Requirements for an air rifle range

I’ve tried reading the various docs on SharePoint but I’m none the wiser. We have been offered funding from an alumnus to buy some air rifles, ammo and a pop up range to use at school.
What quals do we need to keep the weapons and ammo at the contingent, instruct and WHT the cadets and run a shoot? TEST SNCO is on leave for quite a while and we want to work out whether it’s feasible.

To deliver training you needs a full blown SAAI, to store weapons and pellets you don’t need anything and to deliver a range you need either an RCO or an Air Rifle RCO, the Air Rifle RCO Course SA(AR)12 is a 1 weekend course and is actually really good. (It also enables you to run improvised air rifle on a training area etc)

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As a minimum you’ll need:

RCO with the air rifle qual to run the range (SA (AR) 12) - but higher/standard short range RCO quals are good for air rifles too

An SAAI to carry out the IWT and 6 monthly WHT on the Cadets & staff

If you have a coach / safety supervisor as well as the RCO it helps

Range staff need AFA or equivalent First Aid

The storage is down to your school, IAW local law (different in Scot and NI). Some units do keep ARs in Benwelds if they are otherwise empty but ARs and other weapons can’t be mixed.

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Commanders Guide to Shooting on Shooting subsite on SharePoint covers most of it

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Improvised AR range presumably, not an improvised AR (that might be a STEM project too far for us!)

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Depending on the state of your estate, you could look at using a TS 25 on a temporary outdoor Air Rifle Range (School Field) details on the measurements of this are pretty spot on in Cadet Training Ranges page 96.

An effective 6 Lane outdoor range on a grassed area needs an area 30m wide and 120m long which then acts as the danger area.

For indoor, I would suggest engaging with the CCF(RAF) TSA, our regional TSAs are involved in the sign off of any ATC indoor Air Rifle Ranges.

My advice is to engage at that level early on, that way you can’t go wrong.

Would be a tad Kirk v Gorn :rofl:

I personally would look at TS25 whether you are planning indoor or outdoor.

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TS25 for outdoor is massive overkill.

There is talk of a dedicated Air Rifle only SAAI/RCO combo coming but it’s all a pipe dream at the moment.

You would need to check you don’t need a qualified storeperson for the pellets and somewhere to store them properly.

Come again!!

I could just store them at home and just bring down when needed. If not this is massive overkill for a bit of lead

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I know, it’s not an obvious thing to think about but check ACP 26.

You do not need to be qualified to store them, and you don’t need to store them in an armoury.

The advice from TG 5 (when she was in post) was that air rifles should be stored, at the minimum, in a lockable metal cabinet.

Well that’s rubbish. You can take them home with you at the end of the parade night and put them in your bedroom… I get what they might be trying to say but there’s no requirement for then to be under lock and key.

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Advice yes, but not a requirement. It would make perfect sense to store them in a Benweld if there is space and one is available, but not having one doesn’t mean you can’t have air rifles

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Any citizen over 18 can go out and buy 10000 air rifles and store them in their lounge.
They dont need to be locked up and you dont need an armory.

However sense would dictate, keep them in some cases for protection and store them securely. If only to prevent theft.

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Rules of the club vs. rules of the law.

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Depends on how much back drop you have no?

This was being heavily blocked by the old TG5.

I can state for certain that you do not need either of these things.

Where one is available it should be used, if you don’t have one or it’s full up you don’t need one.

And now the previous post holder isn’t present it’s being answered by the people that have the power to make those decisions.

No, we don’t have a range design available to the RAFAC that makes the temp range size any smaller even if you have a TS25. You still need the temp design as per CTR so save yourself carrying a TS25 about and use some wood, string and targets. The ACF have options as per the JSP where you can use different backdrops as in theory the TS25 includes the stop.

I’ve just had a look and if anyone is interested then the relevant para in ACP 26 is Order No. 2 Para 8. You can store them in a locked cabinet in a locked room. Regards the training element I believe it is up for discussion as the MOD think so.

Thank you everyone

If you have any old farts like me hanging around who have grandfather rights on the old CRCQ(SB) qualification, they also have the ability to set up a temporary outdoor air rifle range as well as be RCO for it.