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?
Edited >1 y ago
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 914
The Air Force was never intended to be a ground fighting unit. Back in the day, AF bases were protected by Army units for that very same reason. The ground fighting component of the AF is SF. Among our many duties, being the infantry of the AF is one of them. I started my military career in the Army and I will tell you that the AF as a whole was never designed to operate like the Army or Marines. The culture is completely different, and for good reason. The AF could not operate under the same culture as the Army or Marines. In SF, weapons are a tool for us. For the majority of the AF, a weapon is not a tool that they use in their day to day duties. ANd frankly, it should not be. I used to be CATM, and I can tell you that keeping an M-4 away from most AF members is a good thing.
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TSgt William Cantrel
SSgt Gregg Coldsnow - I was in from 1971 to 1991 and I qualified every year and when I was in charge of a shop or Prime Beef I made sure everyone was qualified.
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MSgt Mike (Lobo VNV Original) Morrow
I was in from 1963 until 1983 as an Avionics Technician and qualified every year. I spent the first ten years in Southeast Asia and only was issued an M16 once in Thailand. I did carry my own 1911 for every deployment had to get ammo from the Marines as needed.
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SrA Cecelia Eareckson
MSgt Gilbert Jones - Oh, I can tell you why, because women did not go to the range during basic. (AF, 1976-80) I only went because I got orders to south Korea, and had to qualify on the M-16. Had to requalify when I extended for a second tour.
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Everyone sees things through their own experiences. If I were an AF Security Forces officer, I might share your opinion. As a pilot, I was required to qualify annually on my assigned personal weapon, the M-9, because aircrew members deploy more than other AF personnel. So far that makes sense. So why not go to the much bigger effort and expense of making us like the Army or Marine Corps and force every Airman to qualify annually? To put it as simply as possible, because there is a fixed amount of time and money, and there isn't an Air Force base in Afghanistan or Iraq or anywhere else we fight. When deployed, we generally either to deploy to large Airbases in-country with our Army, Navy, and Marine brethren (who are responsible to protect the base) or out-of-country where the threat is much lower (SA, Qatar, Bahrain, etc). I know there are exceptions, especially for our Special Forces community...but then they are qualified on their personal weapons, aren't they? In order to be the best at Our Job as Airmen, we spend our time and money on training aircrew, mechanics, and all the other support functions necessary to keep airpower supporting the Joint Force Commander. If we spent lots of time and money to be like the Army and the Marines, we would be better infantrymen but worse airmen.
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SPC (Join to see)
1stSgt Nelson Kerr - Well kid who did u brown nose to get to 1st Sgt??? I have 4 cr from 6 degrees. WHITE Skeleton were found in Washington state in a river, There was at least one found out east and TWO white mummies found in Alaska. So I do not even think u looked. Yeah I think u are the kind to lie and that u did in the military.
And they found one Nazi sub in one of the Great lakes. I found that a few years back and then there is one off of the upper east coast.
WISH I would have told the recruiter Yes rather than no on what I was offered with my dad there that had been an award winning recruiter. And I am pretty sure My ASVAB was way better than Urs kid and IIF u have any college I KNOW my scores for the college entrance test ARE way better than anything u even dreamed of.
Now that I have given u some direction go out and really do what u said u did. U Run into ur loser type.
And they found one Nazi sub in one of the Great lakes. I found that a few years back and then there is one off of the upper east coast.
WISH I would have told the recruiter Yes rather than no on what I was offered with my dad there that had been an award winning recruiter. And I am pretty sure My ASVAB was way better than Urs kid and IIF u have any college I KNOW my scores for the college entrance test ARE way better than anything u even dreamed of.
Now that I have given u some direction go out and really do what u said u did. U Run into ur loser type.
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Sgt Neil Foster
SPC (Join to see) - "Ur ASVAB scores" were high... REALLY? You obviously don't know how to write, or use correct punctuation.
You are great at reciting 'war stories' but don't have a CLUE about researching facts. TRUE, a German U-Boat, UC-97 was found in the Great Lakes... but that is only HALF the story. The boat was taken by the US Navy after WWI, and used as a publicity tool. It was later TOWED into the middle of Lake Michigan and sunk for target practice by the USS Wilmette.
So, son, I suggest you wipe your nose, and LEARN HOW TO WRITE AND RESEARCH, lest you continue to look like a fool
You are great at reciting 'war stories' but don't have a CLUE about researching facts. TRUE, a German U-Boat, UC-97 was found in the Great Lakes... but that is only HALF the story. The boat was taken by the US Navy after WWI, and used as a publicity tool. It was later TOWED into the middle of Lake Michigan and sunk for target practice by the USS Wilmette.
So, son, I suggest you wipe your nose, and LEARN HOW TO WRITE AND RESEARCH, lest you continue to look like a fool
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Sgt Neil Foster
1stSgt Nelson Kerr
Actually, the US Navy acquired a U-Boat (UC-97) and used it for publicity. They later towed it into Lake Michigan and sunk it during target practice!
https://www.businessinsider.com/german-uboat-at-the-bottom-of-lake-michigan-2021-8
Actually, the US Navy acquired a U-Boat (UC-97) and used it for publicity. They later towed it into Lake Michigan and sunk it during target practice!
https://www.businessinsider.com/german-uboat-at-the-bottom-of-lake-michigan-2021-8
There's a German U-boat at the bottom of Lake Michigan
The German U-boat UC-97 was the first submarine ever sailed into the Great Lakes. It didn't make it out.
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SPC (Join to see)
Sgt Neil Foster - Yes my ASVAB was very High only found two people so far with higher scores and they were only a couple points higher and could not go much if any higher. OH and KID I did better than 89% of people on my college entrance exams.
Which puts ur snotty nose way behind me. And with my dad there who had been an award winning recruiter when he was in when he and the guy that signed me up saw my scores the very 1st words out of my recruiters mouth, and this is word for word exact. If they offered u West Point would u take it. And I said NO.
And kid My dad was a better air plane mech. than u were at any job u did. Never had a failure on any plane he and the crew he worked with worked on and everyone of them got job offers from Boeing.
Which puts ur snotty nose way behind me. And with my dad there who had been an award winning recruiter when he was in when he and the guy that signed me up saw my scores the very 1st words out of my recruiters mouth, and this is word for word exact. If they offered u West Point would u take it. And I said NO.
And kid My dad was a better air plane mech. than u were at any job u did. Never had a failure on any plane he and the crew he worked with worked on and everyone of them got job offers from Boeing.
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