Designated Marksman

[TacticalSnoopy]

We had the C7CT(?) for Designated Marksman in Afghanistan, not sure which year they came out though or how many were/are in the system.  I don’t recall if there were AR10s for the Marksman to use, or if they were only for the Snipers.

Interesting. I was a Sniper Det Comd when I left the Infantry and the AR10Ts were just coming into the system. In fact, my det commander course was one of the first to use them. I loved that rifle. We were told that they were going to be used in a DM role though I never really heard much about their employment after I left. I've often wondered what role they ended up being employed in.

 

[brihard]

To me a platoon level DM capability seems like a no brainer, and well worth trading in a rifleman. They could be tossed into a section easily enough if need be, but more likely would stay with platoon weapons det. Put a decent 7.62x51 AR platform with a good scope into the platoon, you’ll have a great asset for observation and precision fire where it’s called for. And a weapon that anyone in the platoon could pick up and comfortably use in a pinch.

I can see this being real value added in pretty much any type of dismounted combat operation... picking off leadership or support weapons in the defense, similar in offensive ops from a platoon firebase... Get into operations short of full out conventional war where valid targets may be among civilians in a rapidly developing gong show (riot outside a camp or base gone wrong), stuff like that... And a good optic is always an asset to the platoon.

 

[Colin Parkinson]

A certain westcoast reserve Infantry unit already has the right individual to teach such thing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXJFpVW2mDM&t=520s