Winners of the competition were awarded in Kyiv on October 22. This year, the organizers received 226 applications from 26 companies and organizations. A lot of them were submitted by ATO participants. In the end, 39 best projects were picked out. The winners received cups, diplomas, and money prizes. On the awarding day, an exhibit of the military and dual-use goods was held at the Central House of Officers. Among the participants were both winners of the contest and expert researchers and developers.
Colonel Volodymyr Sheiko, commander of military unit A4558, received two awards in the nominations related to utilization of military equipment and improvement of small arms and ammunition. Colonel Sheiko has a record of more than a hundred patents and holds the title of Merited Rationalizer of Ukraine. ATO troops already use (and are very much pleased with) the Mosin rifle, which Sheiko and his colleagues have upgraded to the sniper rifle. “Our troops have not enough sniper rifles. And if a shooter has to work in the range of 300 meters, he could use the Mosin rifle,” says Sheiko. “We pick out rifles with barrels of good quality, test them, improve them, and attach the right rear sight. The rifles to be upgraded were picked out after tests at the shooting range. Those with satisfactory technical qualities were upgraded for snipers. So, the Mosin rifle, which is often used in the Ukrainian army, can be also used by an infantry sniper. We are not talking about snipers from special units, with a shooting range of one kilometer. But you can hit a target in the range of 300 to 500 meters, and with high quality ammunition, 600 up to 800 meters.”
Army inventors have been competing since 2005. Each year the number of applications grows. Says one of the organizers of the contest Volodymyr Komarov, chief of the patent unit at the Central Research Institute for Arms and Military Equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine: “Weapons have always been there, and their improvement is an ongoing process. Most of this year’s projects were for air force and armored vehicles, as well as for small arms. We send the most interesting inventions to plants and ask them to look at them. It is not that a soldier can improve a machine gun just in his caserne. But a plant can. A lot of items that were presented at the exhibit or took part in the competition are now in the ATO zone or will be there in the near future. One of the drones, presented by the National Aviation University, had been tested at the front line. Inventors improve equipment and come up with new models. But it is difficult to create something new now due to the lack of resources. It is easier and more expedient to improve an existing model.”
