Competitors at AASAM 2002

AASAM 2003 call for nominations

The Army’s top shots will again be pitting their skills against each other to determine who will be the Champion Shot of the Army for 2003.

Will a new champion emerge or can Sgt Andrew Munn, 2RAR, successfully defend his 2002 title?

The Australian Army Skill at Arms Meeting (AASAM) is to be conducted at the Greenbank Training Area, Brisbane from November 8 to 27. AASAM consists of two separate but consecutive stages, an Australian Army (only) competition and an international competition.

The Army competition will commence on November 8 and will culminate with the Champion Shot of the Army match and trophy presentations on November 16.

From this phase of the competition the Australian Army Combat Shooting Team will be selected to participate at international level both at AASAM and at selected overseas events during the following year.

The international competition will commence the following day and runs until November 27. Teams from 16 countries, RAAF and RAN have been invited to attend and, at this early stage, indications are that as many as 14 international teams will be participating in the 2003 event.

As a result of the continuing evolution of the AASAM matches, the reputation and prestige of the activity continues to grow throughout the ADF and the international military community.

The introduction of entry standards has clearly ‘raised the bar’ for competitors, and the development of matches with relevance to operational capability has been fully supported by competitors and commanders alike.

Some significant developments introduced over the past two competitions were the requirement for all soldiers to compete in the F88 1.5 optic matches, with LSW and pistol matches being optional.

Additionally for the first time, soldiers fired with helmets worn, and in the MOUT match, with bayonets fitted.

AASAM is not just about competition. It is also about identifying strengths and weaknesses in equipment and combat marksmanship training, learning, and seeing what a trained soldier is capable of achieving.

For this reason, AASAM matches will be constantly evolving and looking to push the skills envelope.

• AASAM is open to both individual competitors and unit teams. The AASAM web site has been established and can be accessed via the Army Intranet Home Page; the site provides comprehensive information regarding AASAM activities including entry standards, entry forms and match details along with photographs from past AASAMs.

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