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Aha. Just did my first bit of shooting with the Air Training Corps today. I had never been before and I had no Weapons Handling qualifications, so I had to do everything from scratch- but I had done some training before so it was fairly easy to pass the tests.

Just a few photos as I didn't exactly have time to take many more. Either I was shooting/training, sitting there waiting to shoot or being one of the many moving the targets up and down... Which was bloomin terrifying for a first timer to a shooting range. They are so much quieter 50m behind than 100m in front.

Usually cadets start off with the Number 8 .22 rifle and move onto the L98A1... then upon completing a marksmanship standard award will move onto the L81A2 target rifle. As I say, this was my first shooting attempt... and I got put onto the larger L81A2. No messing around with the weaker stuff, I was given the big one to start. A pretty heavy rifle on some nasty gravel shooting 100 metres. The person there said I was very good for a first time shooter, and also that I was very good with that rifle. A pretty big kick back which caught me by suprise... but one heck of a good laugh. Unfortunately one of my friends ended up nutting himself in the eye with the scope from the recoil (swollen and bleeding around the eye) and I sort of punched myself in the mouth... but I think I had it mostly under control. Aiming was a bit off towards the end... Grouping of 3 in mostly the same area, which I think was their error because I fired at 3 different locations and dead center and they said I hit far right.


Anyway, enough of the life story... onto the few pictures I could get:










I have been put up for first grabs at L98A1 shooting in October/November because I didn't get a go at that. That was great fun even if it was a bit painful in areas.

900 m/s muzzle velocity, which is apparently Mach 3, which seems a bit excessive. But and interesting point none the less.


Cheers for looking.

We wise recruit Soldiers always made sure we missed the targets...

That way we were never selected to become Snipers....and be propelled into dangerous fighting conditions....and die.......!

A wise Soldier is a live Soldier... [smiley=thumbsup.gif]...!

F...ex REME...1955....  8-)...!

Ah well with cadets, points mean prizes... Lovely badges which make you look great  ;D

all ive evr shot has been a large arsenal of ancoent .22s my 16 guage and my dads 12 guage, whitch dont hurt at all wonder what the recoil from the 50 cals are like (im guesisng your friend didnt know aboyut not putting your eye right on the scope)

Well I don't think he put his eye directly on it, but certainly close enough. Whilst doing the WHT for the L98 one of my friends' eye lashes were pretty much touching the sights... Poor soul.

I tried telling them to keep their eyes further back and finger off the trigger unless a shot is wanted, but they seem to be wanting to learn the hard way. I presume it is because they are just newer to it. I have done probably 6 or 7 lots of WHT, but only been signed off today. This is no doubt one of their third or fewer attempts. Well we learn from failure, but with weapons I suppose we learn from training where it is much harder for bad things to happen.


I just want to fire it off. It is a cool looking weapon, and as I found out today is quite fun to dismantle and reassemble.

I heard the .22s are fairly weedy, but still I do need to fire them... In the next few months our squadron and another we have good links with are going to try and get some marksmanship badges. If the .22 is as easy to handle as they say it is, and the range is a quarter what I was shooting today, then it should be a breeze.

Like the pics!

Your experience sounds like my first experience shooting the M16A2 in boot camp haha.  Pulling targets for the first time was wierd, bullets flying a mere 2-3 feet over your head, some of them richeting off the posts holding the targets up...I was a bit nervous at first haha.

A good thing about you is that you had never shot before, that means you had no bad habits to break, they were able to train you to shoot their way and make you a great shooter from the start.  I was the same way when I went to boot camp, never fired anything bigger than my BB gun, I have qualified expert (highest qualification) every year since boot camp.  You will do great with the rifles!!

Yeh the targets were terrifying for starters then gradually became bareable. Well, sometimes you would turn your head for a second, a round would strike the earth and you get a huge ringing in your ear... Haha. I presume that is one reason why they make you do it in the real world- to get you used to the sounds of it all.

We had a nice sergeant teaching us on the L98 and a very calm flying officer (I think flying, but flying and pilot are so close) teaching me on the .308. It was also nice being taught and then 15 minutes later actually shooting because otherwise you typically forget the basics and can get into problems later.

Just brilliant fun, I would love to do it again. Will definately have to mark down my score as well.

Yeh, the .22 is weedy as hell. I never got to fire the L81, but if you have fired that, then the .22 will feel like a spud gun to you  ;D

I miss my days in the corps  :(...4 years of fantastic fun!

Enjoy yours to the full, and if anyone takes the mick out of you, tell them what you do on the weekends with the corps..shuts them right up  ;)

Black Sheep  8-)

Woah... I was just watching Black Sheep... Haha that scared me a little.


Yeh yesterday one of my friends said I should take up rollerblading, and I said I would much rather spend my weekends doing cadet things. Why, he asked... Because of all the shooting, flying, camps, adventure training and other qualifications we do. As I told him: "Flying is so much better than rollerblading. Can you do a lomcevak on blades, or do 5g loops?"

To be honest I don't think I get any rubbish... I got more before I joined as I had long hair, but now I've cleaned up my style and people seem to think it's cool that I can go do these things... It's mostly the long hours and requirements of commitment that stop them joining themselves though.

I am in my second year. I enrolled 1st September 2007 and as far as I can see... I am going to be there for as long as I can... Hopefully make Flt Sgt or maybe even CWO  :P . I am probably applying for promotion next anual year after I have done some more qualifications. Cpl George! Hehe.