On Wednesday, President Vladimir Putin urged his country’s arms manufacturers to produce weapons that are superior to those of possible adversaries.
“Our past successes are no reason to sit back and relax,” he said during a visit to the Kalashnikov gun maker. “We must constantly strive to stay on top of current demands.” He added that many of Russia’s legendary weapons were “no longer able to make the grade.”
Su-27, a Soviet/Russian fourth-generation multirole all-weather supermaneuverable fighter jet designed by Sukhoi. It was declared one of the best combat aircraft of the 20th century according to an online poll by Flight International, a global aerospace weekly published in the UK.
The Kalashnikov automatic rifle, adopted in 1949 as the AK-47. The AK is currently in service with armed forces in 106 countries. There are an estimated 70 million to 105 million Kalashnikov assault rifles of various modifications in the world. The AK-47 was top of the list of the most significant inventions of the 20th century according to a poll by France’s Liberation magazine, ahead of nuclear weapons and space technology.
Mi-8, a medium multirole cargo and passenger helicopter. It is used for a variety of missions all over the world. The Mi-8 is a world leader in the number of its modifications: over 100. In 1964-69, seven world records were set with the use of this helicopter.
The S-300, a family of surface-to-air missile defense systems capable of effectively engaging targets at different altitudes with a range of up to 300 kilometers. It is the first multichannel system that can track up to six targets and aim up to 12 missiles on those targets. The system is highly mobile and takes five minutes to deploy.
Pantsir-S1, a self-propelled combined surface-to-air missile and antiaircraft artillery weapon system. It can engage targets at altitudes from zero to 15 km and ranges from 200 meters to 20 km (12 miles).
Ka-52 Alligator, a new-generation all-weather attack helicopter. It is designed to engage ground targets and low-speed flying targets. The helicopter is armed with a 30-mm cannon, Vikhr (Whirlwind) laser-guided missiles, rockets, including S-24s, and bombs. For improved pilot survivability the Ka-52 is fitted with a K-37-800 ejection seat. Before the rocket in the ejection seat deploys, the rotor blades are blown away by explosive charges in the rotor disc and the canopy is similarly jettisoned.
The RPG-7, a portable, unguided, shoulder-launched, antitank rocket-propelled grenade launcher, designed to engage tanks, self-propelled artillery systems and other amored vehicles, as well as concealed combatants.
The R-36M, a strategic third-generation Soviet missile system with the heavy two-stage liquid-propellant silo-launched intercontinental ballistic missile 15А14. In its time it was considered to be the most powerful of its kind in the world.
