Weight: 3.2kg
Length: 710mm
Barrel Length: 450mm
Cartridge: 6.5 x 45mm JMC, 5.5x 45mm Yanitarian, 7.5x45mm Yanitarian, 7.62x39mm Russian, 5.45mm Russian, 7.62mm NATO, 5.56mm NATO, 6mm Remington, and 6.5mm Grendel
Action: gas operated, two-lug rotating bolt, balanced automatic
Rate of fire: 650rpm (cyclic)
Effective range: 500m
Maximum range: 800m
Feed system: 30-rd detachable box, 20-rd detachable box
Sights: Aperture rear, hooded post front. Picatinny rails allow alternates.
History
In the recent past, Yanitaria has come up with more than a few commercially successful assault rifles, the latest incarnation being the AY144. Selected for use as the standard-issue assault rifle of the Lyran Protectorate, it has been manufactured under license in numbers well into the billions. Lyran requirements being fractionally different to those of Yanitaria, Lyran produced models are slightly different. Designated the AY144L, it still shares 90% commonality with the Yanitarian-built variants.
Operating system
The AY-144 is a short stroke, gas operated, rotating bolt, balanced assault rifle that is most commonly chambered for the 6.5x45mm JMC intermediate cartridge, however, it can also be chambered for the 5.5x45mm Yanitarian, or the 7.5x45mm Yanitarian, as well as the 7.62mm Russian, 5.45mm Russian, 7.62mm NATO, 5.56 NATO, and 6.5mm Grendel. The AY-144 system is modular, ambidextrous, and made of lightweight fiber-reinforced polymers.
The balanced gas-system is proprietary to Yanitarian Arms, and features a system whereby the bolt is attached by a wire to a counterweight system which is attached to a spring. When the bolt moves forward, it picks up a round from the magazine, and pushes it into the chamber. When the trigger is pulled, or if the weapon is on automatic or burst, the hammer hits the firing pin, which fires the round. The gas expands, where it is collected by the gas piston, and sent back where it pushes the guide rods rearward, and simultaneously flushes the extraction tube. Because the rifle is balanced, as the bolt group is forced rearwards by the guide rods, the counterweight moves in the opposing direction, mitigating felt recoil. As the bolt moves back, the casing from the spent round is dropped into the extraction tube. The bolt moves forward, picking up another round. This round is fired, and the gas that flushes the extraction tube pushes the spent casing out, spitting it out of the bottom of the gun. This is much more effective than previous versions of the AY-series, in which a conventional extraction system, borrowed from the AUG, was used, and a simple, removable rubber or steel cover and alternate bolt-and-extractor-pin assembly decided which way the shells would fly. The new extraction system also allows soldiers to switch shoulders extremely quickly, with out having to switch the rubber or steel shield, and also allows soldiers to fire with out hitting each other with hot casings.
When the bolt moves back and forth, and when the bolt moves all the way forward, the counterweight also negates the recoil here, and so the only felt recoil comes from when the round actually leaves the chamber. This is known to increase accuracy by a significant margin when compared to similar unbalanced designs. Should the counterweight system break, the weapon will still fire, except with appreciably greater recoil. The bolt itself is made of high grade steel, and the entire system is made to fit together extremely well, requiring modern, but not always top shelf, techniques. Because of this, during desperate times, the AY-144 can still be manufactured and issued, along with second rate supplemental rifles such as the AY-1M.
Once the last round is fired, the bolt catch holds the bolt open, so that a new magazine can be loaded. At any time, a client can pull back the charging handle, which swivels to either the right or left to accommodate soldiers of either dominant hand, and activate the bolt catch via a switch in front of the trigger. The charging handle can then be pushed forward in a motion known as the "H&K slap", bringing the bolt forward and into place, while extracting a fresh round. The charging handle will the swivel into the forward stowed position, allowing it to be used as a forward assist. Two "hooked" edges allow it to easily be reached at any time, even with the lower rail.
The weapon is held together entirely with push-pins, a concept borrowed from the G36 and AUG, which allows the weapon to be disassembled entirely with out tools, and much quicker than rifles that require screws and bolts. The rifle can be broken down into a small amount of parts, and entire bits can be swapped out to fully customize the rifle. For instance, Yanitarian Arms (and now Lyran Arms, under license) offers a faster ROF kit, which allows a client to switch out the bolt group, spring, and counterweight system, increasing the rate of fire from 650RPM in full auto all the way to 1000RPM. The trigger group can also be switched out. The standard trigger, however uses a dual-pressure system. Pulling the trigger to the first pressure (2.1 kg) fires semi-automatically, but pulling the trigger to the second trigger pressure (4.5kg) produces automatic fire. This system, similar to that featured on a number of Lyran and Yanitarian weapons, enables the operator to employ either semi-automatic or automatic fire without adjusting the weapon in any way, or breaking the firing position. A single-shot lockout stud, located below the trigger, can be pulled out to prevent the trigger being pulled rearward to the second pressure, and thus will prevent accidental employment of automatic fire. The stud can be pushed back into the trigger, thus re-allowing automatic fire, by a split-second movement of the index or middle finger of the master hand.
The safety is located immediately above the weapon's pistol grip, and is a simple thumb or index-finger operated push-action trigger-lock safety. The safety portrudes 1cm from the weapon's right, just above a right hander's index finger, when in safe mode, and displays a white dot to the operator.
When switched to “instant” condition, the safety is taken offline by the index finger pushing it into the weapon. The safety will then portrude 1cm out the opposite (left hand) side of the weapon, and display a red dot to the operator, indicating the weapon's state of readiness visually, as well as to physical inspection.
The AY144L further differs from the base -144 by the addition of long dorsal rails as standard. Any of a wide variety of sights can be fitted to these rails. The first option is the excellent Yanitarian ARSY-11 red dot sight. The ARSY-11 is essentially the same as the earlier ARSY-10, but with some minor improvements, and is a whisker shorter to allow it to be used on the AY-144. The second and more common sight, at least within Lyran service, is the TGTM-4 multi-function battle sight. The TGTM-4 combines a default reflex sight (with adjustable brightness, as per M68) with a night weapon sight function, night aiming device (boresighted at 100 metres), manually operated optical zoom with autofocus, adjustable reticle selection, and firing-position-safe grenade launcher sight toggle. A bullet-drop compensator is also available as an overlay to any fire mode, accessed by toggle switch that does not require the firing hand to be moved from the pistol grip. The sight is water-tight down to 50 metres, and is free of parallax error at ranges outside 30 metres. The new Li+ polymer battery provides the gunsight with 400 hours of constant operation in normal combat conditions, and is rechargable from the AC outlet featured on most Lyran-designed vehicles, or a regular 240 volt power outlet.
The -144L, as with the -144, uses a rail system with push pins securing it to the rifle. This means that the rails are easily removable, and that rails fitting the standards used by foreign countries can also be used, or that the rails can be omitted entirely as needed, in order to conserve weight, materials, or to exchange a broken rail from one gun with one from another. The stock has been shortened, and a recoil pad can be attached for use with an under barrel grenade launcher. The magazines are semi-transparent in order to allow a soldier to at any time check the amount of ammo left in the mag. The magazine also uses new coupling studs so that several magazines can be attached to it for faster reloading. The -144L however, unlike most examples of the -144, utilises semi-transparent curved magazines, which serve to lover the weapon's profile, and allow for easier ergonomics. The 450mm barrel is chromium-lined to decrease wear, and is fitted with a muzzle-brake/flash suppressor as standard.
Export
As per the extant agreement with Yanitarian Arms for sale rights, the AY144L is widely available to potential customers, and financing agreements are available to parties seeking them. Manufacturing costs for the AY144L are covered by the Protectorate, and profits from sale are divided, with 80% going to Yanitarian Arms, and 20% to the Lyran Governmental Trade Department. Upon purchasing an AY144L, the purchasor is also entitled to the following accessories, provided with the weapon;
The AY144L is available at NS$1500, with DPRs available at NS$15bn. Purchase requests and enquiries can be lodged through Lyran Arms.
