Basic Police Sniper / Observer Course
This is a 40 hr. course designed for officers interested in learning the fundamental skills of a Police Sniper. This course will be instructed by highly-qualified personnel, with over 25 years of experience in the field, whom will introduce a myriad of dynamics specific to the realm of Police Sniper.
Students will be introduced to Basic Sniper skills to include ballistics, range estimation, urban hides, and much more. In addition, students will learn to engage stationary and moving targets. The distances will vary from 10 yards up to 600 yards. As a result of the various distances, there may be some days where the shooting drills will be offsite at locations to be later determined.
Upon completing your online registration you will receive a confirmation email listing all of the equipment that will be needed to attend the course. Please note that the AMMUNITION is not included. You will need to bring a minimum of 500 rounds.
The fee for this course is $705. Payment can be made in the form of cash, check, money order, and or wire transfer. We are not able to process credit card payments.
From Training To Station And Whatever Lies Next What To Expect
Once youve been accepted as a probationary constable, the next step is training.
Youll learn what it takes to be an Authorised Firearms Officer and youll also learn a lot about yourself and where your future could lie in the MDP.
Highly experienced police trainers will demonstrate how to use your wits, and not just physical force, to handle situations as a police officer. Those could range from dealing with a struggling peace protestor to a potential terrorist threat.
An Ongoing Training Requirement
You will need to complete refresher and development training each year. This will comprise of tactical training, development and qualification shooting and first aid training.
Officers are monitored by a continuous assessment process and they must continue to display competence in their existing skills in order to remain authorised.
A pre-requisite for firearms training is that officers must maintain annual medical and fitness standards and be competent in Personal Safety Training.
Upon completion of your probation, you will have opportunities to gain further firearms skills, if you want to develop your career in one of our specialist units or roles.
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Meet Swat Requirements And Join The Team
The requirements and process to join a SWAT team depend on the force and the area. For some departments, the process to join a SWAT team involves an application and selection by higher-ranked officers, while others require that all officers complete a rotation on the SWAT team.
Most SWAT teams have rigorous physical requirements for entry, so potential SWAT officers pass tests for physical strength and agility. Other tests for SWAT candidates include vision and hearing assessments.
A written test evaluates the candidate’s critical reasoning ability, while an interview and extensive background check help determine whether the officer’s record and background are acceptable. Candidates might also have to pass a psychological evaluation and drug test.
How To Become A Sniper In Law Enforcement
In response to several sniping incidents against civilians and police officers around the country, police departments developed teams designed to react to emergency sniper situations, according to the Los Angeles Police Department website. The teams consisted of military marksmen and police officers who used their skills to protect innocent victims. Today, almost every police department has a SWAT — special weapons and tactics — team with a sniper division.
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Longest Recorded Sniper Kill
The longest confirmed sniper kill in combat was achieved by an undisclosed member of the Canadian JTF2 special forces in June 2017 at a distance of 3,540 m .
The previous record holder was Craig Harrison, a Corporal of Horse in the Blues and Royals RHG/D of the British Army. In November 2009, Harrison struck two Taliban machine gunners consecutively south of Musa Qala in Helmand Province in Afghanistan at a range of 2,475 m or 1.54 miles using a L115A3 Long Range Rifle.The QTU Lapua external ballistics software, using continuous doppler drag coefficient data provided by Lapua, predicts that such shots traveling 2,475 m would likely have struck their targets after nearly 6.0 seconds of flight time, having lost 93% of their kinetic energy, retaining 255 m/s of their original 936 m/s velocity, and having dropped 121.39 m or 2.8° from the original bore line. Due to the extreme distances and travel time involved, even a light cross-breeze of 2.7 m/s would have diverted such shots 9.2 m off target, which would have required compensation.
What Does A Sniper Do
When it comes to the most important skills required to be a sniper, we found that a lot of resumes listed 36.5% of snipers included law enforcement, while 22.5% of resumes included us army, and 15.2% of resumes included nco. Hard skills like these are helpful to have when it comes to performing essential job responsibilities.
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How To Become A Sniper
If you’re interested in becoming a sniper, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We’ve determined that 37.3% of snipers have a bachelor’s degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 3.9% of snipers have master’s degrees. Even though some snipers have a college degree, it’s possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become a sniper. When we researched the most common majors for a sniper, we found that they most commonly earn bachelor’s degree degrees or high school diploma degrees. Other degrees that we often see on sniper resumes include associate degree degrees or master’s degree degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a sniper. In fact, many sniper jobs require experience in a role such as team leader. Meanwhile, many snipers also have previous career experience in roles such as instructor or police officer.
Irregular And Asymmetric Warfare
The use of sniping to murder came to public attention in a number of sensational U.S. criminal cases, including the Austin sniper incident of 1966 , the John F. Kennedy assassination , and the Beltway sniper attacks of late 2002 . However, these incidents usually do not involve the range or skill of military snipers in all three cases the perpetrators had U.S. military training, but in other specialties. News reports will often use the term sniper to describe anyone shooting with a rifle at another person.
Sniping has been used in asymmetric warfare situations, for example in the Northern IrelandTroubles, where in 1972, the bloodiest year of the conflict, the majority of the soldiers killed were shot by concealed IRA riflemen. There were some instances in the early 1990s of British soldiers and RUC personnel being shot with .50 caliber Barrett rifles by sniper teams collectively known as the South Armagh sniper.
Snipers are less likely to be treated mercifully than non-snipers if captured by the enemy. The rationale for this is that ordinary soldiers shoot at each other at ‘equal opportunity’ whilst snipers take their time in tracking and killing individual targets in a methodical fashion with a relatively low risk of retaliation.
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Hide Sites And Hiding Techniques
The term “hide site” refers to a covered and concealed position from which a sniper and his team can conduct surveillance or fire at targets. A good hide conceals and camouflages the sniper effectively, provides cover from enemy fire and allows a wide view of the surrounding area.
The main purpose of ghillie suits and hide sites is to break up the outline of a person with a rifle.
Many snipers use ghillie suits to hide and stay hidden. Ghillie suits vary according to the terrain into which the sniper wishes to blend. For example, in dry grassland the sniper will typically wear a ghillie suit covered in dead grass.
Special Equipment Tactical Team
The Special Equipment Tactical Team deploys in situations that have the potential to produce a violent encounter that is more serious than what the average officer would typically face during normal duties. Circumstances that often require SETT activation are:
- Hostage incidents
- Riot or planned demonstrations
- Missing person/manhunt situations requiring organized movements
SETT consists of a Team Commander, Team Leader, Assistant Team Leader, and a maximum of 14 additional sworn officers, two of which hold the position of a police sniper.
Each member of SETT attends basic SWAT training, which is a two week rigorous training program that includes: breaching, deployment of chemical agents, advanced shooting tactics, room clearing, and physical fitness training. Police snipers attend an additional one-week advanced sniper school that teaches police related sniper skills, such as urban shooting, hides, and surveillance techniques. Some SETT members are also cross-trained in Crisis Negotiations and attend a one-week school. This allows SETT to effectively handle a crisis and use appropriate verbal de-escalation skills in the event that a negotiator is not present or the suspect refuses to speak with negotiators conventionally.
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Be A Great Police Officer Candidate
The answer to that question begins before you are even hired as a police officer. Candidates must stay in top physical condition and maintain a reputation as good student, citizen, and employee.
Applicants often consider joining the military and pursuing the sniper positions offered by the Marines, Army, or Navy. Those certainly are not pre-requisites for becoming a police counter-sniper, but being trained by the best in the world is a good resume enhancer.
For most agencies, you will need a college degree, or at least credits, depending on where you apply.
During the hiring process you will be asked a question like Where do you see yourself in five years? You can say, I see myself as an investigator, a sergeant, or as a skilled patrol officer at this agency.
If you want to be hired as an officer, you should not say, I hope to become a police counter-sniper.
Although there is nothing wrong with a person with skills and the desire to aspire to be a police counter-sniper, there are too many people in the hiring process who would consider someone saying this to be a red flag.
There is no remedying that, so keep it under your hat until the time is right.
Salary And Job Outlook
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage of police officers is $58,320 as of May 2015, with 80 percent earning between $33,430 and $96,110. Members of SWAT teams generally take home a police officer salary commensurate with their education and rank, plus additional hazard pay. Like other law enforcement officers, they supplement their income with generous overtime and bonuses.
Wages vary widely by region and are generally highest for those employed by federal agencies. In some locations, SWAT officers can boost their earnings potential by completing an associates or bachelors degree.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics expects that employment of police and detectives – including SWAT officers – will grow by 4% from 2014 to 2024, which is slower than the average for all occupations. This is due in part to ongoing budget concerns that are inhibiting government job creation in many areas of the country. SWAT units are quite expensive to train and maintain, and relatively few law enforcement agencies can afford to support them in-house. Candidates who have earned a bachelors degree will generally enjoy an advantage when applying for jobs.
The amount of money invested in training usually translates into excellent job security for SWAT team members. Even in the rare event that a unit is disbanded or restructured, members will almost always be quickly reassigned where their unique skills are needed.
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What Is A Swat Officer
A SWAT officer, or special weapons and tactics officer, is a paramilitary officer who uses military-level weaponry and strategy against threats. SWAT officers face some of the most high-tension situations in police work. They usually work for bigger departments like a large police force, county sheriff’s department or federal force because of the costs that their weapons and gear incur. Federal agencies like the FBI, border patrol, secret service, coast guard and national parks service all have their own SWAT forces.
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Sniper Abilities Training And Equipment
Snipers have special abilities, training, and equipment within the army. It’s a sniper’s job to deliver discriminatory, highly accurate rifle fire against enemy targets that cannot be engaged successfully by the regular rifleman because of range, size, location, fleeting nature, or visibility. Sniping requires the development of basic infantry skills to a high degree of perfection.
A sniper’s training incorporates a wide variety of subjects designed to increase his value as a force multiplier and to ensure his survival on the Battlefield. The art of sniping requires learning and repetitiously practicing these skills until mastered. A sniper must be highly trained in long-range rifle marksmanship and fieldcraft skills to ensure maximum effective engagements with minimum risk.
A lot of people have the misconception that to be a good sniper, you have to be a good shooter. Shooting is only 20% of the course at the Army Sniper School. It takes a patient person, a disciplined person, and a person who is used to working alone. In addition to marksmanship skills, the school instructs on detecting and stalking a target and estimating the range of a target. The course also covers concealment and camouflage, as well as observation exercises.
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Necessary Skills And Qualities
Hard working
A police officer who wishes to join SWAT must have an excellent service record and secure a recommendation from a superior officer.
Physically strong
Success on the competitive exam requires superior marksmanship and physical fitness. A career as a SWAT officer requires extreme physical fitness and physical courage. Team members must be able to run long distances, climb stairs, lift and carry heavy loads and handle large weapons without becoming fatigued. They must also be comfortable working in all types of weather and endure long periods exposed to the elements.
Mentally and emotionally stable
Candidates must be able to pass a rigorous psychological interview that tests their suitability for service in a high-stakes environment.
Start At The Beginning
The first step in becoming a sniper is to become a police officer. You must be a U.S. citizen, and typically at least 21 years old, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Law-enforcement officers are trained in academies or other specialized training agencies. Your training will include classroom instruction in topics such as law, civil rights, local or state laws and ordinances, and police ethics, as well as first aid, emergency response and the use of firearms.
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Improving Your Chances Of Being Hired As A Police Officer
Forensic Evidence & Technical Services Command
The Forensic Evidence & Technical Services Command provide a specialised forensic response to crime and incident scenes incorporating the collection and examination of exhibits, and the scientific analysis and interpretation of evidence in accordance with investigative and judicial requirements.
The FETSCs career options include crime scene examination, fingerprint identification, document examination, ballistics investigation, forensic imaging and engineering investigation.
To be employed within the Forensic Evidence & Technical Services Command officers must complete three years of general duties policing and then undertake psychometric and aptitude tests before they are further assessed in accordance with selection requirements for each discipline. In addition officers are required to complete relevant tertiary qualifications and achieve expertise status in their chosen forensic field.
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Rescue And Bomb Disposal Unit
The Rescue and Bomb Disposal Unit is based in Sydney but with the support of country based rescue units in Newcastle, Wollongong, Blue Mountains, Bathurst, Goulburn and Lismore and provides around the clock response across NSW.
RBDU capability covers general land and vertical rescue, bomb appraisal and disposal, search and rescue coordination, and specialist support services such as access to dangerous and difficult to reach places, and support to police negotiators by restraining suicidal persons.
Three years general duties experience is required before an officer is eligible to apply for the Police Rescue Operations Course to become a member of the Unit.