DRAGUNOV
DRAGUNOV
Real Name: Dima Alekov Kaganitzky
Identity/Class: Human
Occupation: Vigilante;
former soldier in the Russian army
Affiliations: Microchip, Punisher (Castle), Svetlanya
Enemies: Randy Kwoc, the
Molina, Taz, Viktor Aleksadr Vikady;
all criminals in Russia and the former Soviet
States
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Russia and
other nations formerly of the Soviet Union;
briefly operated in New York City
First Appearance: Punisher War Zone#31 (September, 1994)
Powers/Abilities: Dragunov is an exceptionally large and strong man, strong enough to break another man's back with a bear hug. He uses a Dragunov sniper rifle (See Comments), as well as various other projectile weapons, including rocket launchers, grenades, etc., and he is an excellent marksman with such weapons. He wears a bulletproof uniform covered by thick layers of fur.
Height: 6'5'' Weight: 285 lbs.
History:
(Punisher War Zone#32 [fb]) - Dima Alekov Kaganitzky
was a Russian soldier working
alongside Vikady, who turned traitor on a mission in Kabul,
Afghanistan, slaughtering their troops and a crowd of innocents,
and leaving Kaganitzky for dead.
BTS - Kaganitzky recovered from his wounds. In pursuit of Vikady, he became a vigilante, killing criminals all over Russia, and taking the name Dragunov from the Russian rifle that was his weapon of choice.
(Punisher War
Zone#31-36)
- Dragunov came to the USA in search of his enemies, Vikady and
his Mongolian partner Taz, who were looking to obtain a nuclear
weapon. At the same time, they were trying to market the
sales of brown heroin to a number of other criminals, including
Randy Kwoc. That meeting brought him face to face (and gun to gun)
with the Punisher. Dragunov and Castle slaughtered the other
criminals present, but Taz and Vikady escaped unharmed.
Dragunov and Castle split up, but ran into
each other again when he saved Castle from some Molina (Russian
mafia) who had captured him. After killing the rest of the
criminals, they allowed one of them, a woman, Katrinka, to go
free, and then Castle monitored her phone line until she
contacted Vikady. They tracked Vikady and Taz to another meeting
with Kwoc in Queens. They slew Kwoc and his men, but their two
primary targets eluded them once again.
Dragunov and Castle pursued the pair back to
Russia, where they joined forces with the Assyrian mafia in
exchange for Dragunov killing a rival criminal for them. They
trailed Vikady to the Ukraine, and en route they terminated a
group of criminals who tried to hijack their truck. They were too
late to stop Vikady from impersonating a pair of Kamtek employees
and stealing a nuclear missile that was scheduled for disassembly. Vikady then auctioned the missile to some Serbians.
Dragunov's contacts in the Russian army
identified the purchasers of the nuclear weapon and informed him
of their plan to use it to obliterate Sarajevo as part of a great
cleansing. The Serbians forced Vikady to personally place and set
up the warhead, so they used their Kamtek truck to bring the
missile into the heart of the city unmolested.
Hampered both by UN troops and snipers in
Sarajevo, Dragunov and Castle managed to track down Vikady and
Taz, who were hindered by the same forces as their foes. Frustrated by his inability to get close enough to Vikady,
Dragunov stood up and roared his rage at him, taking a chest shot
from a sniper armed with his namesake. When one of Dragunov's
allies took out the sniper, Taz and Vikady closed on Castle, but
Dragunov rallied his strength for one final surge, grabbing Taz
and snapping his spine in a bear hug. Castle was left in a
standoff with Vikady, who had the detonator for the warhead in
his hand, but Vikady was then shot and killed from a distance by
the same young soldier who had killed the other sniper.
Comments: Dragunov was created by Chuck Dixon and Joe Kubert.
Dragunov's quote: "Not to be moving. To be moving is to be dying."
information on the Dragunov rifle (from this site: http://www.reocities.com/Pentagon/4572/history.html ):
The SVD (Snayperskaya Vintovka Dragunova)-Sniper Rifle Dragunov was the first Russian rifle exclusively designed from scratch as a sniper rifle, was created to replace the SVT-40 (Samozariyadnaya Vintovka Tokareva) sniper rifle. The original Dragunov SVD was designed by Yevgeniy Feodorovich Dragunov, a colleague of Mikhail Timofeyevich Kalashnikov, designer of the AK-47 Kalashnikov series of rifles. It appears that the design and development phase of this rifle took place at the Izhvesk Mashinostroitelny Zavod (IZHMESH). The Dragunov was formally adopted by the Red Army in 1963.
The abandonment of the SVT-40 by the Soviet Army created a need for a new self-loading sniper rifle. Sergey Simonov submitted a modification of the SKS-45 carbine in 1946, chambering the standard 7.62 x 39mm, but tests showed that it was not as accurate as the M1891/30 sniper rifle. Thus, the obsolescent bolt-action pattern was retained as a short-term expedient while an effectual replacement was sought.
The need for an auto-loading sniper reappeared once the Soviet armed forces were re-equipping with self-loading carbines and assault rifles at the beginning of the 1950's. The most promising work at the time was being undertaken by Evgeniy Dragunov, who had already designed several sporting rifles.
The Dragunov's general appearance looks like a stretched-version of the standard AK. Both weapons share the AK style safety-dust cover combination, the gas-tube over the barrel, and a similar operating system. The Dragunov's bolt mechanism and gas recovery system are similar to those of the AK; but, because of the difference in cartridges used, parts are not interchangeable with the AK. Both the AK and the Dragunov use the AK bayonet-wire cutter. However, other than initial appearance, there are very limited similarities between the two rifles.
The barrel is outfitted with a fluted bird-cage style flash and recoil suppressor with also doubles as the bayonet lug. The most distinguishing features of the SVD are the open buttstock, which has a cheek pad for ease in sighting, and the telescopic sight mounted over the receiver. It has a combination flash suppressor/compensator. It may mount the standard AK bayonet. It is normally issued with four magazines, a cleaning kit, and an extra battery and lamp for the telescopic sight.
The Dragunov sniper's rifle excels in engaging fleeing, moving, open and masked single targets. The rifle is a self-loading weapon, accurate fire is delivered by single shots. The main advantage to this rifle is that it was designed to operate under extreme combat conditions, maintaining accuracy and usability where other precision rifles would fail. The SVD fires approximately 30 rounds per minute in the semiautomatic mode.
Profile updated/edited by Kyle Sims
CLARIFICATIONS:
No known connection to:
Svetlanya was an approximation of the Punisher's weapons smith Microchip for Dragunov; she handled his transport.
--Punisher War Zone#34
images:
Other appearances:
Punisher War Zone#32-36 (October, 1994 - February, 1995)
Last updated: 03/29/04
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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