Posted on May 28, 2015
Why don't all members of the Air Force have to be fully qualified to be a rifleman in case of hostile events?
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I have noticed through the years of being in the Air Force (Security Forces member here) that most people in the Air Force are clueless when it comes to M-4/M-16/M-9. This is outrageous! What are they supposed to do if the enemy comes knocking on our door step and everyone needs to fight. I have taught classes on the M-4 with communication airmen and have seen them completely mess up clearing out the weapon, loading it (magazine upside down or rounds the wrong way), and just completely incapable of achieving a zero on target after four rounds of firing. I am a big fan of how the Army and Marines teach that your are always a rifleman first. It almost seems like some of the Airmen don't expect to carry a weapon (ummmm why did you join the military in the first place)? I wish the Air Force would pick up on this to make us a more combat ready force. But, enough of me what are your thoughts?
Rifleman
3P: Security Forces
Air Force
Edited 9 y ago
Posted 9 y ago
Responses: 914
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Just as an aircrew would not want an infantryman loading munitions or working on their Avionics. .... The infantry sure are glad those duties are completed by trained AF personell! I was essential to my warthog pilots, as their egress mechanic. But, being a country boy I also qualified expert with my M-16....
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The last small arms class that I had, there was someone in it that hadn't fired a weapon in 10 years. As astonishing as it sounds, there are folks out there that will never be put in harms way to carry out their mission (Global reach). Don't try to put them in your shoes, put yourself in theirs.
Also, there were 9 guys in my flight in basic that didn't qualify on the range, all of them going to become SPs. If it was your job to teach those Comm troops how to operate an M-4, did you look at yourself first for fault?
Also, there were 9 guys in my flight in basic that didn't qualify on the range, all of them going to become SPs. If it was your job to teach those Comm troops how to operate an M-4, did you look at yourself first for fault?
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I had a female medic at Bagram damn near take my head off at a clearing barrel outside the defac... She sent the BCG forward dropped the mag and the. Pulled it out off safe and attempted to pull the trigger pointed right at my face... Quick snack to the bottom of the barrel and a loud bang and she pissed herself with the craziest look ever.
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All the aircrew and aircrew support personnel I know, to include aeromedical, have been required to be qualified on personal weapon in order to be on mobility/deployment status, and carry weapon full time in theater/AOR.
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I agree totally. When I was in the Navy Bootcamp Sept 72, we trained with one "one" hour shoot with single shot .22 rifles like we had in the Boy Scouts. I had always wondered why a military branch did not train with weapons. Pearl Harbor showed that all branches need to be realistically trained in Combat scenarios because attacks can and have happened. At Pearl Harbor, a "Cook" was awarded the MOH because he took over an AA machine gun and defended his ship with it. In my opinion (which isn't worth much) all branches need to be trained to handle weapons.
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I was actually really disappointed when we were told we would not be training with the M9. Still always qualified for M16 and M4. I have run across people that had to return to catm because they failed the M16 qualification for the 3rd time in a row.
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Goes to show why a DD214 should not be the qualification to get a weapons permit in several states. Being in the Armed Forces does not equal weapons proficiency. We can say the same thing about numerous units in the Army as well.
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MSgt John Darchangelo
The DD-214, where I live is checked to see if you are weapons qualified, before they will issue a weapons permit and then only the first time you apply. After that, you have to pass a written test and range qualify. My DD-214 shows I qualified as expert with a M-9 and a M-16/M-4... I was also a member of one of the few Air Force OPFOR units while assigned to Scott AFB..
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Garrett, I am not sure where you are teaching and to what command you are working within, but this is not the norm for the command I belong to, we have not had the M-16 A1 for approx 17 yrs. Additionally we have transitioned to the Glock 19. We fire both the AFQT but them also engage in Small Unit Tactics. This is done before deployment and during operational train-up normally we engage in weapons training every quarter and or Full Mission Profiles. This includes the combat teams and the service support team and yes we wear Blue. Before you make the assumption that the entire AF is a mess look beyond your experience as a SSgt. There are commands who are focused on the survival of their people because they are not apart of the AEF cycle and part of a dedicated combat force. Regards Chief D.
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In 92 all of us were required to qualify with a M-16. But your correct because after basic I never had to qualify again.Guess it's because of how far away from the front line we were. Pilots had side arms but that was it.
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