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Subject:
RE:Qualifying as a gunner on an MBT
mike_golf
3/1/2004 8:57:14 PM
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Hmmmm, I'm trying to determine if you mean tank crew gunnery qualification or the process for an individual gunner to be considered trained. I think that the crew level qualification is more important, so I will address that. This is for the US Army and was current in 1996. I don't think it has changed significantly since then, except for the addition of engagements testing the crew's ability to use the CITV.
Every tank crew must go through a pre-determined set of training culminating in a qualification. The actual tables that the crew will shoot are similar in nature to combat qualification for small arms. A series of engagements are presented in a tactical environment to the tank crew. They have to achieve a minimum score of 70 (out of a max of 100 points) to pass a single engagement. They have to pass 7 out of 10 total engagements and score a minimum of 700 points on a table to be able to move to the next higher table. The tables culminate in Table VIII, the holy grail of tank crew gunnery. Tank crews have to qualify on this table twice per year in order to be deployable. Scores on Table VIII are worth lots of beer as well!
Prior to actually shooting gunnery the crew must take and pass the Tank Crew Gunnery Skills Test (TCGST). This consists of 18 hands on tasks, including loading a main gun round, clearing, disassembling, assembling and loading an M240 machine gun, vehicle ID and so forth.
Next, the commander/gunner combination must also complete a specific series of gunnery tasks in the Conduct of Fire Trainer (gunnery simulator). This series of training and tasks puts the crew through degraded gunnery (no primary sight), a series of tasks with the tank stationary, a series of tasks with the tank moving and NBC gunnery. It also presents friendly targets during the engagements. Hitting a friendly target automatically fails the task and requires you to reshoot it.
Table VIII itself consists of 10 engagements, 6 during the day and 4 at night. Optionally it could be split 5 and 5 or 7 and 3. Engagements include:
Degraded gunnery with a failed primary sight
NBC engagements
troop engagements
troop and BMP simultaneous engagements
Moving targets while moving
Targets presented are generally T-72 and BMP silhouettes and upper huamn torso's for the troops. Troops have to be hit by the coax machinegun, at least one in every set presented. M2 engagements against troops have to hit within one silhouette form of the targets. Engagement times begin when the target silhouettes are completely exposed. Firing time begins when the tank is fully exposed to the targets. So, when the tank is moving it begins at the same time as the engagement time. In the defense it begins when the tank's gun tube clears the berm of the defensive position. Engagement presentation is for a total of 50 seconds. Generally on the defensive engagements the first target needs to be engaged within about 4 seconds and the second in about 12 to 14 to score a 100. On the offense you have somewhat longer, about 8 seconds for the first and 18 to 20 for the second. Of course you have no time to acquire the target prior to exposing your tank.
There are additional tables all the way up to Table XII. Tables IX thru XII are section and platoon gunnery and not as important as Table VIII. Tables I - III are a variety of dry firing and simulated engagements. Tables IV and V are machinegun tables, VI is main gun only, and VII is a dress rehearsal for VIII with somewhat longer times to fire.
As a general rule if you miss with your first round you will not get a perfect score and it will be very difficult to get a qualifying score.
Hopefully this is what you were looking for. |
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