With update 0.17.0, The A-Group Legendary Outfits for the Alpha collection will appear in Caliber.
In 1996, after the unfortunate events during the operation in Budyonnovsk, the Antiterrorist Center (ATC) of the Federal Security Service was created. Group A was included in it.
In this set, collective images of Spetsnaz soldiers of the nineties’ early Russia are waiting for you. They are interesting because the choice of equipment at that time was extremely limited, and it was necessary to show soldier ingenuity every day. This made their appearance unique and memorable.
In this article, we highlight the details of the new Legendary Outfits.
The tactical vest designed in 1995 by the Russian company Survival Corps, one of the pioneers of tactical equipment. The development considered the wishes of the Alpha operators, who were then part of the Federal Counterintelligence Service (that later has become the FSB).
The vest is made of durable cordura, has a wide range of pockets, and can be adjusted in height and volume. Despite its almost 27-year history, the vest is still popular, which once again confirms the quality and thoughtfulness of the design.
The ATC and FSB patches began to be attached to the backs after the Shootout on Profsoyuznaya Street, which took place in the summer of 1996.
FSB operatives in Moscow carried out an operation to detain especially dangerous criminals trying to sell radioactive materials. At the time of the arrest, a police car was passing by.
The police officers decided to detain armed men without identification marks, who turned out to be the operatives. Then a chain of accidents followed, leading to random shooting.
Conclusions have been made. Back patches appeared both on the employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and on the anti-terror unit operators.
The assault and the support are wearing the ALFA-M body armor, which has the fifth protection class (roughly the Type III protection level by the NIJ protection classification). This vest can be equipped with removable protection elements for the shoulder girdle, neck, and groin area.
Before the era of Trezeta, Starforce and Crispi, sneakers were hugely popular shoes among anti-terror personnel. If the situation allowed, of course.
One of the most popular models was running shoes with the famous Adidas Torsion sole technology, produced since the Seoul Olympics in 1984.
Let’s move on to the marksman’s headgear. Some people may be very much surprised when they see a beret in an outfit that claims to be historically authentic. However, this is not fiction or an assumption of our artists, there is no mistake here.
Blue berets appeared in the Group A of the KGB of the USSR immediately after the department foundation.
From the memoirs of colonel Ivon, who stood at the origins of Alpha, the owner of service ID N1:
We selected the equipment in the warehouses of the Ministry of Defense. We liked the pilots’ fur jackets and trousers: you can sleep in them in the snow. Or blue berets, like the legendary revolutionary Che Guevara had; we took them, and for a long time they became part of the uniform of Group A.
Source: specnaz.ru
No less interesting is the helmet of the support. This is a modernized Altyn-R2M armored helmet with a new sound duct and the ability to connect a Japanese Standard radio station.
Its unusual shape is created by a handcrafted cover made of aeronautic canvas that protects the helmet from sun rays and creates no glare. Soldiers largely made DIY covers from improvised materials: camouflage nets, hoods of protective mesh suits, and so on.
The L-shaped flashlight’s appearance is based on the legendary TL-122 model. This flashlight has been widely used by the US Army since World War II.
The flashlight is easy to use by attaching it to equipment or pouches. It is highly reliable, equipped with color filters, and water-resistant.
In the 90s, flashlights of this type were widely available in specialized stores.
A concussion grenade with an indestructible body. Designed for psycho-physiological impact with extreme light flash and sound.
While not able to kill the enemy, it can indeed inflict injury: it is equipped with rubber striking elements that render a traumatic effect.
A curious bag can be seen on the medic’s belt. Such bags were included with PMK-2 and PMK-3 gas masks. In many cases, the bag was used as a universal pouch for special equipment, ammunition, and as a substitute first aid kit pack.
Along with the standard NR-43 Vishnya reconnaissance knife, Alpha employees used the Karatel (Punisher), created by designer Igor Skrylev. The knife was developed by order of the FSB as part of the Vzmakh research and development project.
Numerous high demands were made on the Karatel: it had to be a versatile combat knife that can perform chopping blows and be capable of withstanding high loads when used as a lever or foothold.
Each operator’s primary weapon in the new Legendary Outfits is of particular interest. Take, for example, the medic.
His submachine gun uses 9×19mm Para ammunition; it was developed by Tula gunsmiths at the turn of the 2000s for law enforcement agencies and special forces. The design of the PP-2000 turned out to be as light, compact, and reliable as physically possible. It’s equipped with folding stock and can use two types of magazines.
The assault received the famous AN-94. This rifle has an extremely peculiar mechanism: the barrel is moving during firing, and the magazine is connected in a non-standard way, at an angle relative to the weapon. All models were created with great attention to detail.
Abakan firing animation repeats most of the weapon mechanism movement in real life. It’s difficult to see it in-game, but it’s there.
In update 0.16.0, additional bonuses were added for players who have two Legendary Outfits for one operator. The A-Group Legendary Outfits will be the second one for the Alpha collection.
