Publications
By Rob Orgel of Emergency Response Tactical
Published June 2023 in Blue Press Magazine
Now that we’re in an emergency situation, it’s essential to maintain accurate target identification, engagement, or potential disengagement. Let’s delve into two potential scenarios:
Firstly, in public spaces such as parking lots, identifying malicious behavior and utilizing resources like force escalation and physical tools (like a handheld flashlight) becomes crucial. If the situation necessitates lethal force, deploying your sidearm without a weapon-mounted light implies you’ll have to control and align both your pistol and flashlight under duress. While several techniques exist to assist in engagement, it’s inarguable that a solid grip made possible by a weapon-mounted light is superior.
Secondly, at home, if your front or back door is forcibly breached and you’re relying on your training to protect your family, you might opt for a long gun considering what’s at stake. If your long gun doesn’t have a weapon-mounted light, you’re dependent on your home’s electricity or ambient light—neither of which may be present. This can make target identification and engagement quite challenging.
Having discussed some “pros,” let’s acknowledge some minor “cons.” Pistol-mounted flashlights can affect the ease and comfort of carrying a pistol all day due to the additional bulk on your hip. Also, finding a holster that accommodates your specific pistol and light combination can be quite a task.
On a rifle, adding a weapon light forward increases the weight. We generally position our weapon light as far forward as possible for ease of use and reduction of suppressor shadow, but this contributes to the forward weight.
On a shotgun, like any weapon, we must thoroughly test our flashlight when mounted on the weapon to identify any failure points. With a shotgun, specifically, the increased recoil of combat loads can cause failure. Across all systems, any device requiring batteries will fail at the most inconvenient time, indicating the necessity of regularly checking our equipment.
Training is crucial once we have the right tools. There are numerous effective ways to train, but there are also limitations. Finding the appropriate instructor and a range allowing for low-light and no-light training can be challenging. A great training technique to overcome limitations is scenario-based targets. This method not only allows for shoot-no shoot targets but also for target prioritization.
By integrating it all under skilled instruction and oversight, we can manage target identification, transitioning from handheld to weapon-mounted lights, and prioritization of target engagement.
In summary, we don’t want to discover our need for a light or that our batteries are dead when we’re in an emergency situation.