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Turkish defense company Machine and Chemical Industry (MKE) produced two new sniper rifles within one year to meet security force requirements, according to the Ihlas News Agency (IHA).
MKE-408, developed by MKE, emerged as Türkiye's longest-range sniper rifle, while the semi-automatic sniper rifle KNT-859 was revealed for the first time.
International embargoes and external dependencies made weapons development using domestic and national capabilities more critical than ever, with MKE ending up being tasked to develop Türkiye's longest-range sniper rifle, MKE-408, and semi-automatic sniper rifle, KNT-859, using domestic and national resources.
The rifles represent Türkiye's commitment to indigenous weapons development amid pressure from international sanctions and the need for self-sufficiency.
The KNT-859 sniper rifle operates as a semi-automatic system in 8.59-millimeter caliber, making it Türkiye's first semi-automatic sniper rifle of this type, according to MKE Weapon Factory R&D Director Cengizhan Turk speaking to IHA on Monday.
"Our weapon features a 1500-meter effective range and operates with a short-stroke gas piston system with a rotary breech locking mechanism," Turk said.
"The weapon has a 27-inch barrel with a maximum dispersion of one Minute of Angle (MOA). Weighing 7.2 kilograms, it carries a 10-round magazine capacity," he added.
The rifle includes a gas adjustment system allowing suppressor use. It features a multi-functional bipod system providing more precise shooting capability for users, an adjustable trigger system, an adjustable cheek rest, and an adjustable stock base system with a telescopic adjustable stock.
"While our weapon is not produced elsewhere, it has only a few equivalents worldwide," Turk said.
Turk said the development concluded in a short timeframe, noting, "Design processes began in early 2024 and were completed within approximately six months.
After design completion, prototype production began in mid-2024. By year-end 2024, prototypes were completed and performance testing began. Pilot production began and was completed in early 2025," Turk said.
Mehmet Sertac Karagoz, serving as a senior design engineer, discussed MKE-408, Türkiye's longest-range sniper rifle.
"The machine and chemical industry operates in an advanced position in the weapons sector.
Building on experience from previous weapons such as the Bora-12, KN-12, and KNT sniper rifles, we developed Türkiye's longest-range sniper rifle, the MKE-408. The designation 408 comes from the caliber designation, he noted.
"The weapon uses 408 caliber ammunition, or 10.36 millimeter ammunition. With this ammunition and the weapon's design, it is a sniper rifle capable of precise shooting up to 2,200 meters," Karagoz said.
The rifle weighs only 9.5 kilograms, distinguishing it from similar rifles worldwide.
"This weight provides an excellent value for this caliber and range," Karagoz said.
Design improvements in the muzzle brake significantly reduced recoil. "This allows users to conduct shooting comfortably without losing sight of the target or being disturbed by weapon recoil," Karagoz said.
"MKE-408 is 100% designed by the Machine and Chemical Industry Weapon Factory and is 100 percent producible within our own factory capabilities," Karagoz said.
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