Shooting has become politically incorrect. Potential range properties are virtually unaffordable, taking up space landowners can more profitably sell to real estate developers. Indoor ranges are not only hugely expensive but are shut down right and left because of fears of pollution. Existing ranges are disappearing for these reasons, and also because only a few states (Florida and New Hampshire, to name two) have enacted range protection legislation.

But there are options. Today’s electronic firearms simulators are nothing less than awesome. FATS can put interactive long guns, handguns and even batons, pepper spray and Tasers in the hands of officers as situations unfold on the giant screen in front of them. The situations “branch” depending on the cop’s actions and effectiveness. Shoot at the armed bad guy and miss, and he’ll stand there and shoot at you. Hit him in the leg, and he’ll drop to one knee but still try to kill you. Center punch him, and he’ll collapse, out of the fight.

In April of 2007, the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association (ILEETA) hosted their annual conference in Wheeling, Illinois.  For the first time, they had a pistol match, the “ILEETA Cup.” ILEETA’s solution to “no range available” was twofold.  Inside the Wheeling Westin Hotel, the conference site, a high tech FATS machine was set up.  This would constitute half of the match. The other half was live fire, inside a Caswell range trailer in the hotel parking lot.

The FATS system can also be adjusted for simple (and, for that matter, complicated) marksmanship training. The ILEETA Cup “course of fire” was ten targets, one shot at each, in the shape of Federal Law Enforcement Training Center style silhouettes that popped up in sizes replicating some pretty long shots.

We all “fired” the same gun, a Glock 17 with 5.5-lb trigger pull, modified by FATS with an attachment that cycled it for each shot. The magazines were adjusted so they would cycle the equivalent of five shots before going to slide-lock, which mandated a reload to nail the ten targets. Each shooter got an “instant replay” of his or her hits in sequence after the stage had been shot.