thedrifter
02-22-07, 09:40 AM
Lock and Load: 31st MEU Marines, Sailors withstand uneven footing during Enhanced Marksmanship training
Lance Cpl. Eric Arndt
ABOARD USS JUNEAU (Feb. 21, 2007) -- As anyone who’s ever seen a movie with hard-boiled cops or trench coat-clad heroes knows, accurate marksmanship is easy not only when standing still, but also while running sideways on a wall or speeding through Central Park in a commandeered taxicab.
As the Marines and Sailors of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, who actually fired weapons at targets aboard a naval vessel can tell you, marksmanship in the movies is fictitious.
“The problem with trying to shoot while on the ship is that it’s not solid ground,” said Cpl. Thomas A. Loveless, a nautical navigator and one of 125 Marines and Sailors who participated in a live-fire shoot on the flight deck here, Feb. 21. “Right when you think you have your shot, the ship could rock and mess up your aim.”
The service members, belonging to Company F, Battalion Landing Team 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, conducted the training with M16 A2 Service Rifles and M249 Squad Automatic Weapons as part of the Enhanced Marksmanship Program.
The training increases service members’ skill in close-quarters battle – engagement with enemies that are 25 yards away or closer – and is invaluable for teaching Marines and Sailors, said Capt. Mike Cable, the company commander.
“The training teaches quick reactions, and it’s easy to modify it for the ship’s flight deck,” Cable said.
Getting the hang of firing aboard a moving ship adds several degrees of difficulty to the task, but it is not impossible to compensate for, Loveless explained.
“You just use everything you’ve been taught in boot camp and the School of Infantry: put everything center mass. You wait until your sights are on and you fire,” the St. Louis native said. “The only thing you can do about the rocking (of the ship) is to anticipate it, and not fire right when it swells.”
Although it may not be as flashy as in Hollywood films, firing while adjusting to the Juneau’s constant motion became another tool the Marines and Sailors used to improve their marksmanship for an actual battlefield.
“You can never know what environment you’re going to be shooting in,” Cable said. “If the Marines can shoot well here, with the wind and the motion, they’ll be that much better when they’re on solid ground.”
Ellie
Lance Cpl. Eric Arndt
ABOARD USS JUNEAU (Feb. 21, 2007) -- As anyone who’s ever seen a movie with hard-boiled cops or trench coat-clad heroes knows, accurate marksmanship is easy not only when standing still, but also while running sideways on a wall or speeding through Central Park in a commandeered taxicab.
As the Marines and Sailors of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, who actually fired weapons at targets aboard a naval vessel can tell you, marksmanship in the movies is fictitious.
“The problem with trying to shoot while on the ship is that it’s not solid ground,” said Cpl. Thomas A. Loveless, a nautical navigator and one of 125 Marines and Sailors who participated in a live-fire shoot on the flight deck here, Feb. 21. “Right when you think you have your shot, the ship could rock and mess up your aim.”
The service members, belonging to Company F, Battalion Landing Team 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, conducted the training with M16 A2 Service Rifles and M249 Squad Automatic Weapons as part of the Enhanced Marksmanship Program.
The training increases service members’ skill in close-quarters battle – engagement with enemies that are 25 yards away or closer – and is invaluable for teaching Marines and Sailors, said Capt. Mike Cable, the company commander.
“The training teaches quick reactions, and it’s easy to modify it for the ship’s flight deck,” Cable said.
Getting the hang of firing aboard a moving ship adds several degrees of difficulty to the task, but it is not impossible to compensate for, Loveless explained.
“You just use everything you’ve been taught in boot camp and the School of Infantry: put everything center mass. You wait until your sights are on and you fire,” the St. Louis native said. “The only thing you can do about the rocking (of the ship) is to anticipate it, and not fire right when it swells.”
Although it may not be as flashy as in Hollywood films, firing while adjusting to the Juneau’s constant motion became another tool the Marines and Sailors used to improve their marksmanship for an actual battlefield.
“You can never know what environment you’re going to be shooting in,” Cable said. “If the Marines can shoot well here, with the wind and the motion, they’ll be that much better when they’re on solid ground.”
Ellie