Police Courses

All of our Police Sniper courses are to be attended in order as they are designed to be progressive, sequential 'building blocks' to develop a top quality Police Sniper.

This course teaches all the fundamental skills required for basic police sniper operations, focusing on the mental and technical skills to fire a perfect shot under ideal conditions. It is the foundation on which all the others are built. If you can take only one sniper course before you are expected to perform on operations, this is the one. Subjects include:

Marksmanship Principles (Theory & application; Use of support equipment; Fitting the rifle to the shooter)
The Optic Sight (Care & maintenance; Adjusting the optic sight)
The Sniper Rifle (Care & maintenance; Serviceability check)
Sniper Ammunition (Description & function; Interior ballistics; Exterior ballistics)
The Sniper Log Book
Mental Marksmanship (Principles & application; Sniper psychology; Terminal Ballistics and Shot Placement; The Mental Tool Box)
Operation Fundamentals (Planning & organizing equipment; Range cards & Observation Log pages; Camouflage & movement)
Training Techniques & Drills - Basic
Training Techniques & Drills - Variety
Zeroing, Grouping, Cold Clean Barrel Exercises
Shooting exercises to test ammunition, rifle, scope
Familiarization with closer ranges (25, 50, 75 meters)
Familiarization with longer ranges (200, 300 meters)

Course Length: 5 days (0800-1700 daily, approximately 50% classroom and 50% range work)

PS1 final shooting test includes firing four 5-shot groups at 1" aiming marks from 100 meters. This target was fired by a sniper from Guelph Police Service.

Police Sniper 2:
To Fire a Perfect Shot under Stress
This course teaches the police sniper how to shoot well in stressful situations plus advanced shooting skills such as supported positions and moving targets. Firing a Perfect Shot each and every time involves successfully dealing with physical, mental and emotional stress. The student is instructed and guided through stress control techniques so that the skills developed in PS1 can be consistently applied in any situation.

Course Length: 5 days (0800-1700 most days, plus night shooting exercises, 98% range work)

Penetration demonstrations are an important... and entertaining... part of the PS2 course.

In PS3, we throw away the bipod and focus on building marksmanship skill in unsupported prone, sitting, kneeling and standing positions, and then apply these skills to firing techniques taught in PS2 (such as snaps, rapid follow-ups and movers).

In PS4, the student is taught to apply the previously established skills to long range shooting. Long-range marksmanship is important for snipers with rural/regional jurisdiction, airport duties and/or responsibility for counter-sniper operations. The student is taught the techniques to be successful at ranges out to 600 meters. Special attention is paid to the various techniques required to accurately 'read' the wind. The skills required as a spotter/observer are taught and practiced in a closely coached environment. Subjects include:

The Role of the Spotter (Equipment, Skills Required, The Spotter's Position, The Spotter's Responsibilities, Understanding Swirl and Splash)
Elevation (Why we need elevation, Methods of elevating, etc.)
Windage (Why we need windage, Methods of windage, etc.)
Reading the Wind
Range Practices at 200-600 meters (Establishing holdovers; Shooting using holdovers; Shooting using sight elevations; Centering the group for the conditions; Reading the wind and adjusting windage; Practices with moving targets, snaps, agony snaps, rapid follow up targets; Observing swirl and splash and adjusting the fall of shot)
Practical Position Exercises at 200 to 600 meters

The student takes all the skills and knowledge acquired in the previous PS courses and applies them to the field with emphasis on field craft and field firing. This training is important for snipers with rural/regional jurisdiction, airport duties and/or responsibility for counter-sniper operations. The student develops skills in:

CCB & Group at 100 meters – Practical Exercise (daily throughout the course)
Judging distance (Methods, Factors, Use of the JD Form, Demonstration, Application and Field Exercises, each progressively more difficult)
Field firing
Review of skills required (from PS1, PS2, PS3)
Practical Application: several practices with field targets at unknown distances out to 600 meters)
Land navigation (with compass, map and GPS)
Reading and Using Maps (Understanding map notations; Picturing the ground; Reading air photos; Map Exercises)
Reading and Using the Compass - Understanding declination, bearings, resection; Map & compass exercises)
Reading and Using the GPS
Operational Applications - Route Cards, Planning & following a routes, Drive-By Navigation Exercise, Practical exercises – several progressively more difficult navigation exercises in our 700 acre wilderness
Observation
Review Why Things are Seen and Observation Reporting (from PS1)
Observation Elements, Position, Techniques, at Night
Use of Range Cards, the Panoramic Sketch, Observation Log Pages, Observation Exercise Forms
Practical exercises – several progressively more difficult observation exercises in the field
Cam & concealment
Review Why Things are Seen
Using natural & artificial camouflage
Camouflaging the sniper, the equipment
Camouflage in position and during movement
Principles of concealment
Practical exercises – several progressively more difficult cam & concealment exercises in the field
Stalking
Review Skills Required to Make a Successful Stalk (PS1, 2, 3 and 4)
Planning a Stalk
Travel (planning movement, methods of movement, night movement, tactics, communications)
Transition Point
Stalking (Before, During, Returning)
Stalking in Pairs
Practical Applications, solo and in pairs; all live fire

Course length: 12 days (0800 to 1700 most days, plus Night Observation Exercise; 85% range and field work)

In response to our customer's requests we are now offering a Sniper Recertification Course. This course is open to experienced snipers who may have received training from MilCun or from other course providers. It is a 5-day program that includes review and testing in all of the sniper skills taught in our first five PS Courses:

Course Length: 5 days (0800-1700 daily, 35% classroom; 65% range and field work)