Several years ago, I was on a military shooting range trying to qualify a young Air Force Captain so he could fly. He had to qualify, or this pilot would not be on flying status. This can be very stressful for someone who wants to fly but has a hard time shooting. Finally, he was the last one, the others had already qualified and left the range. It was one on one training now. He was frustrated because he could not keep consistent and was hitting 18, 19, 17 rounds out of the 20 hits needed to qualify. In his frustration he would wave his M16 around wildly and flag me. I warned him about that, and he would calm down to try and qualify again. After being flagged about 4 times I finally told him we needed to stop and come back the next day.
I felt for this guy. He was trying so hard and barely missing it. I almost told him when he missed it by one that I would sign off on that and to his credit, he would not “fudge” it. We talked a bit in this process, and I got to know him better. He talked about concealed-carry off duty. As he was shooting, I mentioned target identification. He asked about what I meant by that. I told him a story I had read about a guy shooting his son by mistake because he thought he was an intruder. A flashlight should be an integral part of your EDC so that target ID is not a problem. I’ve heard using a flashlight is a double-edged sword. It gives away your position besides target ID. The notion that ‘the light draws fire’ or that criminals will wait in ambush for you if they hear you coming are nonsensical. Those are bad paradigms for us to insert in our thinking. If your background is such that having assassins waiting in ambush for you in your own home is a concern, you need to work on some serious hardening of access points to your home. This thinking applies in combat or law enforcement where noise is your friend. In a home invasion you want noise. Stealth is not your friend; it is your enemy. In fact, you should train by speaking. Next time you go to the range, take the flashlight with you. Instead of just blasting 50 holes in a silhouette, shoot two shots at the silhouette 25 times. Sequence is very important in how you do this.
- Have your gun in your shooting hand and your flashlight in your support hand. The gun is not pointing at the target and the light is off.
- Before each two-shot string, say out loud “Who’s there?”
- Wait and listen for an answer. If you go to the range with someone, have them stand behind you and sometimes respond with “it’s me, Daddy” or something similar.
- If they say that, immediately put your gun down on the bench and abort that sequence.
- Then illuminate the target without pointing the gun at it.
- Finally, bring the gun up and fire the two shots.
One of the things you will find when using this sequence is that the worthwhile two-handed shooting techniques don’t work well with it. It is both clumsy and dangerous to assume when you already have the light on the target and are keeping it illuminated while presenting the pistol. The Rogers/Surefire technique takes some time and manipulation skill to assume. What you will discover is that only the Cheek Technique or the FBI Technique work well in this context.
That means you must learn to:
- Speak while holding your gun.
- Abort the shooting sequence if there is not a threat.
- Do a dissimilar task with the other hand, i.e., orient the flashlight and work the switch, while keeping your gun off target and your finger off the trigger.
- Shoot with one hand only while continuing to perform the dissimilar task.
- Manipulate the safety or decock your weapon with one hand while holding something in the other.
For the final 5 repetitions (10 rounds), put up a clean silhouette target and shoot the LAPD Retired Officer Course (10 rounds at seven yards). Measure how well you do. You’re going to find it’s a lot harder than you think. From the LAPD manual:
“The starting position for this qualifying course of fire will begin at the 7 Yard Line. When the target faces, the shooter will draw and fire 10 rounds at a single silhouette target. A score of 70 percent is required to pass the qualification. All rounds impacting anywhere on the body and head will receive full value and rounds impacting upon the arms are half value.”
There is no time limit, so all you need to do is hit 7/10 shots in the torso or head of the target
That sequence is obviously rather involved; practice it before you must do it for real or you’ll forget to do it or get it wrong. Forgetting to do it is what leads to tragedies.
Some shooters may become overly anxious or excited, which can lead to careless behavior. They may fire at sounds, colors, movements, or unidentified shapes, or simply shoot too quickly. In the excitement after hitting their target, they may swing a loaded firearm toward their companions or run with the safety off toward the target.
Self-control is an essential aspect of safety. Only shoot when you know that no people, domestic animals, buildings, or equipment are in the zone-of-fire.
Slow, careful shooting is not only safer, but it also produces a higher degree of success.
Shooting accurately is a key safety factor. Some incidents, often deadly ones, have occurred when stray bullets have hit people out of the shooter's sight. Be sure you have a proper backstop before you shoot.
Being responsible for every bullet is the only way we as concealed carry or home defense participator can be.
Be safe and be deadly!
Semper Paratus
Check 6
Burn
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