Weapons Fielded for Familiarization

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Weapons Fielded for Familiarization
November 20, 2008
Marine Corps News|by Cpl. Travis J. Crewdson

MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. — As the Corps’ role in peacekeeping and humanitarian operations continues to grow, so are options for warfighters. Non-lethal weapons provide an important capability to help warfighters meet those demands.

“Our warfighters face a critical gap between shouting and shooting,” said Col. Kirk W. Hymes, Director of the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate here at Quantico. “In many operational situations, shouting is inadequate but escalating to a lethal response is not an appropriate or desired first response.”

More than 75 participants who support warfighters, including government and civilian employees, attended a training day, focused on non-lethal weapons. Hosted by the JNLWD, the training day on Quantico’s Range 14A, gave them a first-hand experience with several non-lethal weapons.

Safety was paramount, where shooters donned both eye and ear protection and received a safety briefing before the first round went down range.

Asking for volunteers was easy – seemly anxious people hurried to stand in line to fire the non-lethal weapons.


Rest of article at: http://www.military.com/news/article/marine-corps-news/weapons-fielded-for-familiarization.html?col=1186032366495