Firearms Training and Qualification

[FederalSecurity]

Just out of curiosity, how do the armed officers here get their firearms training? Does your company provide

opportunities for firearms training (ammunition, range time, etc.)? If not, how often do you go out on your own to

shoot? Does your company have a certain course of fire to qualify on? In your opinion, does your company give you

enough training and time to become proficient?

I'll start off. My agency gives us plenty of training, but since I'm a perfectionist when it comes to shooting, I'm seriously

considering going to the local ranges on my days off to knock a little more of the rust off of my gun-monkey skills.

[Jim1348]

Just out of curiosity, how do the armed officers here get their firearms training? Does your company provide

opportunities for firearms training (ammunition, range time, etc.)? If not, how often do you go out on your own to

shoot? Does your company have a certain course of fire to qualify on? In your opinion, does your company give you

enough training and time to become proficient?

I'll start off. My agency gives us plenty of training, but since I'm a perfectionist when it comes to shooting, I'm seriously

considering going to the local ranges on my days off to knock a little more of the rust off of my gun-monkey skills.

I think you may be referring to contract folks, but I will share my experience anyway.

When I was at the county, we shot quarterly. We were too busy to really do any more than what the state required. It is sort of disappointing to know that we were only allowed to do what was required, but that is how it was. We did not have either an indoor or outdoor range of our own. And, yes, we had a particular course of fire, which did change every so often. If you didn't have an M-4 in your car, you didn't have to qualify with it. I was allowed to, if I choose, to, depending on time constraints.

When I retired and went to the fed, it was very different in many ways. They have an indoor range and shoot quarterly. In Georgia, when I trained there for a number of weeks, one guy and I were the only two in that class shooting the .45 ACP. The range guys told us to shoot up the left over ammunition. They said it was easier than the paperwork required to return the rounds!

If anything changed about your duties, you would go qualify again. For example, I qualified with the 9mm, after we switched. Then, a week or so later, I had some Executive Protection duties. They had be qualify again. When I asked why, they aid that I might be wearing a jacket and had to learn to sweep back my jacket before shooting!

We were very proficient and spent a lot of time with the M-4 and transition drills. For example, the M-4 runs dry and you transition to the Glock.

I used to be sort of a "gun nut", but in time that wore off and I have other interests. My wife now has a Glock that I bought her and she has been shooting competitively. The civilian ranges kind of crack me up, though. It turns out that many (most?) don't allow peeps to draw and fire from the holster! Seriously!