Article Id: dreeu12061998000689 Document Id: 0f3rsdr010qhvz Insert Date: 12/10/98 Purge Date: 12/23/99 Publish Date: 12/06/98 Publish Region: East Europe Lines: 107 Title: Federal Republic of Yugoslavia: Two New Submachine Guns Developed by Yugoslav Army Document Number: FBIS-EEU-98-340 Document Type: Daily Report Document Title: FBIS Translated Text Document Region: East Europe Document Date: 6 Dec 1998 Division: Balkan States Subdivision: Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Sourceline: AU0612201798 Belgrade Politika in Serbo-Croatian 28 Nov-1 Dec 98 p 16 AFS Number: AU0612201798 Citysource: Belgrade Politika Language: Serbo-Croatian Article Type: BFN Subslug: Milan Galovic article: "'Komit' Better Than the Israeli 'Uzi'" The special units of the Yugoslav Army, like the sabotage, the armored, or the military police units will soon be equipped with a new submachine gun, and almost every member of the infantry will be equipped with a rocket launcher, which is the replacement of the present rifle grenades. An automatic rocket launcher will be introduced as a support weapon at platoon level at the beginning of next year. The army is testing two prototypes of the submachine gun in the 99 PARA caliber, which is the precise technical name of the popular "long nine." The "Zastava Namjenski Proizvodi" Plant has developed the "Master" submachine gun, an original weapon manufactured on the model of the "Kalashnikov," which Politika has already presented to its readers. Its competitor is the "Komit" submachine gun, which has been manufactured by the experts of the Military Technical Institute. It has been developed using the famous Israeli "Uzi" as the model. "Both submachine guns are being manufactured in the prototype series, and final trials will be held at the beginning of next year. It is possible that both of them will get an appropriate certificate as an official weapon of the Yugoslav Army, but the units will most probably be equipped with only one of the two models, because production is expensive. In any case, the 'Zastava Namjenski Proizvodi' Plant will be the manufacturer of the selected submachine gun," Colonel Jovica Vuckovic explains. He is working on the development of weapons and military equipment at the Infantry Command Center of the Yugoslav Army General Staff. Both the "Master" and the "Komit" have passed the trials carried out by the Center for Technical Examinations, which included reliability and precision tests on test ranges, a test of resistance to temperatures from 30 to 50 degrees Celsius, the tests of their use in all shooting positions. The designers have been assigned the task of making a submachine gun whose design will be as simple as possible, and which will not be susceptible to holdups, and if it comes to a holdup, it should be easily repairable by the soldier himself. The "Komit" reminds one very much of the "Uzi," but it must be pointed out that Yugoslav experts have developed solutions that significantly differentiate it from the Israeli model, so that the Yugoslav Army will be equipped with an original submachine weapon. First of all, bullets are fired from the "Komit" with a closed breech, which makes for greater precision. A difference compared with the "Uzi" is also its outward appearance, specifically a folding butt, Colonel Vuckovic says. The "Komit" is being developed in three versions, that is, three sizes -- "micro," "mini," and "maxi." The smallest version is the replacement for the popular automatic gun "Skorpion," and the middle one is intended for military police armored units, whose members need small weapons because they spend a lot of time in cars. The "Komit" in the "maxi" version is conceived as a classic submachine gun, a weapon for combat within a 200-meter range. "The submachine gun developed by the Military Technical Institute weighs about 3kg, it can take up to 32 bullets, and its fires about 1,000 rounds a minute. The barrel, the butt, and the grip are made of high-resistant plastic," Colonel Vuckovic explains. This submachine gun can be equipped with a silencer and a laser sight, which makes it possible to find a target precisely also from the side. The hits deviate less than 24 centimeters at a distance of 50 meters. With the introduction of the 40-mm caliber submachine grenade launcher the combat capacity of soldiers will increase significantly. This model is being developed according to the Russian model "Kastyor." It is a weapon that is installed under the barrel of an automatic rifle and used in combat against infantry. "We also discussed the US Mk-203 launcher, but we decided to use the Russian GP-25 "Kastyor" as the model, since is used together with the "Kalashnikov," which is compatible with our M-70 rifle," Colonel Vuckovic said. The sub-barrel grenade launcher will replace the present rifle grenades, since it is more efficient and practical than they are. Instead of four rifle grenades, a soldier will carry eight 40-mm caliber grenades in his bag, which will be no bigger than two cartons of cigarettes. During the next year the Yugoslav Army will be armed with the 30-mm caliber submachine grenade launcher, which is being developed according to the Russian model AGS-17 "Plamya". If direct fire is used, this weapon is effective at distances up to 1,700 meters, and in the case of a mortar-like fire up to 700 meters. It can destroy light-armored vehicles such as armed personal carriers or vans. The launcher is mounted on a three-foot stand, 29 grenades can be loaded into the ammunition box, and it is operated by three soldiers -- a marksman, his assistant, and an ammunition carrier -- the latter of whom need not necessarily be present, but he makes the operation easier. THIS ARTICLE MAY CONTAIN COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. COPYING AND DISSEMINATION IS PROHIBITED WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE COPYRIGHT OWNERS.