In a record-beating stunt, a marksman defied bad weather and total darkness, hitting all the targets, using a Russian made long-barreled extra-powerful sniper rifle at a distance as far as two kilometers.
Made by a Russian firearms company Lobaev Arms, the SVLK-14 anti-materiel rifle was put to the extreme test this week. The ultra-high velocity firearm was equipped with a passive night vision scope that allows one to see in the dark but doesn’t illuminate the target.
“We want to set a record for the longest night shot, without any lighting ... by a laser or other sources of light,” Vladimir Lobaev, the weapon’s designer, told Ruptly video agency ahead of the shooting session.
Further complicating the test, bad weather descended on the firing range, worsening visibility and muddying the scope. According to Lobaev, the dark was total – neither moon nor stars were visible at the time.
Still, Sergey Shmakov, the marksman, managed to do the job firing five rounds that hit the target set up 1,920 meters away. Though eye-catching, the record was not officially registered – but the company doesn’t want to stop there.
The team will gradually increase the distance, the sniper revealed. “In the spring, we’ll make it to 2,300m, then 2,500 or 2,600m, and then 6 kilometers. That is, we will go forward,” Shmakov said.