Kalashnikov for Putin! The presidential escort has a new weapon on two wheels
When you say Kalashnikov...
When you say the word Kalashnikov, the image of an AK-47 springs to everybody’s mind. It gained fame thanks to its ease of use and reliability. The armoury concern, Kalashnikov, doesn’t put all of its eggs into one basket, into weapons, which have gained acclaim, but it also concentrates its efforts into producing luxury motorcycles.
The Russian president and his retinue won’t be driven merely by foreign brand cars, but by motorcycles as well.
In the past, The Kremlin has used car brands, such as Ural and BMW to escort the governing heads of Russia. The first mentioned brand fits perfectly into the concept of displaying national efforts and propagation of public ownership. However, the BMW draws attention to itself with its foreign ‘aura’, which doesn’t really fit the aforementioned concept. Therefore, it is obvious, that a more suitable escort for the government in modern style will be necessary, such as these exclusively designed Kalashnikov motorcycles.
The government will start using these specialized motorcycles to escort the president by the beginning of 2019
The futuristic ‘giant’ in the form of a luxury Kalashnikov motorcycle
Motorcycles Kalashnikov are produced under the brand Izh, which is the daughter company of the Kalashnikov enterprise. The length of the motorbike is 2 900 mm, width 940 mm, height 1 250 mm, and its weight is 510 kg.
The company Izh states, that it has 147 hp, and that it can reach a maximum speed of 250 km/h with an acceleration of 0 to 60 km/h in a mere 3.5 seconds. The motorcycle itself is assembled by the Russian company Rostec, which was also commissioned to produce new limousines for Putin. The limousines will have their debut at a ceremonial in the year 2018.
Kalashnikov looks towards the future, and with that, presents an electric version
The ‘electric’ trend has made its mark on the world of motorcycles. The model UM-1 is a new generation of motorcycles made for special forces, with an innovation to facilitate navigating through urban traffic. It weighs around 200 kilograms, and it has the battery LiFePO4. There aren’t more details available so far about the SM-1 model, but one thing is for sure already, and that is that both models will have the power to reach the speed of 100 km/h, and can travel up to 150 kilometres per charge.
