Baronvonrort wrote:asked how many rounds do they get to shoot with their pistols a year, the answer was none they don't get any range time.
Chinballs wrote:Baronvonrort wrote:asked how many rounds do they get to shoot with their pistols a year, the answer was none they don't get any range time.
Were they sworn officers or telephone monkeys at Firearms Registry? If they were sworn officers then I don't know what thhey were smoking but they are wrong. NSW police used to use the pistol club I was a member of in Northern NSW and still do according to my mate who is still on the committee. It is a nice earner for the club as they hire the range regularly ie almost every month.
Every police force in the country requires their sworn staff to requalify with live ammunition every year.
JWD40 wrote:An ex police officer that i occasionally catch up with at the gun range said they are required to do one shoot a year and admitted that that was insufficient. He also mentioned that most police officers feel they are inadequately trained to use a firearm and are nervous about having to use it one day.
He also mentioned that some stations have their own range.
marksman wrote:JWD40 wrote:An ex police officer that i occasionally catch up with at the gun range said they are required to do one shoot a year and admitted that that was insufficient. He also mentioned that most police officers feel they are inadequately trained to use a firearm and are nervous about having to use it one day.
He also mentioned that some stations have their own range.
this is very true for Vic as well, some have told me in the past they dont want guns and dont see a need for the public to have them
a lot of range time by police is from the SOG or CIRT who train and respond not your every day copper
they have a wish list but the budget rules for them
Gaznazdiak wrote:Chinballs wrote:Baronvonrort wrote:asked how many rounds do they get to shoot with their pistols a year, the answer was none they don't get any range time.
Were they sworn officers or telephone monkeys at Firearms Registry? If they were sworn officers then I don't know what thhey were smoking but they are wrong. NSW police used to use the pistol club I was a member of in Northern NSW and still do according to my mate who is still on the committee. It is a nice earner for the club as they hire the range regularly ie almost every month.
Every police force in the country requires their sworn staff to requalify with live ammunition every year.
Dead right.
My sister lives within 1500m of the range at Goulburn and the police use the pistol club there for training and practice as well.
Most still couldn't hit the broad side of a barn though.
Many years ago I considered pistol shooting, and went several times to the club to "try it on for size".
After the Po-po had been in, there was ploughed ground, virtually from a meter or 2 from the stalls all the way to the targets, and a couple of the members had a running joke about how many new holes they'd find in the benches and dividers and whose turn it would be to put a new patch on the roof as negligent discharges were apparently common.
Does make you wonder about the double standard that allows a police member to shoot dead a member of the public armed with a knife and get congratulations compared to the treatment that elderly Victorian farmer was subjected to last year for bailing up an armed home invader with his unloaded .22.
unusedname wrote:I for one want them not to practice, if they practice a lot, they will adopt the mindset of shoot first ask questions later, I would prefer the first tool they use when they come to my place is their brain not their gun, and if they adopt a heavy training american style then they will depend on their guns more.
zhuk wrote:Definitely wanneroo. Unfortunately the latter aspect is something that the ordinary beat cop doesn't really get training in (detectives are a different matter)
It's a shame that in order to participate in something like IPSC which although not perfectly suited (IDPA would be better) would at least give practice at shooting under more adrenalin-fuelled situations with movement and fast decision making involved, very few police quite understandably go to the trouble and expense of obtaining civilian licences.
zhuk wrote:Definitely wanneroo. Unfortunately the latter aspect is something that the ordinary beat cop doesn't really get training in (detectives are a different matter)
It's a shame that in order to participate in something like IPSC which although not perfectly suited (IDPA would be better) would at least give practice at shooting under more adrenalin-fuelled situations with movement and fast decision making involved, very few police quite understandably go to the trouble and expense of obtaining civilian licences.
wanneroo wrote:zhuk wrote:Definitely wanneroo. Unfortunately the latter aspect is something that the ordinary beat cop doesn't really get training in (detectives are a different matter)
It's a shame that in order to participate in something like IPSC which although not perfectly suited (IDPA would be better) would at least give practice at shooting under more adrenalin-fuelled situations with movement and fast decision making involved, very few police quite understandably go to the trouble and expense of obtaining civilian licences.
Is there any IDPA matches in Australia? I would imagine not.
I shoot in IDPA and there is some stupid stuff in it that I would not use in an actual fight, but it does force you to think on your feet, draw, shoot and move through scenarios. You have to reload under stress and you learn what gear works and what doesn't.
zhuk wrote:
Nope, youre right absolutely not here. One officer who does shoot IPSC at my club is allowed to draw from his duty thigh holster, and tries to take advantage of cover when going through stages, but as you say, it's far from ideal.
Apart from a yearly mandatory re-qualifying shoot, and if police don't draw their weapon on duty (hopefully not!) there is no chance of actual "practice" to be had. I've had health issues over the last 2 1/2 years and have only shot twice in that time (both competitions) and I know how rusty I felt, and that is after years of constant regular practice. The cops don't stand a chance with their level of training.
wanneroo wrote:zhuk wrote:
My wider concern with countries like Australia, being our allies and all, is that once society loses marksmanship skills, they typically don't fare as well in battles and wars and certainly will not fare as well with any societal disruption.