Hohenfels, GERMANY -- The International Special Training Center based in Pfullendorf, Germany, is currently conducting the Urban Sniper Course June 15-24, here.
The two-week course is designed to train sniper teams and teach the skills necessary to deliver precision fire from concealment in urban environments. Soldiers from the countries in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization are given priority when applying for the course but other counties may also apply.
Students will learn and then be tested on their ability to engage targets with precision fire under combat conditions during hours of limited visibility, engaging targets through glass and stalking in urban terrain. These skills can be critical to the success or failure of a mission.
"Our mission is to enhance the capabilities of previously trained NATO Special Operations Forces personnel," said Sgt. 1st Class Benjamin Ross, a U.S. Army sniper instructor at ISTC.
Ross said ISTC conducts a series of events and a final training exercise, such as shooting from an abandoned house, shooting from an aircraft at various heights and stalking a target, in order to give teams from different countries the opportunity of training in mixed teams in different scenarios.
Soldiers from nine member nations - Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Turkey and the United States make up the current cadre of instructors at ISTC and 16 students from various nations for this rotation.
One of the main goals of this course is interoperability between the 9 member nations and the other attendees of the course.
"One of the biggest advantages I will take from the course is the great opportunity I get to learn from other students as well as the instructors," said a sniper student from Norway.
The student also said it is easier to concentrate on skills and techniques with fewer distractions in this environment.
"What we like to do is present them with a set of scenarios and opportunities to train that they wouldn't normally be able to do in their home country due to time constraints or a lack of personnel. This way they can take this experience and knowledge back home and expand the knowledge of their country," said Ross.
The next course will be a pilot Desert Sniper Course that is scheduled to begin July 12-25, 2015. Sniper qualified soldiers that are interested in attending should visit the ISTC website for more information.
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