Osa (handgun)

OSA (Russian: ОСА, "wasp") is a family of Russian non-lethal pistols that can be also used as flare gun, flashbang gun or starting pistol. The system consists of the gun (2-4 cartridges, laser target pointer, electronic ignition capsule), and various ammunition types.

OSA was developed in the 1990s by engineer-constructor and weapon designer G.A. Bideev (Г.А. Бидеев). It was designed and is manufactured by the state-owned organizations Federal Center for Research and Manufacturing and The Institute for Science and Research in the Applied Chemistry. The pistol is available in the civilian market.

Design details

The PB-4 is a four-barreled break-action gun. It has two horizontal "8"-shaped chambers in its aluminum chamber block, each housing two rounds. There is no need for a separate chamber for each round, because the gas pressure is contained by the cartridges' thick cylindrical case (the external case diameter is 18mm, while the bullet caliber is 15.3mm). This design aims to prevent the gun from operating properly if the round is unlawfully modified to increase its power. The cartridge case also performs the function of the barrel, with the bullet positioned deep inside and accelerating within the case. The front end of the case is level with front end of the chamber block when in firing position. There is a four-fingered extractor in the central channel of the chamber block; the cartridge cases are rimless and have an extractor groove. The extractor keeps cases from falling forward outside of the chamber block. When the action is opened, cases are extracted backwards for manual reloading. The trigger and trigger guard are fixed to lower side of the chamber block.

Osa

Osa may refer to:

Places

Military

Medicine

Groups and associations

Osa (canton)

Osa, located on Osa Peninsula is the fifth canton in the province of Puntarenas in Costa Rica. The canton covers an area of 1,930.24 km², and has a population of 29,892. Its capital city is Ciudad Cortés, formerly known as Puerto Cortés.

Geography

The canton begins at the Río Barú near Dominical on the central Pacific coast. It continues as a narrow strip of land southward to include the area around Palmar and Sierpe, finally widening to take in the entire neck and upper portion of the Osa Peninsula, where significant gold mining operations are located. As its name suggests, Humpback Whales with dolphins migrate into the waters to calve, mate, and to rest. Whale Watching is available along the coasts. Isla del Caño is part of Osa canton.

The canton of Osa is subdivided into 5 distritos (districts).

In the canton are parks suited in the Osa Conservation Area such as Corcovado National Park, Ballena Marine National Park and Piedras Blancas.

Osa, Perm Krai

Osa (Russian: Оса́) is a town and the administrative center of Osinsky District in Perm Krai, Russia, located on the left bank of the Kama River near its confluence with the Tulva, 146 kilometers (91 mi) southwest of Perm, the administrative center of the krai. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 21,188.

History

It was founded in 1591 (according to other sources—in 1596) as the sloboda of Novonikolskaya (Новонико́льская) and later became a fortress. In a 1623 document, the settlement is referred to as the sloboda of Osinskaya Nikolskaya (Осинская Никольская), in 1678—as the sloboda of Osinskaya (Осинская), in 1732—as the village (selo) of Osa. It was granted town status in 1739. In 1960, oil fields were discovered near Osa. Oil extraction started in 1963.

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, Osa serves as the administrative center of Osinsky District, to which it is directly subordinated. As a municipal division, the town of Osa, together with five rural localities, is incorporated within Osinsky Municipal District as Osinskoye Urban Settlement.