RPK-16

The Kalashnikov RPK-16 is a Russian squad automatic weapon, a light machine gun developed to succeed the Soviet-era RPK family. It was unveiled at a Moscow exhibition in September 2016 and is intended to replace the RPK-74, a light machine gun derived from the AK-74 assault rifle and introduced in 1974. Like its predecessor it fires the 5.45x39mm intermediate cartridge, which gives the infantry squad sustained suppressive fire while letting each soldier carry more ammunition than a full-power rifle round would allow. The weapon weighs about six kilograms and is fed from a 30-round detachable box magazine or a 96-round drum. Overall length is about 1,075 millimeters, and two barrel lengths of 370 and 550 millimeters are offered to suit the mission. Its stated maximum effective range is about 800 meters. Picatinny rail sections on the receiver and forend take optics, a foregrip or a bipod, the muzzle carries a slotted flash hider, and the stock is collapsible. The maker is the Kalashnikov Group, part of the Rostec state corporation, and the source dates the type to 2018.