MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
We will be in touch
Mrs M and I were driving along a quiet country road the other day, when we passed a group of 3-4 vehicles in a lay-by, with a dozen + police in flak jackets, ear defenders and army-style helmets practicing with machine guns. Not the hand-held ones, but pillar-mounted GPMG or LPGs. The targets (if they were firing live rounds, it might have been blanks) were 300metres away in the valley below.
We stopped an watched for a couple of minutes, but didn't ask them any questions - but which police force would need this sort of weapon and why???
Just because you don't need it now does not mean you will not need them in future.
They should keep up to date with weapons as the world is not really getting that easy to live in.
Naahh ... they should use A10 gun ...
live firing from a lay by????? 😯
Better looking at it than looking for it.
They should keep up to date with weapons as the world is not really getting that easy to live in
More sense from our resident zombie maggot overlord.
FWIW, if it was Lancs, it was probably from our resident crimefighter, practicing an MNPR practical joke to be remembered, to be captured & rendered artistry for eternity, by our resident Greggs ambassador.
In fact, are you sure it wasn't these guys?
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Location?
Possibly MODPLOD?
Ah, the location.
Yes it was a lay-by, but on a road through the Otterburn ranges in Northumbria. It's not marked as a road on the OS 1:25k maps
Are you sure they are police and not someone disguised as police? Could be potential terrorists taking over ...
Could someone shoot some A10 guns please ...
You lot are really out of date. 🙄
I'd have thought MoD police. 15 years ago when I lived outside a MoD research base we used to have a land rover drive through every so often with a pillar mounted machine gun looking for members IRA (suffice to say I didn't feel the need to invest in an alarm!).
Ah, Otterburn, that explains a bit
You sometimes see some fairly strange and exotic goings on up there, line of AS90 firing from right next to the road etc.
Lots of police have armed units, Wiltshire certainly does. I used to frequent a pub in a village called Ford, about five-six miles away on the A420 Bristol road, and it was rather amusing to see the faces of visitors sat out on the patio by the river in the evening when a cop wearing a flak jacket, carrying an HK carbine and with a holstered automatic pistol appeared down the stairs from the top car park, and also one Sunday afternoon while I was getting a pint, and the doorway went dark, everyone turned to see who was coming in, and it was the same heavily-armed cop picking up a Sainsbury's bag he'd left on the floor by the door.
Raised eyebrows all round.
The reason was Tom King, then Minister for Northern Ireland, lived in the village, not far from the pub.
I was a bit surprised driving back home from Salisbury late one night through West Lavington, to see a cop in shirt-sleeves, and fully tooled-up with carbine, etc, strolling along the path.
Turned out another government minister lived in the village.
This was at the height of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, and there'd already been people arrested in Ford scoping the place out.
A range? they could just be doing some familiarisation training.
I would imagine that some officers would need to know how to safely operate the bigger stuff.
It would be a stag party/corporate day. MOD need more income and this a way they can generate it.
Count Zero, I can understand having carbines and the light weaponry which airport police carry. But this was heavy stuff, pillar mounted, two handed operation. It took one of them an effort to lift the dustbin with all the spent cartridge cases. It was weaponry for war, not consensual policing, and the implications are disturbing.
Sounds like a 50. I'd be VERY surprised if any police force has one in their armoury.
It was weaponry for war, not consensual policing, and the implications are disturbing.
Some mistaken conclusions are being made right there!
Probably shooting a few more Cows
They heard someone had a drone taking pics of Mrs Miggins car. 😉
Count Zero, I can understand having carbines and the light weaponry which airport police carry. But this was heavy stuff, pillar mounted, two handed operation. It took one of them an effort to lift the dustbin with all the spent cartridge cases. It was weaponry for war, not consensual policing, and the implications are disturbing.
entirely what you would expect ministry of defence police, military provost guard service, or even elements of the civil nuclear constabulary, to have access to then.
Could have been "them" ??
It's hopefully in response to the hundreds of 'British' Jihadists returning from Syria to spread their love.
South Wales Police (North Division-Merthyr)
Otterburn eh? Probably sweeping up stragglers after the wedding I was at a couple of weeks ago.
Training.
For the coming zombie apocalypse.
Could have been "them" ??
That's what [i]they[/i] want you to think.
Anyone of you shoot a Ruger mini 30 before? Nice gun. I like.
entirely what you would expect ministry of defence police, military provost guard service, or even elements of the civil nuclear constabulary, to have access to then.
nah it's Liverpool Ports Police practicing for the festival this weekend
I quite often get to do completely irrelevant training as a fun bonus to more relevent training. For example I've done flooded cave rescue scenarios, despite being an inner city paramedic. Mostly because the training centre I was at had the facility!
Now, imagine a police armed unit spends a week at an MOD training centre learning some sensible things, with th promise if they all pass their exams they get to blast off the 50cal on the last day? I know I'd be up for that!
Up on Otterburn ranges, unless it was on the proper butts, it would be blanks. Houses and farms/livestock all over the place - including the inlaws!
Have scavenged loads of fired and unfired blanks ranging from 5.56mm up to .50cal. Father in law used to work range control up there, so could have asked him if he hadn't been made redundant last yeay
Picked the kids up when the AS90's were out a couple of months ago - awesome machines. Saw the muzzle flash and smoke, heard the round flying through the air overhead, then a massive boom.
You know this country has gone to the dogs when the 5-0 need a .50
😉
Up on Otterburn ranges, unless it was on the proper butts, it would be blanks. Houses and farms/livestock all over the place - including the inlaws!
not really, Otterburn is one of the biggest UK field firing ranges where you can be dropped in the middle and start a stage 5 live firing exercise
I also think it is one of the few places where arty can fire from outside the range
The big guns can but not sure about small arms. I'll ask the inlaws at the weekend when I pick the kids up.
You know this country has gone to the dogs when the 5-0 need a .50
how do you stop a UKIP paramilitary in a white van on a suicide mission??
The big guns can but not sure about small arms. I'll ask the inlaws at the weekend when I pick the kids up
small arms don't overshoot civilians, just soldiers
ask them if they have had any "bullet drizzle" or "crack and thump" or "drop short" experiences 😉
if hey are in the right place they might get night time fireworks shows showing of the tracer ricochets
big_n_daft - Member
You know this country has gone to the dogs when the 5-0 need a .50how do you stop a UKIP paramilitary in a white van on a suicide mission??
Or extreme left wing crackpot commies ... 😯
They are just up from Rochester, so get the big guns firing North from the South edge of the range
. Could have been "them" ??
Only if "they" can tell you the colour of the boathouse roof.