Weapons Training

Many of our training evolutions over the past week have been focused on weapons training and qualification for the M-9 9mm Beretta and the M-16 semi-automatic rifle.  We've shot over 200 rounds each at targets as close as 9 meters and as far away as 300 meters.

Firing a weapon is somewhat of a science.  It is amazing the difference a zeroed rifle makes.  Once the sites were adjusted on my M-16, I was able to hit a 4 centimeter target 25 meters away with three rounds, twice. (See picture)  Once you do that, your rifle is sited in, or zeroed, and you're ready for qualification on the ranges.

The biggest challenge in the weapons training has been lying on the ground in my battle armor, helmet and protective eyewear and trying to aim at the targets.  The challenge lies in the fact that the battle armor pushes against the helmet, which pushes against the protective eyewear.  Since I have to wear prescription inserts with the eyewear, they get pushed out of the line of sight due to the chain reaction.  Thus I am unable to clearly see the target through the sights.

Without the garb, I hit the 300 meter target 5 out of 5 times.  With the gear, I missed all five times.  That was frustrating.

Fortunately, over the next few days we get to go to the range and work on our ability to hit moving targets.  I'm looking forward to the challenge and overcoming the gear issue.

The reality is there is a 99% chance I will never fire a weapon once I am in country.  If I do, then many layers of security have broken down.  However, I'm glad to have had this training in order to build the skill and confidence to accurately fire my weapon if necessary.