Russia’s Kalashnikov gunmaker to boost output of aircraft guns for fighter jets

MOSCOW, October 3. /TASS/. The Kalashnikov Group is ramping up the production of aircraft guns for Russian fighter jets amid the increased order for these weapons this year, the firearms manufacturer’s press office reported on Thursday.
“The Kalashnikov Group is building up the production of GSh-301 aircraft guns. With the multiple growth of the order volumes compared to 2023, the aircraft gun output plan is being fulfilled exactly within the established timeframe this year. Currently, the GSh-301 makes part of the armament of MiG-29, MiG-29K/MiG-29KUB, Su-27, Su-30 and Su-35 fighters and Su-34 frontline bombers,” the Kalashnikov press office said on its Telegram channel.
Over the period of their active use in the area of the special military operation in Ukraine, GSh-301 aircraft guns produced by the Kalashnikov Group have not received any complaints from the customer, it stressed.
The GSh-301 single-barrel aircraft cannon was developed by outstanding weapons engineers Vasily Grazev and Arkady Shipunov at the Tula Design Bureau of Instrument-Making. The aircraft gun was launched into serial production at the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant (now the Kalashnikov Group) in 1983 after it was accepted for service to outfit combat aircraft.
The aircraft gun has been dubbed the Ballerina for its lightness and high rate of fire: it outshines rivals in terms of precision, accuracy and rate of fire. Most domestic and foreign military experts say that the GSh-301 aircraft gun remains one of the world’s best weapons in its category.