News

Cadets get historical weapons lesson

  • Published
  • By U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs
  • Academy Public Affairs
U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. --  Academy cadets got a chance to experience U.S. history firsthand during the Cadet History Club's Historical Weapons Shoot at a Fort Carson firing range, May 9.

Twenty cadets and Academy faculty members fired nearly 2,000 rounds from more than 20 different weapons during the event, hosted by the Academy's History Department, the Cadet History Club and Fort Carson.

The event featured every standard shoulder arm U.S. military forces have used since the birth of the nation, from the .69-caliber smoothbore 1766 Charleville Musket to the 5.56mm caliber M16A4 Rifle and M4 Carbine used in modern warfare, said Lt. Col. Nathan Watanabe, an assistant professor with the History Department.

Cadets also fired the Civil War-era M1861 Springfield Rifle-Musket, the World War I M1903 Springfield, the M1918 Browning Automatic Rifle -- or BAR, the M1 "Garand" Rifle, the M1 "Thompson" submachine gun and the Vietnam-era M14, Watanabe said.

For Cadet 1st Class Chris Champion, the highlight of the event was firing the older weapons.

"The Revolutionary War musket and Civil War rifles are not something everyone gets to do on a daily basis," he said. "(This event) revealed a lot more about the struggles of a Soldier during that era than any other format."

Cadet 1st Class Trevor Cutler said the shoot gave the cadets in the History Club an opportunity to experience American History in a tangible way.

"I participated in the shoot several years ago and worked with Lt. Col. Watanabe on bringing it back this year," he said. "It was an awesome chance to see firsthand the weapons that generations of American fighting men and women have used. Shooting a black powder musket was definitely a highlight for me."

Cadets and faculty staff gained a better understanding of the impact of the industrial revolution on the development of firearms in the U.S. and experienced the decrease of rifle caliber size over time - from a 475-grain .69 caliber musket ball to 150-grain, .30 caliber bullets used during World War II, to today's 62-grain, 5.56mm bullets used in modern warfare, Watanabe said.

"With the Cadre dressed in period uniforms and equipped with authentic period weapons, cadets increased their understanding of soldiering through the ages," he said.

Watanabe said this and other "hands-on" experiences are invaluable when it comes to increasing cadets' understanding of their military heritage and profession, underscoring the theme of the Academy's History Department "To Teach History for the Profession of Arms."

The event also highlighted the formation and history of Fort Carson's 10th Mountain Division in 1942.