by Bob Lesmeister | National Correspondent
While the US Armed Forces complain that their 9mm sidearm is now nearly 30 years old, the Slovakian police find themselves in the same situation. Slovak Interior Minister Robert Kalinak is calling for a purchase of 23,000 new handguns for the cops.
CZ P09.
There are several manufacturers begging to get in on the firearms deal. For starters there is Ceska Zbrojovka (CZ), Glock Inc., Grand Power and ZVS. The Slovak cops are currently using the CZ 82 pistol that is over 20 years old and chambered for the unpopular 9mm Makarov round. The ministry is willing to spend over $9,324,000 for the arms purchase. One might guess that if the ministry is looking at CZ, it would be considering the P-09 pistol in 9mm Para. Considered a police pistol in its own right, the P-09 holds 19 rounds of 9mm and can be had with or without a decocker system installed. The pistol also comes with a modular backstrap and integrated Picatinny rail.
Many may not be familiar with the Slovak company Grand Power. But that may change as the company has entered into an agreement with Eagle Imports (1750 Brielle Avenue, Dept. TGM, Ocean Township, NJ 07712, phone: 732-686-9533) to import and distribute their line in the US. Grand Power produces two pistols specifically for armed forces and law enforcement. They are the K102R and K105R. Both are chambered for 9mm Para. The K102R has a 2-burst option while the K105R can be fired full auto. Most likely a police force would stick with a standard K100 Mk12 with integrated Picatinny rail and modular grip design. The K100 Mk 12 is an upgrade of the previous Mk6 and Mk7 models. A real contender may also be the ZVS P20 produced by ZVS IMPEX a.s., located on the Czech-Slovak border.
Grand Power K100.
Relatively new to small arms manufacturing, the ZVS IMPEX company was founded in 1998 and is part of the ZVS Group, which manufactures all sorts of heavy equipment. ZVS IMPEX deals solely with manufacturing small arms and ammunition. The fact that the company produces 9mm Para ammo may also give it a leg up in the picking process. But one thing in favor of the other two is that both CZ and Glock have recently set up production plants in Slovakia. Eventually, the company will produce most popular calibers for both handguns and rifles as well as shotshells for scatterguns. Currently, it is producing the P20 pistol which incorporates a locked breech system and is chambered for the 9mm Para. It, like many of its kind nowadays, comes with a modular grip. One feature of the P20 that may appeal to the American market is the fact that it can be easily converted from 9mm Para to .40 S&W by switching out barrel, slide and magazine. If one swaps out the barrel, slide, recoil spring/rod, and breechblock it can be converted to a longer barrel IPSC variant. The company has dubbed this model as the P21.
ZVS P20.
Remington Arms has recently made a decent sale of 75,000 M4 rifles to the Aquino administration’s Department of National Defense in the Philippines. Reportedly, it was an $89.5 million deal. Hundreds of the rifles were initially distributed by Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff General Gregorio Pio Catapang to Special Forces soldiers assigned to Ft. Magsaysay in Palayan City, Luzon. The new Remington M4 rifles will be replacing the over 30-year-old M16 and M14 Armalite rifles. The old M16 rifles will be refurbished and set aside for reservists.
Taurus made a humble sale of 9mm Para handguns to the Salvadoran Police. Senior members of the General Directorate of the National Civilian Police (PNC) will be the first to receive the new guns. The PNC of El Salvador bought 1,426 9mm Model PT92 AF pistols and ammunition for $900,000. A load of Galil rifle ammo was also included in the sale. The Taurus will be replacing older S&W pistols.
