Slovakia Reveals New COBRA .50 BMG Sniper Rifle to Challenge U.S. Barrett in Long-Range Combat.

Slovakia-based KolArms showcased its COBRA .50 BMG semi-automatic anti-materiel rifle at the World Defense Show in Riyadh, positioning it for Gulf and wider export customers. The move highlights growing competition in the global 12.7 x 99 mm rifle market, long dominated by established U.S. and European suppliers.

At the World Defense Show in Riyadh, Army Recognition observed KolArms presenting its COBRA .50 BMG as a semi-automatic 12.7 x 99 mm anti-materiel rifle intended for precision engagement of equipment, sensors, and light vehicles at extended ranges. In a venue that increasingly functions as a gateway to Gulf and wider export procurement, the Cobra’s appearance signaled a focused push toward customers seeking .50-caliber reach and rapid follow-up capability while diversifying away from long-established suppliers.
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KolArms COBRA .50 BMG semi-automatic anti-materiel rifle shown at WDS in Saudi Arabia, featuring a 750 mm barrel, 10-round magazine, long Picatinny rail for day and clip-on optics, and recoil-mitigating muzzle brake for rapid follow-up shots against vehicles, equipment, and hardened targets at extended range (Picture source: Army Recognition Group).

The COBRA is a semi-automatic .50 BMG 12.7 x 99 mm rifle with a 750 mm barrel, 1,475 mm overall length, and a stated weight of 15 kg, feeding from a 10-round magazine. KolArms lists an integrated Picatinny rail system with 600 mm of rail length for day optics, clip-on night or thermal devices, and ancillary aiming solutions, a configuration aligned with contemporary doctrine where a heavy rifle is expected to fight as part of a sensor-to-shooter chain. The published twist rate is 1:15 381 mm, consistent with mainstream .50 BMG stabilization requirements across common projectile weights, and the show rifle was fitted with a prominent multi-port muzzle brake to manage recoil and keep the sight picture recoverable for rapid follow-up shots. The WDS board also referenced bipod and monopod dimensions, hinting at an intended firing posture that prioritizes repeatable point of aim and quick re-engagement from supported positions, a practical requirement for anti-materiel work where the first impact is often used to cue immediate correction.

The Cobra program also reflects KolArms’ broader transition from a workshop rooted in refurbishment to a company pushing proprietary designs. KolArms states it was founded in 2008, initially working on adjustments of military weapons for the civilian market and specialist customers, then expanding through repairs, modifications, and modernization of systems used by armed forces in Central Europe. Critically, the company says it launched its own production line in 2016, and today positions itself as a Slovak manufacturer offering design, production, modernization, training, and technology transfer. In that context, a semi-automatic .50 BMG rifle is a logical flagship: it leverages widespread ammunition availability, speaks directly to border security and critical infrastructure protection missions, and offers a high-visibility product for export showcases like WDS.

Operationally, the Cobra sits in a caliber class optimized for defeating light materiel, disabling vehicles, and engaging targets behind cover at distances where intermediate-caliber rifles lose reliability and effect. The .50 BMG family, standardized as 12.7×99 mm NATO and fielded in multiple ammunition types including armor-piercing and incendiary variants, is widely associated with anti-materiel rifles and tasks like vehicle interdiction and remote neutralization of hazardous items in military employment. For a country evaluating the Cobra, the tactical appeal is straightforward: a two-person heavy rifle team can provide standoff over key avenues of approach, strike engine blocks, generator sets, exposed sensors, communications nodes, and parked aircraft support equipment, and impose cost on an adversary without escalating to crew-served weapons. In coastal and border roles, pairing such a rifle with overwatch from a tower, ridgeline, or hardened position can complicate smuggling, sabotage, and armed infiltration by extending the no safe approach zone well beyond what 7.62 mm systems typically cover.

How a military or internal security force would use the Cobra in practice depends less on the rifle than on the concept of employment. Well-run programs treat .50-class rifles as a capability package: trained observers, confirmed range cards, match ammunition lot management, and integration with UAV feeds or ground sensors so shooters are not searching for targets through glass. The semi-automatic action and 10-round capacity support fast correction on hard targets, but they also demand disciplined heat management and maintenance cycles to preserve precision. From a procurement standpoint, the rifle’s strongest argument is that it offers a modern .50 BMG architecture with generous rail space and a conventional magazine-fed layout, while allowing a customer to diversify vendors for rifles, spares, and support.

Publicly documented end users for the Cobra are difficult to confirm. KolArms does not publish a customer list and frames its content for professional buyers in the weapons and ammunition sector rather than public marketing, which is common for companies operating in defense-oriented niches. That absence of disclosure matters when ministries evaluate risk, because mature competitors bring long service histories and well-mapped sustainment ecosystems.

The closest benchmark in the same operational category remains Barrett’s semi-automatic .50-caliber family, notably the M107A1 and Model 82A1, which share the same 1:15 twist rate, 10-round magazine capacity, and comparable overall length, with published weights in the 13-14.8 kg bracket depending on variant and configuration. Where the Cobra differentiates on paper is its stated 750 mm barrel and 600 mm rail length, marginally exceeding some competing specifications and potentially giving integrators slightly more space for day optics plus clip-on devices without compromising mounting geometry. For buyers seeking an alternative to established U.S. supply, that kind of specification parity, demonstrated in Riyadh, is the point: the Cobra is being positioned as a credible, export-ready anti-materiel tool for forces that want .50 BMG effects with procurement flexibility.