A new sighting system, Hlyadach (Watcher), has been developed in Ukraine, allowing shooters to fire from behind cover while remaining protected.

The manufacturer company has shared with Militarnyi that representatives from various branches of the Ukrainian Defense Forces tested this new form of protected fire for the first time.

The demonstration took place at a training ground, where participants shot at targets from behind cover and simulated building-clearing operations.

The Watcher system consists of a camera mounted on the weapon, a monocular that displays the image from the camera, and a control module.

It does not interfere with firing from various positions, ensures the soldier’s mobility, is compact when assembled, and is a modular system.

The Watcher system manufactured by the Ukrainian company VYRIB-1 was developed by a group of military personnel and involved civilian specialists. It implements patented solutions that simplify the use of the complex.

“Modularity, the ability to scale production, and most importantly, the cost of the system, which is significantly lower than foreign alternatives, will enable us to quickly meet the needs of Ukraine’s Defense Forces,” the developers noted.

Over the past 40 years, as electronic devices have rapidly advanced, the concept of using a camera mounted on a weapon and a monitor to display the image has gained traction.

This technology allows only the weapon to be exposed while firing, minimizing the risk to the shooter.

One of the most well-known systems in this field is CornerShot, a weapon with a hinged-rotating mechanism, developed in the early 2000s by Amos Golan, a lieutenant colonel in the Israel Defense Forces.

Additionally, the French military once sought to equip infantry units with the “future soldier kit,” known as the Famas Felin system, which also allowed firing from behind cover.

In 2023, the Ukrainian Defense Forces received FAMAS assault rifles with the ability to fire from behind cover as part of their ongoing modernization efforts.