PELICHET RIFLE RANGE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26916, 30 October 1948, Page 8

PELICHET RIFLE RANGE

Sir,—Riflemen of the Otago Province, and particularly the members of Dunedin and Kiwi Rifle Clubs, are still pondering over the fate of the local rifle range, which seems to have been condemned by some alleged ballistics experts at Army H.Q. because it does not comply with the safety margins they have laid down. Now, sir, I have just completed my own sruvey of this range, and have no hesitation in proclaiming it one of the safest for rifle practice in all New Zealand, and reasonably safe for machine gun practice under proper control. I have perused a copy of the regulations which these alleged experts would like to have the army enforce, and I consider them most unreasonably stringent: in fact, they are such that if applied to the famous Bisley rifle range would cause it to be condemned immediately, yet that range is considered by the British Army's experts to be as safe as it is possible for a rifle range to be. Some time ago the local clubs approached the army with a request to have the stop butts filled in and protective cover for markers put into good order, and even offered to provide the necessary labour, but the response from Southern Command H.Q. was very unsatisfactory Now, sir, I am puzzled to know how musketry courses are to be carried out in Otago when our new Territorial Force is formed, for outside of Pelichet the nearest range capable of providing foT this very necessary training is Otatara, at Invercargill. Transport and billeting would be necessary, and this, of course, wounld involve the already heavilywould involve the already heavily* quite unnecessary expense. It is time the army did something about it.—l am etc., T. E. Henshelwood.