US concerned about Russian sniper rifle that can destroy targets 2,000 meters away

The 68-page document, titled “The New Russian Warfare Doctrine,” from the U.S. Army, says Russia typically deploys three layers of snipers on the battlefield. The first two layers pose a serious challenge to the enemy’s best shooters, but it is the outer ring at ranges of over 1,800 meters that Russian marksmen operate. Now, they are even more dangerous with the T-5000 sniper rifle.

"Russian snipers are equipped with modern weapons with higher accuracy than any shooters that US soldiers have faced in the past 15 years, they cannot be dealt with by conventional positioning and head-on shooting tactics," the document warned.

According to military expert David Hambling, before the T-5000 was born, the main sniper rifle of the Russian army was the Dragunov SVD, a weapon with good quality but limited range. While the American McMillian TAC-338 can take down targets at a distance of 1,550 m, the Dragunov SVD only has an effective range of about 800 m.

The T-5000 has an effective range of over 2,000 meters thanks to its ability to use modern ammunition such as .300 Winchester Magnum and .338 Lapua Magnum, replacing the 7.62x54 mm ammunition of the Dragunov SVD. In 2012, Russian special forces used the T-5000 to win an international sniper competition.

Orsis T-5000 sniper rifle during an international competition. Photo: Vitaly Kuzmin.

The T-5000 features low recoil, adjustable trigger weight, a sighting system, and a barrel coated with a secret material to ensure accuracy.

With the help of the Russian Federation of Precision Shooting, Orsis applied a variety of cutting-edge technologies to create the T-5000 series in 2011. The company is equipped with a unique range of tools and equipment, including machines for shaping metal into precise shapes, digitally controlled furnaces, a cryogenic chamber and the only grinding machine equipped with a video measuring system in Russia.

Thanks to its high-quality materials, modern ammunition and sights, the T-5000 is much more accurate than older Russian sniper rifles. A sniper can shoot through a 2.5 cm diameter circle at a distance of 185 m, as well as ensure hitting targets at ranges over 1,880 m.

Marco Vorobiev, a former Soviet special forces officer, said the T-5000 could compete with any sniper rifle in the world. He asserted that it was exquisitely designed and produced in small numbers, more like a custom-made rifle than a mass-produced model.

Russian forces such as the Federal Security Service (FSS), the Federal Protective Service (FPS) and the National Guard have ordered batches of T-5000s. The delivery date is expected to be 2020, but some units will receive them this year.

In a modern combat environment, being pinned down by a sniper might not seem like much of a problem. However, new Russian doctrine suggests that a sniper team can pin down an enemy in a certain area, allowing rocket artillery to target and destroy them in minutes.

US Army documents recommend that soldiers retreat immediately when attacked by Russian snipers. If they delay, they will easily be exhausted by Russian sniper and artillery fire. The Pentagon estimates that each such encounter will result in two American soldiers killed, while the Russian snipers will face no retaliation.

Russian sniper hits target from a distance of more than 4 km

The US Army is researching improved tactics to deal with this new threat, such as using smoke grenades, equipping soldiers with special weapons, or using drones to detect and attack enemy snipers.

However, the T-5000 is just the beginning. Russia is developing a more powerful sniper rifle called the "Sumrak" (Twilight), capable of shooting down targets at distances of up to 4,200 meters. Although it depends on many natural factors on the battlefield, the new Russian sniper rifles have redefined the "enemy's safe distance", and are likely to become a new terror on the battlefield, expert Hambling emphasized.

According to VNE