Arash anti-materiel rifle

Arash (Persian: آرش)^[3] is an Iranian 20mm semi-automatic anti-materiel sniper rifle. This weapon is used by Iran and Hezbollah, and is named for the mythical Arash the Archer.

Arash Anti-Materiel Rifle
Arash held by an IRGC soldier
Type	Anti-materiel rifle
Place of origin	Iran
Service history
Used by	Iran and Hezbollah
Production history
Designer	2011
Produced	2013–present
No. built	1200
Specifications
Mass	20 kilograms (44 lb) with magazine
Length	180 centimetres (71 in)
Cartridge	Probably 20×102mm, HEI[1]
Action	semi-automatic
Muzzle velocity	1050 m/s[2]
Maximum firing range	3000 m[2]
Feed system	Box magazine
Sights	Telescopic, BORS-like[1]

Features

Arash anti-materiel rifle

The Arash sniper rifle is a semi-automatic weapon with rotating bolt and gas operated reloading. It has an eight riflings straight back from left to right.^{[clarification needed]} It is 180 cm-long weapon, and is equipped with optical cameras. It is typically used as a shoulder-fired weapon. The rifle weighs between 18 and 20 kilograms, and fires 20 mm ammunition.^[2][4][5] It is fired in a standing position with a forward bipod and the gun resting over the user's shoulder, similar to an RPG. The stock is positioned midway along the length of the weapon with the pistol grip just forward of it. It is arranged in a bullpup configuration with the trigger assembly forward of the magazine, which is loaded behind the user's back, making reloading awkward. The recoil of firing a 20 mm round is mitigated by a huge cone-shaped quadruple baffle muzzle brake and the design of the gun which makes it pivot on the operator's shoulder. The scope appears to use a copy of the Barrett Optical Ranging System (BORS), which calculates atmospheric conditions to determine the rifle's optimal position to take an accurate shot. The position of the scope is relatively high, making it difficult to fire the rifle in the prone position, so the Iranians operate it using two-man motorcycle teams to perform "shoot and scoot" tactics.^[1][6] The Arash can be used to target hostile helicopters at a range of approximately 2,000 meters, and has the ability to be used against ground and armored targets as well as enemy trenches.^[7]

Users

•  Iran
•  Hezbollah
• Liwa Assad Allah al-Ghalib fi al-Iraq wa al-Sham

See also

• M82A2 (Shouldered 12.7mm bullpup meant to use against Helicopters)
• Anzio 20mm rifle
• Baher 23mm
• Denel NTW-20
• RT-20 (rifle)
• Vidhwansak
• List of anti-aircraft weapons
• Anti-aircraft warfare

References

1. Iran's New Arash 20mm Shoulder Fired Anti-Material Rifle (With Barrett BORS Clone). The Firearm Blog. 7 March 2013.
2. shafaf. The most deadly sniper corps.
3. Slowik, Max. "Iran's 'Arash' 20mm Anti-Materiel Shoulder-Mounted Rifle (VIDEO)". Guns.com. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
4. farhangiannews. Hunting helicopters + Pictures.
5. diyarmirza. Destroy isis with sniper Arash + Videos.
6. Arash: Iran's Really Big Sniper Rifle That Fires One Massive Bullet. The National Interest. 15 May 2020.
7. "Farsnews". en.farsnews.com. Retrieved 2016-03-24.