SFO Airport Guardsman picture

[Flyboy73]

Just saw this pic in the Saturday Detroit free press.

Do you see the problem with it?

I stared at it until it dawned on me. THERES NO MAG in the M16.


Not much use to be guarding the airport with no mag in the weapon.

I showed it to a coworker and he responded with maybe they don;t trust the Gurardsman to walk around with a mag in.


Brion

 

[Josh Aston]

SOP for the Army when not in a combat zone.

 

[Davo]

The illusion of saftey. Soccer moms feel safe.

 

[striker3]

It is all about making people feel safe, whether or not they really are. If I were that guardsman, I would be pissed that I would have to waste my time in such a worthless post.

 

[MNgoldenbear]

Could be worse. Flew through SJC two months after 9/11 and a guardsman there had his mag in and his safety off. Just caught a glance as I was going through on the arrivals side & he was facing the departures side, and the selector was vertical. Not sure if there was a round chambered or whether his finger was clear of the trigger. Noticed the guy in the photo at least had his finger clear.

 

[Nightcrawler]

As for the safety being off, remember that with the M16 (or most of its bevvy of variants and clones) you can't put the weapon on safe unless the hammer is cocked.

Now, if the bolt is pulled back and the chamber checked upon issuance of the weapon (as it should be), then the hammer should be cocked and the weapon made, um, safety-able. But you know how these things go.

As for not having a mag in the weapon...looks silly, but really, the whole having the Nat'l Guard at the airports thing is silly. It's not like the terrorists on Sept. 11th stormed an airport with weapons and forced their way onto a plane. And if the badguys really did start sending squads of shooters to terrorize America, they'd be much more likely to hit a soft target like a school, hospital, or sporting event than a well-guarded target like an airport, which is crawling with cops and security.

 

[#shooter]

NG can not do police work. They are issued weapons but are not given mags or ammo. Even if it is a state of emergancy they are not given ammo. It is just for show. Guys in uniform at airports, fairs, bus terminals, subways, etc. I remember our unit having to pull this duty once or twice. We were like WTH? No ammo or radio. It doesn't seem like the guy in the pic has a radio either. Maybe it is in his pocket or behind him. I guess no one wants the guard armed after the Kent State incident.

Q:What do you do if you see the National Guardsmen running with his M16 at the airport?

A:Try to keep up.

 

[sixgunner455]

It's ridiculous to give a guardsman a weapon but no ammo and expect him to guard anything. That said, the California NG is the only one in the country (that I'm aware of) that had their soldiers w/o ammo at their airports. Their supervising officers had it all locked up and if there was an emergency, had to get it and distribute it.

All the rest of them were carrying ammo, including the one I guarded. Oh, and my supervisor was an NCO, not a butterbar LT.

So here we are again at an airport in California with a guardsman with no ammo. What's the big surprise?

 

[648E]

fixed

 

[TheArchDuke]

Well duh. Loaded guns aren't allowed at airports.

 

[444]

Civilians don't need guns.
The government is already keeping you safe. They even have the National Guard out there. Why should you feel the need to protect yourself ?

 

[rchernandez]

Since this is at SFO, just maybe "they" have legislated a new 5-round mag limit...so short you can't see it

 

[Nathan Williams]

Its in Kali duh its a kali legal AR. You know with the 10 shot fixed internal mag .

 

[skidmark]

the problem is even more obvious than you thought!

Mr. NG has no hearing protection.

After a few planes take off behind him, he won't be able to hear anything.

stay safe.

skidmark

 

[Iggy]

Years ago, the Security Police guarding Atomic Missle Warhead in a traffic accident had no ammo. I was the Highway Patrolman investigating the wreck, and only guy with a loaded gun. General in the Huey overhead wanted the SP to get me out of the area, as there was an M-16 pinned in the wreckage of the truck.

 

[Joe7cri]

It's California, no detachable Mags

 

[HankB]

They are issued weapons but are not given mags or ammo. Even if it is a state of emergancy they are not given ammo.

The smart ones bring their own. Even better if it's USGI . . .

When my cousin was in - some years back - he said that the unofficial (but very real) SOP if attacked while on guard duty with no ammo was to run like the devil was chasing you as no ammo = unarmed.

 

[NevJohn]

Hmmmm. NG cant have ammo and arent allowed to shoot??? Wasnt it NG at Kent State, Montgomery and also the L.A. Race Riots in the '60's?? I know afew guys I worked with that belonged to the CA NG and were called up in the riots and it was "lock and load" at all times while in the zone. Maybe things have changed then, to be PC and not upset the ACLU??

 

[ArmedBear]

That really pisses me off, not so much because I think that a Guardsman strolling around in the grass will accomplish anything to deter the sorts of terrorism we are concerned with, loaded rifle or no, but because we're wasting tax money on the M-16.

For $14.99, you can purchase this thing retail, and it would be at least as effective as the gun the Guardsman has, and good for cooling off in the heat, too (contrary to popular belief, SFO can get really hot in the Fall).

 

[ORAG]

Where Did You Get That Information?

It is entirely up to the commander if his people are to lock and load a magazine. Most of commanders pay attention to the threat and have the soldiers keep their magazines in their ammo pouches or pockets. The National Guard can't play police due to the Posse Comitatus Act but don't bet your life they can't assist in maintaining law and order, preserve property and protect life and limb. Most of the time the Civillian in charge sets the standards for arming the soldiers. The best weapon for a fixed post like that would be a 12 Guage w 00 buckshot. M-16 carries way too far. Been there done that...

 

[freedom and guns]

Skid

It's stupid and I may not be correct but I don't think any army in the world issues hearing protection. I don't think they ever did. The only hearing protection I ever (never seen any others) saw on a soldier was on MacArther on a battleship (in a video) They didn't even issue hearing protection to artillery men, in all those videos they are covering their ears. Makes no sense.

 

[OB-1]

Twice during my USAF career I politely and respectfully refused to carry a weapon without ammo. I was successful both times in changing the standing orders and getting ammo issued. Thankfully it was never needed, but we did have it in the weapons if it was. But, this was nearly thirty years ago, so I’m sure some things have changed.

Personally, when I see someone with a firearm, I assume it is loaded and I assume they will use it.

 

[nyresq]

at JFK the enlisted guys had M-16 with no mags or ammo, but the officers had side arms which were loaded...

looks good to the public, but the bad guys know the difference anyway...

 

[Finch]

It's probably because when the NG was at LAS over New Years this year, one soldier had a AD in the terminal.

 

[vynx]

I worked in an avionics shop in the air force in the 70's we were issued ear protection - yellow foam ear plugs and the kind shooters use that cup over the ears - lots of those kind got "taken home" & used at the range.