The SSG 69 (''Scharfschützengewehr 69'', literally Sharpshooter Rifle 69) is a
bolt-action
Bolt-action is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the bolt via a bolt handle, which is most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the weapon (as most users are right-handed).
Most bolt-action ...
sniper rifle produced by
Steyr Mannlicher that serves as the standard sniper rifle for the
Austrian Army
The Austrian Armed Forces (german: Bundesheer, lit=Federal Army) are the combined military forces of the Republic of Austria.
The military consists of 22,050 active-duty personnel and 125,600 reservists. The military budget is 0.74% of nati ...
.
Adopted in 1969 (hence the designation), it was ahead of its time with the use of synthetics and cold hammer-forged barrels for durability. Aside from being the Austrian Army's standard issue sniper rifle, it is also used by several law enforcement organizations. It is extremely accurate and several international competitions have been won using an SSG-69 with accuracy being sub 0.15
mrad
The Barrett MRAD (Multi-role Adaptive Design) is a bolt-action sniper rifle designed by Barrett to meet the requirements of the SOCOM PSR. The MRAD is based on the Barrett 98B and includes a number of modifications and improvements. The Barret ...
(0.5
moa
Moa are extinct giant flightless birds native to New Zealand.
The term has also come to be used for chicken in many Polynesian cultures and is found in the names of many chicken recipes, such as
Kale moa and Moa Samoa.
Moa or MOA may also refe ...
).
There are several variants made with mostly cosmetic differences, the only anomaly being the SSG-PIV using a 409 mm barrel with a 1:250 mm (1:10 inches) twist designed to handle heavy
subsonic ammunition Subsonic ammunition is ammunition designed to operate at velocities below the speed of sound, which at standard conditions is or Mach 1. This avoids the supersonic shockwave or "crack" of a supersonic bullet, which, particularly for suppressed f ...
in conjunction with a suppressor.
The bolt action uses rear-locking lugs (in common with the
SMLE), rather than the more common front-locking lugs. This, and the fact that it is only produced in the 'short action' length, limits the chambering to non-magnum calibres, a legacy of a military weapon designed only to fire the 7.62×51mm NATO cartridge. It is essentially a target/police/military weapon, but with its caliber and inherent accuracy, it lends itself to hunting that requires longer distance shots.
![Bolt action rifle feed](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Bolt_action_rifle_feed.PNG)
The standard detachable magazine features a 5-round
rotary design that fits flush with the stock, although a 10-round staggered box is available as an accessory. Both are transparent-backed, immediately showing remaining capacity. Even though spool magazines are unusual in military rifles, Steyr-Mannlicher produced
Mannlicher–Schönauer
The Mannlicher–Schönauer (sometimes Anglicized as "Mannlicher Schoenauer", Hellenized as Τυφέκιον/Όπλον Μάνλιχερ, ''Óplon/Tyfékion Mannlicher'') is a rotary-magazine bolt-action rifle produced by Steyr Mannlicher for t ...
rifles with one from early 1900s until 1972.
The Austrian military combined the SSG 69 with the Kahles ZF 69 6×42
telescopic sight
A telescopic sight, commonly called a scope informally, is an optical sighting device based on a refracting telescope. It is equipped with some form of a referencing pattern – known as a ''reticle'' – mounted in a focally appropriate po ...
as optical sight for their snipers. Later the similar Kahles ZF 84 10×42 telescopic sight was also offered. These optical sights on customer request can feature a
Bullet Drop Compensating (BDC) elevation turret tuned for the
ballistic trajectory
Projectile motion is a form of motion experienced by an object or particle (a projectile) that is projected in a gravitational field, such as from Earth's surface, and moves along a curved path under the action of gravity only. In the part ...
of a particular gun-
cartridge
Cartridge may refer to:
Objects
* Cartridge (firearms), a type of modern ammunition
* ROM cartridge, a removable component in an electronic device
* Cartridge (respirator), a type of filter used in respirators
Other uses
* Cartridge (surname), a ...
combination with a predefined
projectile weight/type,
muzzle velocity and
air density at ranges. The Austrian military ZF 69 sights BDC was calibrated from in increments up to and increments from upwards with 7.62×51mm NATO
ammunition.
In 2015 Steyr ended production of the SSG 69.
Users
* : Used by the
Argentine Army
The Argentine Army ( es, Ejército Argentino, EA) is the land force branch of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic and the senior military service of Argentina. Under the Argentine Constitution, the president of Argentina is the commander- ...
.
[Jones, Richard D. ''Jane's Infantry Weapons 2009/2010''. Jane's Information Group; 35 edition (January 27, 2009). .]
* : In use by the
Austrian Army
The Austrian Armed Forces (german: Bundesheer, lit=Federal Army) are the combined military forces of the Republic of Austria.
The military consists of 22,050 active-duty personnel and 125,600 reservists. The military budget is 0.74% of nati ...
and
EKO Cobra
EKO Cobra (german: Einsatzkommando Cobra; "Task Force Cobra") is the police tactical unit of the Austrian Federal Ministry of the Interior. EKO Cobra is not part of the Austrian Federal Police, but instead is directly under the control of the ...
.
*
[Gander, Terry J.; Hogg, Ian V. ''Jane's Infantry Weapons 1995/1996''. Jane's Information Group; 21 edition (May 1995). .]
* : Limited use in
Sino-Vietnamese War
The Sino-Vietnamese War (also known by other names) was a border war fought between China and Vietnam in early 1979. China launched an offensive in response to Vietnam's actions against the Khmer Rouge in 1978, which ended the rule of the C ...
.
*
* : Used by the
BSF ,ITBP and
COBRA(CRPF).
* : Used by the
Indonesian Army
The Indonesian Army ( id, Tentara Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Darat (TNI-AD), ) is the land branch of the Indonesian National Armed Forces. It has an estimated strength of 300,000 active personnel. The history of the Indonesian Army has its ...
.
* :
Garda Emergency Response Unit
The Emergency Response Unit (ERU) ( ga, Aonad Práinnfhreagartha) is the police tactical unit of the '' Garda Síochána'', Ireland's national police and security service. The unit was a section of the forces' Special Detective Unit (SDU), un ...
* : Used by
YAMAM
The Yamam ( he, ימ"מ, an acronym for ''Centralized Special Unit'' , ''Yeḥida Merkazit Meyuḥedet''), also called in Hebrew and Israel's National Counter Terror Unit (I.N.C.T.U.) in English, is Israel's national counter-terrorism unit, ...
in 1980s.
*
* : Used by
Republic of Korea Marine Corps
The Republic of Korea Marine Corps (ROKMC; ko, 대한민국 해병대, Daehanminguk Haebyeongdae), also known as the ROK Marine Corps or ROK Marines, is the marine corps of South Korea. The ROKMC is a branch of the Republic of Korea Navy respo ...
* :
Marine Corps
Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refl ...
* : Used by the
Pakistan Army.
*
*
*
*
*
* : In use with
BORTAC
The Border Patrol Tactical Unit (BORTAC) is the tactical unit of the United States Border Patrol. In 2007, BORTAC was placed under the command of the newly formed Special Operations Group (SOG) together with the Border Patrol Search, Trauma, a ...
(
United States Border Patrol
The United States Border Patrol (USBP) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement agency under the United States' U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Customs and Border Protection and is responsible for securing ...
).
Gallery
File:Steyr SSG69.jpg, The SSG 69 with Kahles ZF 69 6×42 telescopic sight as issued to the Austrian military.
File:Steyr ssg 69 verschluss.jpg, The SSG 69 bolt-action.
File:Steyr SSG 69 PII.jpg, The SSG 69 PII heavy barrel variant.
File:Steyr SSG 69 PIV.jpg, The SSG 69 PIV silenced variant.
See also
*
GOL Sniper Magnum
The GOL-Sniper Magnum is a bolt-action sniper rifle designed by the German company Gol-Matic GmbH of Birkenau, Hesse. The rifle is available in tactical as well as sporting and match configurations. GOL-Sniper rifles are based on custom Magnum ...
*
SSG 82
The Scharfschützengewehr 82 or SSG 82, literally ''Sharpshooter's Rifle 82'', is a rifle chambered in the 5.45×39mm Soviet cartridge built in East Germany at the end of the Cold War for use by East German special police units.
Very little was ...
*
Steyr HS .50
The Steyr HS .50 and the Steyr HS .460 are single-shot anti materiel sniper rifles manufactured by Steyr Mannlicher and chambered in .50 BMG and .460 Steyr, respectively. Unlicensed variants of the HS. 50 include the AM-50 Sayyad produced by I ...
*
Steyr Scout
*
Remington Model 700
The Remington Model 700 is a series of bolt-action centerfire rifles manufactured by Remington Arms since 1962. It is a development of the Remington 721 and 722 series of rifles, which were introduced in 1948. The M24 and M40 military sniper ...
*
M24 Sniper Weapon System
The M24 Sniper Weapon System (SWS) or M24 is the military and police version of the Remington Model 700 rifle, ''M24'' being the model name assigned by the United States Army after adoption as their standard sniper rifle in 1988. The M24 is ref ...
References
External links
Steyr Mannlicher official pageSteyr SSG 69 manual
{{Steyr Mannlicher
7.62×51mm NATO rifles
Bolt-action rifles
Police weapons
Sniper rifles of Austria
Rotary magazine firearms