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Accuracy International Arctic Warfare Magnum

Sniper Rifle

The Arctic Warfare Magnum (AWM) is a British sniper rifle. It is a product of Accuracy International company. It is a more powerful version of the Arctic Warfare sniper rifle, designed to use larger and more powerful Magnum-type cartridges. The word "Magnum" in the designation denotes the Magnum chambering. There are two main versions of this weapon, chambered for .300 Winchester Magnum and .338 Lapua Magnum ammunition. This weapon was adopted in 1996. Version chambered for .300 Winchester Magnum is in service with the Czech Republic, Germany (locally designated as the G22), and some other countries. Another version, chambered for .338 Lapua Magnum was adopted by at least 14 countries, including Ireland, Israel, Italy, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. This sniper rifle saw action during wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is a bolt-action sniper rifle. Generally the Arctic Warfare Magnum is similar to the original Arctic Warfare sniper rifle, but has a longer bolt to accommodate the larger and more powerful Magnum-type ammunition. This weapon has a stainless steel barrel. It is fed from detachable 5-round capacity magazines. The .300 Winchester Magnum (7.62x67 mm) cartridge was originally designed as a hunting ammunition. It has a flatter trajectory and significantly increased muzzle velocity, wind resistance and supersonic range than the standard NATO .308 Winchester (7.62x51 mm) cartridge. As a result it has significantly longer effective range. The Arctic Warfare Magnum rifle chambered for this ammunition has an effective range of 1 100 meters. Another version, chambered for the .338 Lapua Magnum (8.6x70 mm), is much more powerful. This cartridge was specially designed for military snipers as long-range sniping ammunition. Its effective range is comparable with that of .50 BMG (12.7x99 mm) cartridge, though the .338 Lapua Magnum develops significantly less kinetic energy and penetration. It outperforms the .300 Winchester Magnum version. The Arctic Warfare Magnum rifle, chambered for this ammunition, has an effective range of 1 500 - 1 700 meters. In some cases the .338 Lapua Magnum round can reportedly penetrate armored glass. This weapon is one of the best sniper rifles in the world. Eventually it was much more popular that the version chambered for .300 Winchester Magnum. This sniper rifle has a solid buttstock. Though there is a version with a folding buttstock stock. It is designated as the Arctic Warfare Magnum-Folding, (or AWM-F). This weapon is more comfortable to carry in a backpack. A number of operators of the Arctic Warfare Magnum use this version with a folding stock.