{"id":99996,"date":"2019-07-06T17:24:05","date_gmt":"2019-07-06T21:24:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/digest\/?p=99996"},"modified":"2019-07-06T17:24:05","modified_gmt":"2023-08-31T21:40:25","slug":"is-your-car-cover-or-concealmentl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/is-your-car-cover-or-concealmentl\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Your Car Cover or Concealment? High Threat Vehicle Engagements with 88 Tactical"},"content":{"rendered":"

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88 Tactical\u2019s High Threat Vehicle Engagements\u2122<\/a> classes teach you how to respond to close range, high threat incidents in and around vehicles. Their training is based on real-world incidents and the study of human survival behavior under duress.<\/p>\n

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Most people spend a lot of time in and around vehicles. You are distracted and vulnerable entering and exiting your car. Bad guys know this. Whether you are a concealed carrier or a cop, you need to know about shooting in and around vehicles. According to 88 Tactical, 65% of law enforcement shootings are in and around vehicles.<\/p>\n

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When shootings do happen around vehicles, the results are confusing and messy. There may be no warning of an assault and no cover available except another car. Your immediate response is critical. A key determination that must be made immediately, is it cover or concealment? Can you hide behind it? Can you shoot through it?\u00a0<\/p>\n

https:\/\/youtu.be\/02KyRQAoquY<\/a><\/p>\n

Vehicle tactics have been around since Henry Ford made the Model T but it has not always been done well. Clyde Barrow was a student of ballistics. He selected Fords whenever he could steal one. While he valued the V8 engine, the solid steel construction and protective beams in the doors were another great reason to select a Ford as a getaway car.<\/p>\n

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Typically, Law Enforcement officers only receive a few hours of training on traffic stops and static felony stops at the academy level. Faced with this reality, 88 Tactical developed its High Threat Vehicle Engagements class to give officers and armed civilians the core skills and experience they need to prevail when a traffic stop suddenly becomes a worst-case scenario, or when engagement takes place in an area saturated with vehicles.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Tailgates and body panels are easily penetrated even with handgun ammo.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

I have trained with cars on the range. Using an old patrol car to practice getting in and out of the car was fine. Training approaches and traffic stops worked well up to a point. The problem was, we told people to use the car as cover and not to shoot the car.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

This is a classic training scar where training resources shape training rather than the reality of a fight. If you practice not shooting a car live fire or with FX marking cartridges, you learn techniques which don’t work on the street. When you shoot real cars, you quickly learn that they are only transitory cover if any at all. If the bad guy is hiding behind a car, it is often best to shot through it. If you train not to shoot through auto glass, you may miss the opportunity to quickly end a fight. If you don’t understand how to compensate for deflection through the glass, you may miss a shot you need to make.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Ad Hoc team tactics are critical for law enforcement.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

This class made me realize that training for a fight around vehicles means shooting vehicles and learning how bullets interact with vehicles. Spoiler alert, shotguns are very effective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cars may provide limited coverage for a few shots. Getting behind the engine block or axel and rims might provide some protection, but you can’t settle down there. Any protection you have won’t last long, it is transitory. This goes for bad guys too. Your first rounds may be stopped or deflected, you need to keep shooting to get a round through to stop the threat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To sum up the key points I learned, if all the cover you have is a car, try to get behind the engine block and rims to maximize cover. Immediately look for another covered position to move to. If you have shoot at someone behind a car, shoot early and often. Many of your bullets will deflect and deform. It takes a lot of rounds to get effective hits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The overarching lesson of this training is that most vehicles are concealment and not cover. This affects the targets we engage and how long we can stay in one place in a fight. Shot placement, the volume of fire and movement will carry the day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Topics Covered in High Threat Vehicle Engagements:<\/h5>\n\n\n\n