Benelli Kite
 | This article needs more citations. (September 2025) |
| Benelli Kite | |
|---|---|
 Benelli Kite | |
| Type | Pre-Charged Pneumatic air gun |
| Place of origin |  Italy |
| Service history | |
| Used by | 10 m air pistol shooters |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | Benelli Armi SpA |
| Variants | Benelli Kite, Benelli Kite Young |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 0.8 kg (1.8 lb) (no magazine) |
| Length | 433 mm (17.05 in) |
| Barrel length | 240 mm (9.45 in) |
| Cartridge | 4.5 mm (0.177 in) diabolo air gun pellets |
| Action | Pre-Charged Pneumatic |
| Muzzle velocity | 145 m/s (adjustable 135-165 m/s) |
| Effective firing range | 10 m (10.9 yd) |
| Feed system | single air gun pellet |
| Sights | open, fully adjustable |
The Benelli Kite is an air pistol manufactured by Benelli Armi SpA of Italy.[1][2] It is a single shot .177 inch calibre pre-charged pneumatic air pistol designed for the 10 m Air Pistol ISSF shooting event.
The Kite was used by Francesco Bruno to win a gold medal in the Italian Championship 2008. It is also used by Tanyu Kiryakov, who won gold in the 10 m Air Pistol at the Olympic Games in Seoul 1988.
Design details
[edit]Like all air pistols designed for the 10 m Air Pistol event, it has fully adjustable sights, a mechanically adjustable trigger (for stroke and weight of 1st and 2nd phase and trigger stop) and an anatomically adjustable grip available in three sizes and for left and right-handed shooters. The model pictured here is fitted with a stabilising balance weight, designed to further improve stability of the pistol during firing and to minimize recoil.
The barrel is manufactured by Lothar Walther with 12-twist right-hand rifling and 450 mm pitch. Air power is supplied from an under-barrel cylinder, available in four different capacities: long (300 shots), intermediate (230 shots), medium (180 shots) and short (80 shots). It uses atmospheric air compressed to 200 bars (20,000 kPa). A pressure gauge on the end of the cylinder allows for constant monitoring of the pressure.
The Benelli Kite features micrometric rear sight adjustment with four settings:
1 click = 1 mm windage (left/right adjustment) at 10 metres. 1 click = 2 mm elevation (up/down adjustment) at 10 metres.
The sight aperture is adjustable by lever and screw.
Performance
[edit]The following tables show the results achieved by competitive shooters using the Benelli Kite in major competitions:
Gold medals
[edit]| Competition | Location | Date | Competitor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Italian Championship Master | Bologna (ITA) |
September 2003 | Alberto Cardinali |
| Italian Championship Student | Bologna (ITA) |
September 2003 | Elena Ruan |
| European Championship |  Gothenburg (SWE) |
November 2003 | Mikhail Nestruev |
| Finnish Championship |  Finland |
2004 | Teemu Lahti |
| InterShoot |  Netherlands (NED) |
February 2004 | Joao Costa |
| European Championship |  Győr (HUN) |
March 2004 | Mikhail Nestruev |
| ISSF World Cup |  Munich (GER) |
August 2005 | Mikhail Nestruev |
| Mediterranean Games |  Almería (ESP) |
2005 | Francesco Bruno |
| Italian Championship | Milan (ITA) |
September 2005 | Francesco Bruno |
| Finnish Championship | Finland |
March 2006 | Kai Jahnsson |
| European Championship |  Moscow (RUS) |
February 2006 | Tanyu Kiryakov |
| Italian Championship | Milan (ITA) |
September 2006 | Francesco Bruno |
| Italian Championship | Bologna (ITA) |
September 2008 | Francesco Bruno |
| Italian Championship Juniores | Naples (ITA) |
September 2008 | Andrea Scafa |
Silver medals
[edit]| Competition | Location | Date | Competitor |
|---|---|---|---|
| European Championship | Győr (HUN) |
March 2004 | Tanyu Kiryakov |
| ISSF World Cup | Milan (ITA) |
June 2004 | Tanyu Kiryakov |
| ISSF World Cup |  Fort Benning (USA) |
May 2005 | Mikhail Nestruev |
| Internationaler Wettkampf | Munich (GER) |
January 2006 | Tanyu Kiryakov |
| ISSF World Cup | Munich (GER) |
May 2006 | Joao Costa |
| ISSF World Cup | Milan (ITA) |
June 2006 | Tanyu Kiryakov |
Bronze medals
[edit]| Competition | Location | Date | Competitor |
|---|---|---|---|
| ISSF World Cup | Granada (ESP) |
October 2006 | Tanyu Kiryakov |
| European Championship |  Winterthur (CHE) |
February 2008 | Tanyu Kiryakov |
See also
[edit]- Benelli Kite Young - smaller version of the Kite, for junior competitors.
- Benelli Armi SpA
- 10 metre Air Pistol
- ISSF shooting events
References
[edit]- ↑ "Kite". Benelli. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
- ↑ Nagy, Attila (6 February 2015). "These Air Pistols Look Like Weapons from Star Wars". Gizmodo. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
