Viet Nam is no place for the
traditional American rifleman, who prides himself on long-range
sharpshooting and an unerringly steady hand. Though infantrymen do get
some chances for this, most firefights occur at ranges of 50 ft. or
less, in dense jungle that offers only a fleeting glimpse of the enemy.
To hit so elusive a target requires “instinct shooting” of the highest
order, and last week the U.S. Army was hard at work honing that
instinct in its infantry trainees—using, of all things, Daisy BB guns. BB With a BB. Known as “Quick Kill,” the program is currently being
taught to some 1,300 recruits each week at Fort Benning, Ga., by late
fall will become part of the basic infantry course in all twelve U.S.
Army training centers. “Quick Kill is for the shot you've got to make
when you don't have time to line up your sights,” says Colonel William
Koob, 47, director of weapons at Benning. “When it's either kill or be
killed.” After a day of instruction and the expenditure per man of 800
BBs , half of the trainees
can hit a penny in midair. An impressive 5% get sharp enough to hit a
BB with a BB. Based on instinct-shooting techniques developed by a Georgia snuff
salesman and trick shot named Bobby Lamar McDaniel, 41, the
Quick Kill method was developed for the Army by McDaniel's former
business associate, Promoter Mike Jennings, 50, a dabbler in horse
races, prize fights and shooting matches. Behind the method is the same
principle that a small boy instinctively adopts in a game of Cowboys
and Indians. When he sights his foe, he flicks his index finger toward
him and, without really aiming, hollers “Bang! You're dead!” His hand
is an extension of his eye—and in instinct shooting, the key is to
make the weapon an extension of the eye. To do so, the rifle must be locked solidly into the shoulder, with the
stock flush along the jawbone. The left hand is almost fully extended,
holding the barrel, and the right hand snaps off the shot. The gunner
keeps both eyes open and on the top of the target, since most shooters
instinctively shoot low. He does not aim. “That's a dirty word around
here,” says a Benning sergeant. Human Silhouettes. Starting with 31-in. aluminum discs flipped into the
air, the shooter can be hitting regularly in ten minutes .. Next
he moves to miniature silhouettes of humans on the ground 15 ft.
away—maximum BB-gun range. The Daisy 199 air rifles used in the
program are modified with heavy, military stocks to give a true feeling
of weight. After a few hours of training, the recruit moves to M-14 and
M-16 automatic rifles whose sights are blocked with strips of tape to
prevent aiming. Though few Quick Kill graduates have yet reached Viet Nam, Colonel Koob
is certain that their training will pay off in combat. It has certainly
paid off in enthusiasm. One Benning non-com claimed last week that
recruits actually sprinted back from a ten-minute break to be in time
for BB-gun drill.
