Armament Research Services is proud to release the second publication in our Arms & Munitions Brief series, The Russian GM-94 Grenade Launcher. Authored by former Russian army officer and small arms historian Maxim Popenker, with ARES Director N.R. Jenzen-Jones, Arms & Munitions Brief No. 2 gives an overview of the GM-94’s development history, technical characteristics, and employment
Galen Wright Iran commemorated the start of the Iran-Iraq War on September 22 with military parades across the country. This year, a private photographer affiliated with the military.ir forum provided a detailed look at one model of self-loading rifle favoured by the Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), the Norinco CQ. The CQ is a copy of the US M16A1 developed in
The ARES Team with ‘Improguns’ Along with the recently documented ‘R9-Arms’ pistol, another previously-unknown 9mm submachine gun (‘machine pistol’) has been seized in significant numbers from organised crime groups in various European countries, most notably Italy and the United Kingdom. These new weapons are deceptively marked ‘Intratec TEC-9’, which is inscribed to a professional standard. Given that
Update 150926: A release yesterday from US CENTCOM has stated that the image of the rifle was taken while in the possession of Division 30, making it unlikely that it had in fact been seized by Jabhat al-Nusra. However, CENTCOM did confirm earlier reports that claimed some US-trained and equipped fighters had surrendered materiel to Jabhat al-Nusra, including
Jonathan Ferguson ARES Research Report No. 3 – ‘Raising Red Flags‘ documents the arms and munitions employed during the ongoing Ukrainian conflict. Amongst the small arms and light weapons documented, we identified (p.40-41) a Chinese spring-powered air rifle as a ‘Norinco B3-1’. This is incorrect. The air gun in question is fitted with a distinctive side-folding shoulder stock with plastic
N.R. Jenzen-Jones A video recorded during fighting near Maliha, Syria, in June 2015 shows a Syrian rebel fighter armed with a French APILAS (armour-piercing infantry light arm system). The APILAS is a single-shot, disposable 112 mm rocket-assisted recoilless anti-tank weapon, first issued to French forces in the mid-1980s and later in service with some 15
Kenton Fulmer Recent photos posted on social media channels have illustrated the proliferation of an unmarked variant of the Russian TM-57 AT blast mine, as well as an escalation in the sophistication of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in the Yemeni conflict. This cache of munitions (documented here in early August) is observed to contain over 150 examples of the
Boris Karpa The Ukrainian conflict has resulted in significant numbers of improvised armoured fighting vehicles (AFV) being employed by both Ukrainian security forces and pro-Russian separatist forces. Generally, improvised combat vehicles are manufactured from poor quality components, built by amateurs with no engineering training, under terrible conditions and equipped with ill-fitted weapons and armour. This particular vehicle appears different,
Armament Research Services is proud to release the first in our Field Guide series of publications, aimed at providing researchers, investigators, and other practitioners with useful reference information on a particular topic. Field Guide No. 1 – Identifying & Tracing the FN Herstal FAL Rifle, authored by ARES Director N.R. Jenzen-Jones and Damien Spleeters of Conflict Armament Research, focuses on
George Zahaczewsky Recent photos taken in Aden, Yemen, and provided to ARES by the photographer, show detonator assemblies for the No. 36 series Mills Bomb. These were amongst a variety of munitions left behind by Houthi rebels as they retreated in recent weeks. The container depicted in the images appears to be Canadian in origin
