The British Army will train soldiers to shoot down drones using target practice
The British Army is introducing target shooting training to improve soldiers’ skills in countering drones. The initiative aims to prepare soldiers to counter Russian drones, which are actively used on the modern battlefield.
The Army’s clay pigeon shooting team encourages soldiers to take up this sport in their free time, as it helps develop reaction speed, accuracy, and the ability to hit moving targets.
Clay pigeon shooting is a sport in which participants fire smoothbore shotguns at special flying clay targets. Their flight path mimics the movement of birds, and they are launched using automatic launchers.
According to Peter Miger, captain of the British clay pigeon shooting team, a number of military units have already expressed interest in training at specially equipped ranges.
“People often find that this isn’t quite what they expected, and through training, they realize they’re doing much better than they thought,” he noted.
The impetus for this initiative was Operation Interflex—a training program for Ukrainian military personnel in the United Kingdom.
During the exercises, Ukrainian soldiers told British instructors that they use shotguns to destroy kamikaze attack drones on the front lines. It was this experience that led to the creation of special ranges for target practice, where British military personnel can hone similar skills.
At the same time, experts emphasize that shotguns are not considered the primary means of combating drones.
Miger stressed that such weapons should be used as a “weapon of last resort” in cases where a drone is already within a dangerous range and other countermeasures are unavailable.
Interestingly, the Royal Air Force of Great Britain used stationary firing ranges to train personnel as far back as World War II, employing them to develop skills in engaging fast-moving aerial targets.
This is reported by The Telegraph.
As a reminder, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius will arrive in Lithuania for the NATO Freedom Shield exercises, which are taking place at the Pabradė training ground, less than 20 km from the border with Belarus.
From June 22 to 26, the Taiwanese Armed Forces will conduct large-scale combat readiness exercises, during which they will practice responses to a potential invasion by China.
