Page 36 - Bugle Issue 19 Spring 2022

5 RIFLES
36 RIFLES The Bugle
DEMANDING EXCELLENCE ON
THE SNIPER PLATOON CADRE
The end of a 36 hour mission
Since returning from Op CABRIT the Sniper Platoon has gained eleven new Riflemen from across the Battalion. The Rifle Companies sent their best individuals that they believe have the right character and requisite skills to become a sniper. The Platoon, wasting no time, dived straight into their training long before the Cadre began. All the badged snipers have taken the lead in teaching, from theory-based classroom lessons to outdoor practical lessons. Focus has been applied to personal fitness, one of the fundamentals of being a sniper.
by two weeks of a summative phase. To test and improve the student’s memory each day started on a traditional KIMS game where they were given five minutes to remember fourteen different items before moving swiftly into the static map stand, followed by an observation stand and judging distances. This left the whole afternoon to focus on conducting stalks. After the day’s activity their answers were taken from the KIMS game. After a long day graft the aspiring snipers proved they were comfortable in navigation in poor/night conditions with all their sniper kit.
Six weeks of summer leave saw the Platoon refreshed and in great condition to commence the month-long Cadre on Sennybridge Training Area. Due to the complexities of COVID we finalised a plan where we accommodated ourselves in three different farm locations throughout. It was difficult, but safety had to be a priority.
Having grasped the fundamentals and basics of sniper skills we moved into the final phase of the cadre. The stands were timed and conducted as if you were under badged conditions and the confidence shown by the students proved to us that they were ready
to progress in training. They then operated as a Platoon over a 36-hour tasking, with three objectives, stretching over 18km. The overall objective was to prove they can accurately log and report using the correct voice procedure, escalating into a co-ordinated shoot and raid.
Observation and judging distance are core skills of any Sniper
Self-sustained and hungry for training, our main effort was to focus on perfecting the basics of the seven skills at the core of being a sniper: observation, day/night navigation, camouflage, and concealment, judging distance, sniper knowledge, and stalking. The first two weeks of the cadre took a formative approach with no scoring system, followed
All in all, a tough, successful few weeks. It’s been a great cadre that the students won’t soon forget.
CSjt De Lange, OC Sniper Platoon
Hungry for training, our main effort was to focus on perfecting the basics of the seven skills at the core
Remaining concealed means being uncomfortable
of being a sniper