The VAHAN (lit. "shield") was an Armenian assault rifle designed in 1992 by Vahan S. Manasyan and produced in prototype form only.
History[]
The VAHAN was designed in 1992 by former soldier Vahan S. Manasyan, although its design can be traced back to 1952 or so as the MBC-2, designed when Manasyan was still a soldier with the Armenian Army. The rifle appears to have been designed for use by the Armenian Army, although the weapon has apparently not been tested by the Armenian government and neither has it attracted any foreign customers; the weapon has been advertised as late as 2008.[1] The weapon remains in the prototype stage as of 2020 with only one known prototype produced.
Design Details[]
The VAHAN is a delayed blowback-operated assault rifle, which is delayed using a lever. When the weapon is fired, the powder gases help blow the fired cartridge back about 1mm to give movement to an articulated accelerator located on the bolt. The bolt then rotates 90 degrees and unlocks the bolt from the receiver trunnion, with the accelerator pushing back on the rear part of the bolt as it is being accelerated to eject the case. The bolt then slams back forward using a recoil spring.[2]
The weapon is in essence an AK derivative. The weapon takes AK-74 magazines, although apparently 5.56×45mm NATO versions can be built on request. A lever in the trigger guard acts as the safety; pushing it blocks the firing mechanism and locks the bolt in the forward position. The weapon uses a two-stage trigger; a partial pull will fire single shots and a complete pull will fire the weapon fully-automatically. Optics are mounted off to the left side of the rifle, although the rifle does come with its own aperture sights. The weapon also features an AKS-74-style folding stock.[3]
Gallery[]
