creation of this shooting model. The target from the M40 is struck by NATO cartridges 7, 62 x 51 mm. Automation works at the expense of a longitudinally sliding rotary shutter. The sniper rifle is equipped with a 5-round box magazine. The rifle comes with an optical sight. According to experts, the rate of dispersion of bullets from 300 meters does not exceed 1 minute of arc. Having used up one clip, the bullets fall into a circle, the diameter of which is 8 cm.

M110

Produced by the American arms company Knight's Armament Company. As a model, the designers used the Mk11 sniper weapon. They created the M110 with the aim of completely replacing the obsolete M24 rifle in the future. An XM150 optical sight was installed on the M110, with a variable magnification of 3-10X and a Mil-Dot reticle. The possibility of using night vision sights AN / PVC-17 is not excluded. At the same time, as experts assure, it is not necessary to shoot at night.

It is enough to set a day sight in front of him. The weapon works due to gas-operated automatics when powdergases are discharged into the body of the shutter frame. This design among professionals is known as the Stoner system. The sniper weapon comes with two scopes (night and day), detachable adjustable bipods, five magazines, pouches for them, a gun sling, one silencer, rifle care tools, a carrying case, soft gun and camping cases and instructions for use.