Here is what makes the rifles especially deadly.
Key point: A good rifle means sufficient stopping power. It also means good bullets and good optics.
Cut back to the late 1980s. NATO troops are increasingly issued more and better body armor. Flack jackets and helmets are designed to defeat the AK-74’s standard-issue 5.45x39mm cartridge, giving NATO countries a distinct advantage on the battlefield. Soviet designers realize their ammunition needs to play catch-up. They hit the drawing board and improve the AK-74 round by adding a hardened steel core.
While this provided a quick solution for frontline troops, there was an acute need for a new weapons system for reconnaissance and special operators. The requirements were similar: penetrate NATO body armor, plus one crucial difference it had to be suppressed.
They cut through it like cheese.
Here s What You Need to Remember: The VSS Vintorez and AS Val rifles are excellent examples of two different operational requirements armor-piercing capability and suppression coming together under excellent Soviet gunsmithing. The fact that they are still issued today are a testament to their quality and indicate they will continue to be used by Russia for some time to come.
Cut back to the late 1980s. NATO troops are increasingly issued more and better body armor. Flack jackets and helmets are designed to defeat the AK-74’s standard-issue 5.45x39mm cartridge, giving NATO countries a distinct advantage on the battlefield. Soviet designers realize their ammunition needs to play catch-up. They hit the drawing board and improve the AK-74 round by adding a hardened steel core.