JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas –
Airmen at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph appear to be meeting the challenges of the Air Force's new rifle qualification course.
The course, which officially took effect Dec. 1, emphasizes combat engagement and developing shooter survivability skills.
"Everyone seems to be adjusting well," Staff Sgt. Joshua Clements, 902nd Security Forces Squadron combat arms instructor, said. "There are a lot of new sections that are more tactical, which is not what they have been using in the past. Overall, the base has done very well."
Master Sgt. Scott Brown, U.S. Air Forces in Europe combat arms program manager at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, said the new course marks a departure "from the Cold War-era style of qualification," providing Airmen with quality training that better prepares them for a down-range environment.
The course also poses more challenges, Clements said.
"The first is the amount of time it takes to complete the course," he said. "The second is the amount of firing."
Clements said Group A personnel - those in combat-oriented career fields - are required to fire three tables, or skill assessments, including new movements and short-range marksmanship and night firing, which is primarily for career fields where Airmen require advanced weapons training.
"This is taking anywhere from 11 to 13 hours to complete," he said. "This includes classroom, evaluations and firing. We train seven Group A personnel on that day."
Clements said Group B personnel - the majority of Airmen - "are worked a little differently."
"We have a maximum capacity of 14 personnel per class," he said. "The class and range are broken into two days. The first day is classroom in the morning and evaluations at the range that afternoon. The second day is two firing relays."
Clements said the amount of firing has increased from 160 rounds in the Tactical Rifle Qualification Course to 276 rounds in the AFQC for Group A personnel and from 100 rounds to 196 rounds for Group B.
JBSA-Randolph combat arms instructors noted other differences between the new course and the previous one.
"The old AFQC was a basic firing course, and the new AFQC has added quick reaction drills, movements with a loaded weapon and threat discrimination drills," Tech. Sgt. Duane Collins said.
Staff Sgt. Robert Vogel said the old course required a person to have a minimum score of 43 for expert in a single course of fire.
"The new course requires expert in every phase of fire where a score is needed in order to get expert in the overall course of fire," he said.
Clements said everyone will be qualified on the M-4 rifle, but if an Airman has a deployment tasking for an M-16/A-2, "that weapon will be zeroed after the course is completed."
Tech. Sgt. William Graham said the new course's greatest benefit is providing Airmen "with a larger skill set."
"It addresses some shooting situations the shooters may encounter more realistically," he said.
Graham said 902nd SFS combat arms instructors train an average of 70 Airmen each month.