I’m glad to see that we’re retaining a .22 platform, as I feel it’s useful for cadets to do some live firing before progressing onto the L98A2. The skills that a simple bolt-action rifle requires are also more transferable to target shooting on civvy street.
I’m not sure where the figure of 10,000 units came from (in the article), but does anyone know roughly how many No. 8 Rifles are in service/in use at the moment?
(Apparently 10,000 No. 8s will cost around £6 million, and the 25,000 new Glock 17s cost £9 million.)
All rifles undergo a large series of tests, one of which is a Safety Drop test, prior to being accepted as Safe and Suitable for Service. The No.8 replacement will be no different.
[quote=“jacques” post=21245]
Do the ACF currently use the No. 8?[/quote]
Where they are serviceable, yes. In my county we don’t currently have any so the junior cadets use either the air rifle or the GP with .22 conversion kit. I can’t imagine us not receiving the replacement rifle as its absence does leave a gap.
Why would I need to have 3 on my sqn. I do not have a range. I do not need the hassle of daily check of arms every time I open up the building. The paper work involved in transporting rifles and ammunition to a range. I do not have any RCOs on the sqn and finally I do not have a second uniformed member of staff to act as the other key holder.
I just go to the sqn in the next valley which has a range on their unit, has an RCO and they to all of the admin involved in holding arms and ammo.
3 per Sqn = 3000 rifles, but i know about 50% of our Wing dont have an armoury due their location (scout hut/local school hall) or building simply isnt suitable, or their is no suitable cabinet. our Sqn for example (a standard spooner hut) isnt permitted to hold weapons as we have an old style armoury. with no range on site their is little justification to hold our two weapons as that isnt enough to train with.
our parent station holds 4 and i think our SATT hold a similar number which could account for another 500 or so…the rest split between ACF/SCC?
Use your imagination people.
3 Per Sqn is a scaling, but they don’t have to be held at that Sqn.
Your neighbouring unit could hold ‘yours’ and ‘theirs’, meaning 6 available for training and testing, which is much preferable to trying to train and demonstrate to a room full of cadets with one rifle as can happen now!
Some of those might be held at station armouries, meaning when you go to station to shoot, you don’t have the hassle of transporting arms there as well.
Some might just be held back in reserve, so that as they get dropped, broken, or disappear into the system for servicing, a fresh one can be sent back to the unit by return.
Are some of you so jaded that you are determined to see the negative in everything?!
I’m all for a stock being held at station armouries: it would be wonderful to be back in the position where you can attend camp and have a fighting change that every one of the cadets can actually get some shooting done. All the time in recent years we hear that stations have no No8s and it seems to be very difficult to get people to get trained/current on the L98A2 before heading to camp.
We’re lucky enough to have an armoury and range on site, and so would welcome holding other unit’s rifles. It would make our lives easier being able to shoot and train with them too, as at the moment our 2 No8s don’t allow a decent sized group to get hands on with it.
Similar to the L98DPs, issue the stock the the wing and let the wing decide where to hold them.
[quote]Thank you for your enquiry and apologies for the time it has taken to respond.
Please find below the response from the Project Manager leading the Number 8 Rifle Replacement
Project.
“The requirements were produced in conjunction and with the agreement of the cadet community.
To date we have not received concerns from Industry that the KSR’s are limiting their options to
provide a compliant solution”.
I trust that this addresses you concerns.[/quote]
I have replied, asking again for the project manager’s contact details:
Doubt if I’ll get anywhere, but I want to find details of any discussion paper (if any!) concerning the KSRs.