“There were six tenderers in the initial phase of the tender, of which one tenderer in addition to IWI made the final offer,” said Ramil Lipp, Armament Category Manager of the ECDI. ‘The procurement was favoured by the timing of the market situation. Both of the big manufacturers who made it to the final round had production lines in operation, which, in turn, influenced the price in our favour. Thanks to good timing and preparation, we managed to get the machine guns at very good prices and with a very fast delivery time, which is one of the important aspects in today’s armament projects,’ Lipp added.
When purchasing the machine guns, the wish was that the machine guns would meet the conditions in Estonia. ‘For example, the design of the stock was adapted, a hot-plate was added to the barrel, and the adjustment range of the bipod was increased according to our needs,’ Lipp added.
“New Negev NG7 machine gun is a very good and ergonomic weapon and it is stable and accurate when fired in different shooting positions. Modern accessories can be added to the weapon, such as different sights and lamps. It is also important regarding this machine gun that the fire selector can also be set to fire single shots,’ said Major Risto Pärtel, Chief of Ordnance of the Defence Forces.
7.62×51 mm machine gun intended for the armament of the section. The approximate weight of the weapon is 8.8 kilograms and the effective firing range is over 500 metres. The effective firing range with iron sights is up to 800 metres.
The Negev 7.62 has a semi-automatic firing mode that enables accurate fire in various combat situations including adverse conditions, ambush, Close Quarter Battle (CQB). Exceptionally lightweight, it can be fired from a variety of mounts, including special mounts on helicopters, land vehicles, and naval vessels.
“The Negev 7.62 Light Machine Gun was designed according to the most up-to-date operational needs, providing improved ergonomics as well as increased component reliability. These advantages, together with its unique characteristics, make it the most effective lightweight 7.62 available for infantries” says Ronen Hamudot, Executive VP Marketing and Sales at SK Group and IWI. “We are proud the Estonian Defense Forces have chosen us to be their partners”.
The new weapons are expected by the end of this year and will then be handed over to the Defence Forces and the Defence League. This weapon is used by several countries around the world, including the Israel Defense Forces.
Israel Weapon Industries (IWI) has been one of the world’s leading manufacturer of small arms for 90 years. Its best-known products include the Negev light machine gun in 5.56 & 7.62mm, the Tavor and the new Tavor-7 in 7.62X51mm, X95 (Micro TAVOR) and GALIL-ACE rifles. The company’s firearms are developed in close collaboration with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
