And they called those tanks "Ronsons" for a reason - and it was not a good one.
Jim
I can pick up a rifle, look through a scope, and hit a target without killing myself. If I got into an airplane without specific training, and practice, I'd kill myself. Big difference. A good sniper has training, but a person can still "snipe" without it.Is a 'fighter pilot' a position that can only be filled by a specifically trained person filling a designated slot? Or is it a job that was performed?
Answer, both fighter pilots and snipers require special training.
.....No snipers on the U.S. Army TOE of combat units until 1985. No Army school until then. No Marine school until 1977. And sniper training has far more to do with concealed movement than shooting.
I would rather of had a BAR than an 03 in those days.....
No they weren't. That is an oft repeated myth. No truth in it at all.
Ronson did not even come up with that marketing campaign with that slogan until well after the war was over. They got that through some bad media and faulty memories. Once it started, everyone jumped on the bandwagon.
Good story though, too bad it is not based on fact or what they said about the tank during WWII. .
I can pick up a rifle, look through a scope, and hit a target without killing myself. If I got into an airplane without specific training, and practice, I'd kill myself. Big difference. A good sniper has training, but a person can still "snipe" without it.
Modern Sniper training devotes many days to cover, concealment and movement.What you would be doing is sharpshooting. Sniping is much more involved than just rifle shooting at specific targets. Much of what a sniper is trained to do has nothing to do with shooting. We spent more time learning how to conceal ourselves, move without detection, and be a skilled observer than we did on how to shoot.
You are correct of course. I do understand that.What you would be doing is sharpshooting. Sniping is much more involved than just rifle shooting at specific targets. Much of what a sniper is trained to do has nothing to do with shooting. We spent more time learning how to conceal ourselves, move without detection, and be a skilled observer than we did on how to shoot.
The derogatory British term "Ronson" for M4, was based on Ronson's 1926 ad campaign of "A flip - and it's lit!" (Co-opted to "A hit - and it's lit!"), and their 1927 ad campaign of "A Ronson lights every time."No they weren't. That is an oft repeated myth. No truth in it at all.
Ronson did not even come up with that marketing campaign with that slogan until well after the war was over. They got that through some bad media and faulty memories. Once it started, everyone jumped on the bandwagon.
Good story though, too bad it is not based on fact or what they said about the tank during WWII.
.
Do you think a three week transition course learning how to take off, land and fly an F-4C would be enough to make you a fighter pilot?I can pick up a rifle, look through a scope, and hit a target without killing myself. If I got into an airplane without specific training, and practice, I'd kill myself. Big difference. A good sniper has training, but a person can still "snipe" without it.
But can you get into position on the battlefield, fire a shot, and get away unscathed?I can pick up a rifle, look through a scope, and hit a target without killing myself. If I got into an airplane without specific training, and practice, I'd kill myself. Big difference. A good sniper has training, but a person can still "snipe" without it.
Semantics,
A) Is "one who snipes" a "sniper"?
-or-
B) Is a "sniper" a specific military occupational field?
If (A) then give a man a telescoped rifle and viola, a sniper, if (B), then no.
And there used to be such a thing as a self-taught "pilot," too -- but they broke a lot of airplanes, and filled a lot of coffins.Now, there is such a thing as a self-taught "sniper", after all somebody wrote the first manual on sniping...
Now, there is such a thing as a self-taught "sniper", after all somebody wrote the first manual on sniping...
I don't think anyone can be a self-taught sniper because no one person could possibly achieve enough individual experience to have the skills of someone formally trained with the accumulated knowledge of generations. The "first manual on sniping" (whatever that might be) was not written by someone living in isolation with no exposure to the ideas of others.
And another thing....if a person goes through a Army centralized, sanctioned, "sniper school" and is passed, say for for political reasons, but slept through the entire course, is he still a sniper? Or is he just a lousy, but real, sniper?
Are you referring to something like the politically connected Latin American officers who were students attending The School of the Americas, sometimes derisively called The School for Future Dictators? Personally I have no experience with this type of political pass being given to a failing student but have heard stories. I see you are located in North Carolina. Did you by any chance attend or teach at one of Ft. Bragg's sniper schools and observe a political pass being given to a student?
And there used to be such a thing as a self-taught "pilot," too -- but they broke a lot of airplanes, and filled a lot of coffins.