Wow, All South Korean Army Infantry Units Are Now Equipped With Sniper Rifles

The ROK Armed Forces Prajuit uses the K14 in winter training. (Source Wikimedia Commons ROK Armed Forces)

JAKARTA - South Korea claims to have completed the distribution of the K14 sniper rifle and sight binoculars to increase the capabilities of all infantry units in South Korea.

This was stated by South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) on Tuesday, January 26 local time. The completion of this distribution marks the completion of the sniper rifle development project which began in 2012.

"The K-14 rifle developed with domestic technology was first used for special forces in 2013 and was distributed to infantry battalions in 2017," DAPA said.

The K14 sniper rifle is a bolt-action rifle capable of hitting targets from a distance of 800 meters to 1 kilometer with high accuracy and little recoil. The bullets are of the 308 Winchester type, with a standard 5-round magazine system and an optional up to 10 rounds for one magazine.

The daytime telescope can find targets within a distance of 1.5 to 2.5 kilometers. Meanwhile, at night, the observation uses a thermal camera to find objects within a distance of 0.5 to 1.5 km.

"With the deployment of sniper rifles and observation devices in infantry units, the combat capabilities of our first line troops have increased considerably. However, we will continue to upgrade our arsenal with the latest technology," said a DAPA official.

K14 Sniper Rifle (Source: Wikimedia Commons / Mztourist)

To note, the sniper rifle or sniper rifle is one of the needs that is being discussed internally in the South Korean military. For decades, South Korea did not have a standard sniper rifle for their needs.

In the 1970s, the South Korean military used the M1C or M1D Garand. In the 1990s, efforts to equip K2 assault rifles with British Trilux-style telescopes did not answer the existing needs.

To meet the needs of sniper rifles, the South Korean military imported a number of models from abroad. It was only in 2011 that South Korea began to take the development of a sniper rifle according to their needs seriously.

Through S&T Daewoo which is now S&T Motiv, the XK14 prototype was developed which was carried out for two years plus one year of evaluation by the Republic of Korea (ROK) Armed Forces.

Until finally in 2012 XK14 passed the test and received certification for use by ROK Armed Forces, in December 2014 to be precise. The official name used by ROK Armed Forces is K14.