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Springfield Armory is starting off this year strong with an interesting new rifle to its 2022 lineup. This rifle platform will be a change of pace for the American firearm manufacturer and market as a whole. Meet the Spring field Armory Heilon Bullpup Rifle. The Helion is a semiautomatic version of its Croatian counterpart the HS Produkt VHS-2. The new Helion will be imported directly from Croatia to Springfield Armory factories here in America.

The VHS-2, as it is known in Croatia is a combat tested design. It is currently in use by the Croatian, Iraqi, and Syrian armies. This bullpup has been spotted in conflict zones through the Middle East and beyond. It has also been tested and evaluated by France, the United States, and Romania in the past. Springfield Armory’s Helion comes from a proven design.

The new Helion features a bullpup design. That design allows for the rifle to run a 16” inch barrel through the majority of platform, while still retaining a relatively compact form factor. Giving shooters greater mobility in tighter environments, while also being accurate at distances. The Helion comes with modern features such as: integrated front and rear sight, Picatinny rail, ambidextrous controls, an adjustable buttstock, and M-Lok slots for mounting accessories. Since the Helion is a bullpup it will have right and left hand configurations for the rifle. The rifle features a reversible ejection system that requires no extra tools or parts to make that process easy.

Below, is the press release from Springfield Armory on the Helion.

Press Release

GENESEO, ILL. (1/14/22) – Springfield Armory® is proud to announce the release of the Hellion™, answering the call for superior ballistic performance in a short, modular and fully ambidextrous 5.56mm bullpup platform.

Unlike a traditional long gun, the bullpup system locates the action and the magazine behind the trigger and into the buttstock area. By doing this, it reduces the overall length drastically, while still allowing you to have a barrel long enough to retain effective downrange performance.

Based on the internationally proven VHS-2 bullpup, which has been employed by the Croatian armed forces in demanding environments ranging from Iraq to Africa and beyond, the Springfield Armory Hellion offers American shooters a semi-automatic version of this highly capable firearm. As part of the Hellion’s development, Springfield Armory adapted the original VHS-2 design for the American market. This includes its ability to feed from AR-pattern magazines, the use of replaceable AR-pattern pistol grips, M-Lok® slots in the handguard and the addition of six QD mounts.

The Hellion features a reversible ejection system that requires no additional parts or tools. Complementing this system is a set of fully ambidextrous controls, including the safety, charging handle, magazine and bolt release. The result is an ultra-compact 5.56mm that can be easily fired from either shoulder.

“The new semi-automatic Hellion builds upon the solid foundation of the Croatian VHS-2, and adapts it to the needs of American shooters,” says Steve Kramer, Springfield Armory’s Vice President of Marketing. “With the changes applied to the design by Springfield Armory, the Hellion offers American shooters a truly unique and capable 5.56mm bullpup.”

The Hellion is highly adaptable to the needs of shooters, through the use of a five-position collapsible buttstock as well as a two-position adjustable gas system. It is also ready to accept the optic of your choice on the top strip of Picatinny rail, which also integrates a set of flip-up iron sights. It comes with a 30-round Magpul® PMAG and Bravo Company USA® BCMGUNFIGHTER™ Mod 3 pistol grip. MSRP is $1,999.

The Springfield Armory Helion is a combat tested and proven bullpup rifle. Now, it is time if this Croatian wonder can make it big here in America. Only time will tell.

What do you think of the new Springfield Heilon? Let us know in the comments below. To check out more information on the Helion and Springfield lineup of firearms, click here.

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