Mass Maritime Reaches For Their Guns

**admin** · March 18th, 2009, 01:38 PM

"Fire two rounds," orders Capt. Brad Lima. A group of Massachusetts Maritime Academy cadets shoot, aiming at cardboard targets on the campus range.

It's not combat for which they're training -- it's defense against piracy.

Students at the Academy are now being taught how to use handguns for the first time in the century-long history of the school because of the record number of pirate attacks, 293 of them, around the world last year. The 9mm guns are on loan from the Bourne Police Department.

Rear Admiral Richard Gurnon, MMA President, says, "This is just a small piece of the 4-year baccalaureate degree-granting program that we offer here, but the backbone to all of it is safety."

Full story and video: Mass. Maritime Reaches For Guns To Prevent Piracy

**CMA_Decky** · March 18th, 2009, 03:41 PM

Man that cadet has 7 bars, that's rediculous!

**drkblram** · March 19th, 2009, 04:03 AM

Maine Maritime has/had a .22 only range in the basement of the dorm. Pistol and rifle. Good practice.

On the other hand, unless your working for the gov' your not going to have weapons on the ship anyways...

**john** · March 19th, 2009, 04:46 AM

Originally Posted by CMA_Decky

Man that cadet has 7 bars, that's rediculous!

I think that means he's seven times more important than I ever was or likely will be.

**CMA_Decky** · March 19th, 2009, 09:10 AM

Yeah, our corps CO only gets 6 bars. Guess mass kids are just more important than the casual maritime kids.

**drkblram** · March 20th, 2009, 03:42 AM

CMA, now I follow what you were saying about 7 bars... Thinking back a few years, I think I remember something being said when Mass came up to Maine for a football game to the affect of "WTF, what's 7 bars mean? and does the regimental commander have to salute HIM!?"

**Anabasis** · April 8th, 2009, 02:13 AM

When I was there 10 years ago, the RC has 6 bars. Of course the regiment has changed dramatically since then.

The pistol range was in the Gym back then. I am not sure where they would have been in the dorms. They had a rifle team and it was all .22 caliber hand guns and rifles.

9mm training seems a bit pointless at the cadet level. Most ships that I know of are either unarmed totally (I don't count wrenches and baseball bats) or have a few shotguns and maybe some sort of revolver (kept in the captain's safe unloaded and useless). The MSC chartered ships have 9mm et al, but then again, you need annual gun training to carry them, so the certificate is basically expired soon after any recent grad would arrive on board, and they still would need training in the other weapons.

I think that small arms training should be given post-graduation, and in the weapons that they will be actually given. Just my opinion though.

JCA

**jcrosby4288** · April 23rd, 2009, 09:51 PM

yeah we get small arm training along with training with ak 47 assault rifles and AR 15's. i think its a good resume builder/ it gets our cadets somewhat familiarized with weapons so that if your not carrying a weapon for self defense on a ship but happen to take on off a dead pirate you might know how to point and shoot properly.