Issue 19 - Feb 2013 by Airsoft Action

ACTION

THE Airsoft Magazine

AIRSOFT ACTION

KWA KRISS

VECTOR IT’S FINALLY HERE

IED MILSIM OPERATION SCIMITAR

W IN KW

A KRISS VECTOR WORTH O VER

Visit the skills room for Andy’s expert tips

WE M&P PISTOL ❱ ICS G33 ❱ DEBATE: TWO-TONES ❱ CELCIUS UPDATE ❱ HOTCHKISS M201 AA_001_Cover_Rev4_MH.indd 1

FEBRUARY 2013 - £4.35

Jay checks out the legendary AEG

CQB SKILLS: PENETRATION FLOOD

9 772047 348025

Gadge gets stuck into this epic MilSim event

ON TEST: KING ARMS GALIL

FEBRUARY 2013

GUNMAN AIRSOFT: THE GOTHIC LINE

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CONTENTS AIRSOFT ACTION – FEBRUARY 2013

6 11 Editor: Nigel Streeter Assistant editor: Mike Hine Sub-editor: Craig Nicholson Graphic Design: Steve Dawson Art director: Chris Sweeney Ad design: Anna Makwana, Matt Smith Advertising: Toni Cole Group production editor: Colin Fallon Operations director: James Folkard Assistant publisher: Ruth Burgess Publisher: Wesley Stanton

Full UK 12-issue subscription rate: £59.40 For overseas prices visit: www.airsoftactionmagazine.com Cover photograph: Spectre Airsoft Media

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Blaze Publishing, Lawrence House, Morrell Street Leamington Spa.Warwickshire. CV32 5SZ Tel: 01926 339808 Fax: 01926 470400 E: info@blazepublishing.co.uk W: www.blazepublishing.co.uk © Blaze Publishing Limited, 2013 Distribution: Distributed to the newstrade by Comag Magazine Marketing, West Drayton, Middlesex UB7 7QE T: 01895 433 800

AIRSOFT NEWS A special announcement from The War and Peace Show features in our roundup of airsoft headlines

COMPETITION We give you the chance to bag the most eagerlyawaited airsoft gun of all time

KWA KRISS VECTOR Scott gets his hands on the stunning new Kriss Vector from KWA. Has it been worth the wait?

NO QUARTER Iggy heads down to Essex to check out Airsoft Quartermaster

THE GOTHIC LINE With Gunman Airsoft holding an epic MilSim event, Gadge showed up to bring us the lowdown

SUBSCRIBE After a subscription to your favourite airsoft magazine? Look no further…

31 34 38 40 43 48 51

MEASURING UP THE M&P This WE pistol promises a lot for a low price. Scott finds out if it delivers

OPERATION SCIMITAR Ron pays a visit to IED Airsoft for another cracking MilSim event

FAR CRY 3 Alex delivers his verdict on the latest game in the acclaimed Far Cry series

ICS G33 There are plenty of G36 replicas out there – so ICS have a big task on their hands to stand out

HOTCHKISS M201 In the latest instalment of Big Boyz Toyz, Ratty delves into the history of ‘La Jeep’

KWA ATP It’s a bumper month for KWA products, and Ratty does the honours for this pistol

ESTABLISHING AN OBSERVATION POST Part two of Billy’s series on constructing an OP

Copyright © Blaze Publishing Limited 2013. All rights are reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the express permission of the publishers in writing. The opinions of the writers do not necessarily reflect those of the publishers. The editor reserves the right to edit submissions prior to print.

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HIGH RISK ENTRY CQB tactics expert Andy explores the ‘penetration flood’ room-entry method

KING ARMS GALIL After an ill-fated trip to Israel last year, it’s only appropriate that Jay has his say on this AEG

CELCIUS GETS SERIOUS We bring you the latest on the most recent updates to the Celcius range

TWO TONES GO TO WAR The pros and cons of twotone rifles are picked apart in this month’s debate column

COLD WAR WARRIOR Gadge analyses the Soviet infantryman’s iconic winter equipment

REDWOLF AT CQB TACTICAL CQB Tactical is an airsoft site with a difference – Ratty explains how

REMEMBER THE FALLEN Dan pays tribute to the casualties of war, and reflects on his visit to Europe’s battlefields

SITE DIRECTORY Locate your nearest airsoft site here

BOOKSHOP Pick up some exclusive deals on a range of top-draw war novels and guidebooks

Find us on… facebook.com/AirsoftAction

elcome to the first issue of 2013 (I know it says February on the cover – but that’s just how publishing works). I hope you all had a stonking Christmas and New Year and are looking forward to another year of great airsoft action. It’s a new year and, as you have come to expect from Airsoft Action, we are starting it in style, with a gun that the airsoft world has been holding its breath for… for over two years: the awesome-looking KWA Kriss Vector. Already seen in films and computer games, was the wait worth it and does this beastie live up to expectations? We have the first full UK review, and also have one to give away in this issue’s competition on page 11. 2013 has started at a frantic pace, and if the conversations I had over the Christmas ‘break’ are anything to go by, this year is going to be hugely entertaining and innovative. I can’t say too much at the moment, but take it from me, if airsoft isn’t ‘on the map’ yet, by the end of 2013 I will be very surprised if the word isn’t included in the Oxford English Dictionary! Don’t forget, if you haven’t got your tickets yet for the British Airsoft Show, held 9-10 February, there’s still time to take advantage of online discounts for booking early. Of course, your favourite airsoft magazine will be there, so come along to our stand and have a chat – we won’t be difficult to find. See you there. Nige Search ‘Airsoft Action’

Letter, idea or question?

Got something to say? A question for our experts? Or an article, or article idea? Drop us a line and let us know. Either email the assistant editor (michaelh@blazepublishing. co.uk), send us a letter at the Blaze Publishing address on the previous page – or talk to us on Twitter or Facebook.

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AIRSOFT NEWS WAR AND PEACE RACES TO HELLFIRE CORNER Rex Cadman is delighted to announce the launch of his brand new show, The War and Peace Revival, which will be held at RAF Westenhanger, Folkestone Racecourse near Hythe, Kent on 17-21 July 2013. Rex is best known for The War and Peace Show, which celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2012. Held at The Hop Farm in Kent for 25 years, Rex transformed the original show from a small club event started by the Invicta Military Vehicle Preservation Society (IMPS), with just 100 vehicles in 1982, to the world’s biggest military vehicle event. Of his exciting new venture, Rex said: “After celebrating the 30th anniversary of The War and Peace Show, we thought it was time to draw a line under it and move forwards with a new event in a new venue, creating something exciting and fresh. My years of experience with The War and Peace Show have given me an understanding of what does and doesn’t work, so the new show will be even better.” The Racecourse location was chosen due to its unique relevance to the new

military and vintage event. Right in the heart of Hellfire Corner, so named due to the battering it received during the Battle of Britain in 1940, the area is steeped in military history. The Racecourse itself was used as part of Operation Fortitude (South) during WWII – the great deception designed to fool the Germans into believing the D-Day landing would be in Calais, not Normandy. Inflatable aircraft were set up along the racecourse to make it look like an active airfield and 660 Squadron used the racecourse in 1944 to practise operations with local army units prior to leaving for France. Visitors to The War and Peace Revival will be treated to attractions including living history, military vehicles, meeting WWII and other veterans, vintage civilian entertainment, trade stands, celebrities, battle re-enactments and military models. The first War and Peace Revival will be held at Folkestone Racecourse near Hythe, Kent (just off Junction 11 of the M20) from 17-21 July. For more information see www.thewarandpeacerevival.co.uk

SANTA SHOOTOUT 2012 Last December, airsoft players from the South cascaded on Worthing and Ford for the Santa Shootout 2012. This scheme was a valiant attempt to raise as much money as possible for St Barnabas House Hospice, Worthing, for their annual Christmas appeal. Scores of marauding Santas battled it out across the West Sussex countryside, screaming ‘ho ho ho’ as they opened fire in a jovial, festive contest. Special thanks go out to Jimbo Torrent, who organised the two games, Chris and Harrison Turner, Les Lee, who incorporated the fund-raising, and Ford Ranges, Yapton, for hosting one of the venues. A big shout out also has to go to the 100-plus players who helped raise between £700 and £1000 for the cancer charity. The organisers would like to thank JD Airsoft, UKMC Pro, Military Man and Strasburg Chiropody Clinic for their generous donations.

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AIRSOFT | NEWS PENCOTT CAMO RANGE EXPANDS

BADGERTAC OPENS NEW AIRSOFT SITE Many of you will know BadgerTac as a fine retailer of airsoft products – and now we’re pleased to report that owner and operator Ian ‘Ratty’ Armitage has been granted permission to use the shop’s site as a full-time airsoft location. Ratty is a well-respected and highly knowledgeable member of the airsoft fraternity, and a regular contributor to Airsoft Action. He’s been involved in airsoft since the very early days and, having operated sites in the past, it was always his wish to do so again. If you’ve visited his shop at Westcott Venture Park, you’ll know that it’s on the site of a former RAF airfield. In fact, after life as Bomber Command’s No.11 Operational Training Unit, it became the location for the Guided Projectiles Establishment, set up to study rocket propulsion, and a number of the buildings remain today. Last year, Tier One Military Simulation rented the site for a 36-hour combat mission, which involved helicopter insertions and a lot of adrenalin – and proved that the site was both playable and challenging. Following the success

of the weekend, and the impression it made on ‘the powers that be’, Ratty was finally granted permission to use the same area as a full-time airsoft site, and the first trial game was held on 30 December. At the time of writing, Ratty is hoping to run game days every first and third Sunday of the month, and is just waiting for final confirmation from the land management company of these dates. Needless to say, we will be reviewing the site at the first opportunity. The new website (www.badgertacevents.co.uk) should be ready shortly, and Ratty can also be contacted via his shop’s telephone number. Call 01296 658600 for more information about BadgerTac events.

Hyde Definition has launched its PenCott Snowdrift camouflage pattern – a three-color design that uses the same pattern geometry as the rest of the PenCott family. Snowdrift is specifically designed for optimum concealment in a wide range of snow-covered terrain. Traditional solid white snow camouflage doesn’t work well when snow cover is uneven and features shadows and textures – or where rocks and dry vegetation break the blanket of snow. Snowdrift, however, functions in all manner of snowy conditions. The threein-one, omni-directional, multi-scalar, fractal pattern geometry, and the three carefully analysed and selected colors of Snowdrift, create a pattern that vanishes into the textures of the natural environment and works well at close, mid- and long-range distances. The camouflage over-suit (pictured below) is made from lightweight, quick-drying, 100 per cent polyester fabric with a durable, water-resistant finish and military specification NIR performance. The suit comprises a parka and trousers set, and features multiple pockets and reinforcing patches on the elbows, knees and seat. It was developed by Hyde Definition with Griffin Manufacturing of Fall River, Massachusetts, at the request of a private military company, but will also be available soon directly from Hyde Definition. Dealers and retailers interested in stocking the suit should contact Hyde Definition on 0208 123 0302. Visit www.hydedefinition.com for further information.

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AIRSOFT | NEWS

TLSFx AND EDGAR BROTHERS TEAM UP TLSFx, the UK’s leading designer and manufacturer of pyrotechnic products, has appointed award-winning distributor Edgar Brothers as its sole European wholesaler. TLSFx is a pioneer in the field of airsoft and paintball arena pyrotechnics, and has many years of experience working in the special effects, fireworks and pyrotechnics industries. TLSFx Managing Director Tony Lewis explained: “The success of our products is a result of our dedication to quality, and constant research and development at our UK factory. This has lead to TLSFx offering the best and most comprehensive range of smoke and weaponry, specifically designed and tested for use in airsoft and paintball games. We’re very excited about our new relationship with Edgar Brothers because it means that we can focus on new product development and production.” Dan Eastes, Edgar Brothers’ Account Manager, Airsoft Division added: “This is a fantastic and much-requested addition to our growing portfolio. We were looking for pyrotechnics that were reliable, authentic and manufactured in the UK. Having done extensive, worldwide market research we were satisfied that all TLSFx products were extensively tested for quality and performance, and are CAD approved. TLSFx is already established and very well respected in the market; our role is to ensure consistent availability of this great product range with incentivised pricing and free carriage for volume orders.” For more information, contact Edgar Brothers’ sales desk on 01625 430330.

BRITISH AIRSOFT SHOW: UPDATE If you haven’t already, get Saturday 9 and Sunday 10 February in your diary – because that weekend sees the launch of the brand new British Airsoft Show, taking place at Stoneleigh Park Exhibition Centre near Coventry. Held entirely indoors, the massive 20,000-square-foot arena will include trade stands from the UK’s leading airsoft manufacturers and suppliers, along with information stands, feature displays and dedicated ranges where all the latest guns can be tried and tested. Almost half the area will be taken up by a hangar-sized CQB area, with regular demonstrations by Stirling Airsoft. An impressive battle complex is already designed and under construction, which will include explosive entry and live assaults with snatch vehicles. In between demonstrations, the CQB area will be available for visitors to try for themselves. So bring some of your own gear or get kitted out on the day with equipment supplied by Stirling Airsoft and Edgar Brothers. The UKARA database will be online for the duration of the event, so all UKARA members will be able to purchase on production of their membership card. And that’s not all… the British Airsoft Show is being held adjacent to the Great British Shooting Show, which now covers almost 200,000 square-feet, and is the largest public shooting and gun show in Europe. You’ll be able to see, evaluate and get ‘hands on’ with some serious hardware, from the Barrett 50cal and new HT1 Bull Pup in 50bmg, through to the 408 Cheytac, the Gilboa AR15 Tactical and Accuracy International’s full range. The impressive Lovat Society collection of historic sniper rifles, optics and sights from the world’s leading manufacturers, along with historic pistols and military firearms, will also be on display. The show is open from 0800-1630 on both days. Tickets cost £17.50 on the door, or you can save money and get priority entry by buying online at www.britishairsoftshow.com. Just one ticket gets you into both The British Airsoft Show and The British Shooting Show! The event is run in association with Blaze Publishing, so naturally Airsoft Action will be there. Come and find our stand (right next to RedWolf Airsoft). We’ve got one or two surprise guests turning up over the weekend, so you never know who’ll be there when you visit… Exhibitor List: MilSpec Solutions, JD Airsoft, RedWolf Airsoft, Pro Airsoft Supplies, The Grange Just BB Guns, Enola Gaye, Stirling Airsoft/Edgar Brothers, Armex Airsoft LandWarrior Airsoft, Airsoft World, UKAPU, The Fight School, Fullmarks Springtown Supplies Note: list is correct at time of press; more still to be announced

COMPETITION Last month we reported that Gary Steel of Oxted in Surrey was the winner of one of Airsoft Action’s Xmas issue prizes: a Maruzen PPK/S 007. Here he is pictured with his winnings. Gary said: “Thank you for this awesome Christmas present. I have been trying to get hold of a PPK for years.” Thanks again to RedWolf Airsoft for supplying the prizes for the competition.

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WIN...WIN...WIN...WIN...WIN...WIN...WIN... THE ARMOURY | M2000 SNIPER RIFLE

KWA KRISS VECTOR WORTH £330 F

or this month’s competition prize, the wonderful people at Kriss Arms have been generous enough to supply us with a KWA Kriss Vector gas blow-back rifle worth £330. This eagerly anticipated gun is one of the most faithful replicas ever produced – and Kriss Arms actually worked alongside KWA in the design of the product. Turn to page 13 for Scott Allan’s detailed analysis of what the Vector has to offer. He wasn’t disappointed, and neither will you be – if you manage to bag this prize. To be in with a shout, simply answer the question on the form below, and send it our way.

What size is the KWA KRISS Vector’s barrel thread? A 14mm B 16mm C 18mm D 20mm

n n n n

Name ______________________________________ Address_____________________________________ Postcode ____________________________________ Telephone ___________________________________ Email ______________________________________

Post your entry to: February KWA competition, Airsoft Action, Blaze Publishing, Lawrence House, Morrell Street, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire CV32 5SZ. Or, email your entries to competition@blazepublishing.co.uk, quoting ‘February KWA competition’ in the headline. Entries received after 10 February will not be valid. One entry per household. Winner will be first correct entry pulled from the editor's hat. Blaze Publishing would like to keep you informed of other offers and publications. Please tick here if you would NOT like to be contacted by post or email

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THE ARMOURY | KWA KRISS VECTOR

It’s arguably the most anticipated airsoft rifle of all time – and it’s finally here. Scott Allan gives us the lowdown on the KWA Kriss Vector

KRISS VECTOR I

doubt there are many airsofters who haven’t heard of the KWA KRISS Vector – unless they’ve been been living under a big rock for the past three years – but for anyone new to the sport, I’ll summarise. Airsoft manufacturer KWA gave itself the frankly monolithic task of recreating the KRISS Vector submachine gun down to the minutest detail, including the internals. The project remained on the design board for what seemed like an age, as the airsoft community endured frequent claims about its supposed near arrival. ‘It will be here this year’, was the most frustrating, and most commonly-heard official line – one

we hear far too often (as with the Real Sword M4 range, which has all but vanished now). The Vector always seemed to be so close, then everything would go quiet, followed by another surge of excitement, before we were deflated by another no-show moment. Well, I’m delighted to tell you that the wait is finally over: the KWA KRISS Vector has arrived. But does it represent a new high point for airsoft replicas, or is it just another high-end gas blow-back that costs a fortune, and which you’ll never use? KWA claims that the Vector is the single most faithfully replicated airsoft gun ever

made. Normally, trademarks are a hindsight or added as a little extra. Occasionally the trademarks are entirely wrong with the item they are on anyway. However, the Vector was built not only with trademarks, but with full co-operation from KRISS Arms in every part of the design phase – right the way through to the end product. The KWA version is even advertised on the KRISS Arms website; that is how proud they are of this product. They are even helping with the distribution. If only more firearms manufacturers put in this level of effort, we would have a massive range of top-end, fully-endorsed products.

Real steel The real steel KRISS system advertises a total reduction in recoil and muzzle climb – a pretty impressive claim. How has KRISS succeeded where every single manufacturer of firearms has failed before? The answer lies in their patented delayed blow-back KRISS Super V System. It is a simple yet superb design, which redirects the bolt off-axis down behind the magazine (hence its unique body design). Because the bolt travels down towards the ground at roughly a 30-degree angle, it redirects the recoil and the muzzle climb. The best ideas are often the most simple.

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“It is not only better than most GBB systems, it is the best system I have ever used, hands down, without a shadow of a doubt.” VIEWS FROM THE COMMUNITY Willie, a player at Airsoft Edinburgh said: “ The Vector has an impressive out-ofthe-box performance and solid build quality. It has positive controls and is very accurate in equal measure. Personally, I really love the two-round burst and the trigger pull. Both left-handed and right-handed players can easily use it, as it has ambidextrous controls. It feels comfortable for me to shoulder; I was really surprised when I got two full magazines out of a single charge of gas, which bodes well for warmer weather... if it ever gets here.” Ricky Cairns, Head Marshal at Section 8 Airsoft commented: “ I was impressed by the build quality and overall finish on display here. It was minus-two degrees and the Vector fired consistently on semi, burst and full auto, while most player’s GBB pistols were dead from the cold! KWA have done a fantastic job, and if you are in the market for a GBB PDW, this is the one to get.”

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Wherever possible polymer is used in the bodywork, ensuring that the gun is both tough and lightweight: always a priority for modern firearms. The days of heavy blocks of steel and wood are largely gone. Designed as a submachine gun (SMG), the Vector fires a pistol round, in this case the ever-popular 45 Automatic Colt Pistol or ACP (11.43mm x 23mm), which is the same round the 1911, UMP and M1A1 Thompson use. With both long and short magazines available, it holds either 13 or 30 rounds: a fair amount of lead. The 45 ACP is not a new round, considering the state-of-the-art design of the Vector. In fact, it is over 100 years old. One of the reasons this round was chosen, apart from its popularity, is that it gives one of the biggest punches and, in turn, more recoil than the 9mm round. KRISS wanted to prove that its system would handle any and every round, regardless of the recoil it generates. The guns were even spotted in films such as Resident Evil: Retribution and excellent remake of Total Recall, not to mention the ever-popular Call of Duty and Far Cry computer games.

THE ARMOURY | KWA KRISS VECTOR REEL STEEL

KWA REPLICA

OVERALL LENGTH (RETRACTED): 400mm OVERALL LENGTH (EXTENDED): 610mm OVERALL HEIGHT: 175mm WEIGHT: 2.54kg (unloaded) CALIBRE: 45 ACP (230g FMJ recommended) MAGAZINE CAPACITY: 13-round Glock 21 magazine, or 30-round KRISS MagEx RATE OF FIRE: 20+ RPS SYSTEM: Closed bolt, delayedblowback, patented KRISS Super V System FIRING MODES: Single, double and fully automatic FIRE SELECTOR: Ambidextrous SAFETY CATCH: Ambidextrous

OVERALL LENGTH (RETRACTED): 400mm OVERALL LENGTH (EXTENDED): 630mm OVERALL HEIGHT: 175mm INNER BARREL DIAMETER: 6.05 mm WEIGHT: 2.83 kg CALIBRE: 6 mm MAGAZINE CAPACITY: 24/49 rounds RATE OF FIRE: 20+ RPS VELOCITY: 320-340fps (Abbey Brut Sniper with Blaster 0.20g) GAS SYSTEM: FV PROPELLANT: Green Gas FIRING MODES: Single, double and fully automatic FIRE SELECTOR: Ambidextrous SAFETY CATCH: Ambidextrous PRICE: £330

The replica KWA has been around for many years and manufactures some of the best gas blowback (GBB) and electric rifles on the market, and with recent European supply issues now rectified, things should be moving full steam ahead for all stores in 2013 – meaning we can enjoy fruitful stocks of all KWA replicas. On the Vector, externally speaking, KWA really could not have done a better job. The

replica looks and feels just like the real version, which I’ve seen many times at various trade shows. The first thing you notice when you pick it up is the overall size and weight. Weighing 2.83kg (or 6.24lbs in old money), it is exactly the same weight as a real version loaded with 13 rounds. The airsoft magazine issued is the 49-rounder, although a shorter 24-round mag is also available. It mimics the Vector’s bolt system, with the KRISS Super V System and the KWA Force Velocity Engine, and the charging handle feels great. It’s solid, as if designed to work on the real version. While testing, I had to strip the gun apart almost straight away (after reading the manual of course) in order to lube it up, using the silicone-oil dropper provided. The internal parts display a tight fit, and it is comforting that tolerances are clearly being kept in production. I did notice that it was important to let the charging handle come forward under its own steam, rather than riding it forward, again like a real weapon-system. The folding stock is solid and firm, with no wobbles to speak off. I doubt I would ever fold it for any other reason than to store it, as it is fairly compact. The barrel thread is 16mm, the same as the MK23 SOCOM pistol made by Tokyo Marui, so those adaptors should work if you already have a silencer you want to use. The large magazine supplied with the Vector is a beast, and it holds a lot of gas: always a very good sign. Too often, magazines just seem to run short, the worst culprits being the 1911 series, with thinner magazines

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THE ARMOURY | KWA KRISS VECTOR

that are notoriously susceptible to cold conditions. I was slightly surprised (although not sorry) to see that the package comes with a large magazine and not the short version. The magazine holds 49 rounds, which is enough for most types of game that I would use something like this. Spare magazines are available around the £45 mark, which is pretty average for the size of the magazine. Pouches may be an issue though, as it is a long chunky magazine; something like a UMP pouch may do until a specific pouch is released. Each Vector comes with removable folding top sights, a 20mm top rail, 20mm side rail and a vertical removable front grip. This allows you to customise your SMG to your preferred load out. Along with the foldable stock, this makes for a great, highly compact GBB. While heavier than the TM MP7 and the KWA MP9, it is by no means too heavy. I feel the weight adds something to the package; as well as realism, it gives you a sense that you are actually carrying an item that should inspire confidence – and that it not something I often get from an airsoft rifle. The stats, compared against the real steel version, are clearly impressive, proving that attention to detail has been key in the production process. KWA’s engineering and technical know-how really delivered the goods in style.

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In Use

Conclusion

One thing often glossed over with GBBs is their usable performance. This is not just an important factor – it is essential, and with any GBB rifle, I am a hard man to impress. Gas blow-backs are difficult to get right and they are often painted into a corner, as I just don’t deem them serious enough performers to warrant the label of great allrounder. Gas blow-backs will never measure up against a 300-round, high-capacity magazine being unleashed at 15 rounds-persecond in a straight toe to toe fight. With that in mind, I was interested to see how the Vector would fare. On the game site I didn’t have the luxury of many spare magazines (they hadn’t arrived yet), so my involvement with the games was rather limited unfortunately. Nonetheless, during the games I used it, I was quietly confident every time I shouldered the Vector that it was going to snap a round rapidly toward my target. Running in five-degree temperature I didn’t expect anything very special, but with Blaster 0.25s I was easily (and I do mean easily) hitting out 40-50 metres with a mansized grouping, and it finished the magazine on single-shot with a little bit of double-tap use. I am impressed on just about any and every level with this GBB – and I am certainly not the only one, as our reader responses bear testimony to.

With a RRP of £330, it isn’t an easy spend for most players, at a higher price tag than a large number of electric rifles. But it is much cheaper than most GBB systems available, such as the G&P WOC rifles based on the Western Arms system. More importantly, it is not only better than most GBB systems, it is the best system I have ever used, without a shadow of a doubt. Among GBBs of this type, its performance is the best I have everseen in cold weather; unfortunately there was no hot weather available in Scotland so I can only imagine what it will be like in warmer weather. In short, if you really want a GBB SMG or rifle this is a brilliant, hard-to-beat system. But, if you are looking to dip your toe into the GBB market, then something like the G&G Combat Machine GBB might be worth trying before splashing out serious money on one of these. After all, it is a lot of cash, but you are getting exactly what you pay for: performance, licensing and build quality.

COMPETITION PRIZE Kriss Arms has very generously given us a KWA Kriss Vector to give away to one lucky Airsoft Action reader. If you’d like to win it, turn to page 11 and enter our competition.

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NO QUARTER As on-site shops become more popular, Iggy Roberts takes a trip down to Skirmish Airsoft Billericay in Essex to check out Airsoft Quartermaster

riving through woodland on the approach to Skirmish Airsoft Billericay, you can’t help but notice the wooden castle-like structures, military trucks and hardware used in the paintball site. It leaves you curious as to what lays ahead. After slowly driving up to the airsoft section of the woodland, you’ll find a large shelter covering dozens of picnic benches, where fully kitted-up airsofters hold back their adrenaline before heading out to the skirmish area. Located next to the shelter are two large shipping containers. One side has a large entrance revealing a counter, and the other side has a small door. The large door with the counter on display is where

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hire equipment is issued, maintained and stored. The small door on the opposite side brandishes a sign saying ‘Shop’ above an arrow pointing into the container.

The shop From the outside, it’s difficult to notice anything desirably shop-like about these two containers deep in a forest in Essex. However, as soon as you set foot through the small door into Airsoft Quartermaster, you find yourself scanning the airsoft kit laid out on display – in a manner you’d expect from any professional high street store. Walking around the central display of the shop, you can’t help but turn into a shopper. The display sparks your imagination, as

you spot a potential next purchase that you might ‘need’ out in the field. Originally, Airsoft Quartermaster was set up to provide rental guns and equipment to players on game days – in order to reach out to customers that wanted to try out airsoft, but lacked any of their own kit. Jacky and Jim Sidroy, the owners of Skirmish Airsoft Billericay, approached Andrew Cant, who has an engineering background, to help set up the rental business. Since then, Airsoft Quartermaster has developed into a repair and servicing facility for customers’ personal guns, as well as hire equipment. They opened the shop in March 2012 and have experienced growing interest ever since. The shop is currently open on game days only,

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RETAIL REVIEW | AIRSOFT QUARTERMASTER

“As you set foot through the small door into Airsoft Quartermaster, you find yourself scanning the airsoft kit laid out on display – in a manner you’d expect from any professional high street store.“

and runs alongside the renting and servicing facility. However, as the support and interest in the shop is so strong, Andrew is planning on increasing the stock to compete with high street stores, as well as setting up a mail order facility later in 2013. The team in Airsoft Quartermaster consists of shop owner Andrew Cant, senior engineer Ray Cranmer, and engineering apprentice/retail assistant Elliot

Thornhill. All three are keen airsofters, playing both at Skirmish Airsoft Billericay and other sites throughout the UK. Andrew is keen to point out that, although Airsoft Quartermaster is not a bricks and mortar building, it has passed all health and safety assessments and includes first aid points, fire-fighting equipment and fire muster points. Andrew is also a qualified first aider and fire marshal.

Stock-take The current stock includes a full range of weapons from ICS, SRC, WE, and a selection of G&G and G&P guns, plus various grenades, eye protection, and BBs from 0.2g to 0.43g, in various quantities – from 2,000-round bottles and 5,000-round bags to boxes – all mainly Aim Top. These sit alongside a selection of weapon accessories, all at competitive prices, and also tactical equipment, such as holsters, vests, batteries for all AEGs, and maintenance kits. The shop is currently open on game days from 8.30am until 4pm, and if they don’t have what you want on the day, they can order any gun, and have it ready for you to pick up by the next game day. The shop is powered by an on-site generator, and boasts a strong wireless internet connection – soon to be replaced with even faster fibre-optic. There is also CCTV coverage and a hi-fi entertainment system for the customers. The shop has a fully functioning electronic point-of-sale system, with an active stock take. A new feature in Airsoft Quartermaster is the second-hand jumble for used kit and equipment. This is a ‘buyer beware’ facility,

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EVENT REVIEW | THE GOTHIC LINE

THE

GOTHIC LINE With Gunman Airsoft re-staging one of WWII’s bloodiest battles, Gadge prepares to hold down the Gothic Line. Pictures by Ray Pearce

rom the title you might be wondering if this is a review of some band in eyeliner singing about vampires and poisonous herbs! Don’t worry, it’s actually an account of one of WWII’s most overlooked areas of operations – the Italian Front. Soldiers sent to the invasion of Italy were sometimes known as ‘D-day dodgers’, a terribly unfair nickname given that the Italian campaign was every bit as horrific, bloody and dangerous as the Normandy invasion, and fought in appalling conditions of mud, rain and freezing temperatures. By the winter of 1944, the Allies had fought their way into the ‘soft underbelly of Europe’ as Churchill had named it, and reached a stumbling block. While the Italians had had enough of Mussolini and surrendered to join the Allies, the Germans

were having none of it and dug their heels into Italy’s ‘boot’ with even greater gusto.

Company commander The scene was set: Allied (Commonwealth/ British and American) armies had fought their way through the south of Italy, but had now reached the mighty German ‘Gothic Line’ of fortifications, tank traps, bunkers and minefields. Though hard-pressed in the north of Europe, the German defenders were far from beaten in Italy, and had the advantage of holding strong defensive terrain. At Gunman’s game, staged at a site never used for airsoft before – a huge, wooded, former quarry and equestrian centre – it was ideal weather conditions to replicate the battle: cold, misty and wet, with harsh terrain. Rarely does a site suit

a ‘filmsim’ battle so well, and you could really imagine youself being in some frosty mountainous forest in 1944. After a prompt safety brief, the two opposing forces divided into their respective platoons. Yes, I said platoons! This was a big game, and for once each platoon actually looked like a group of 20 or so WWII combat soldiers. As the commander on the German side, this would be my toughest test yet – a proper ‘company action’ against a determined and experienced enemy commander.

Plan of action Not only was this a massive battle by WWII airsoft standards (with over 60 on each side) but we also had a staggering amount of WWII vehicles to play with, including heavy troop-carrying trucks, light utility

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vehicles, motorcycle combinations and even an armoured car! So, dug-in on the morning of day one, my platoons waited for the Allied advance. My anti-tank guns were fully crewed, my infantry dug-in, and my mobile reserve waiting on their vehicles, engines running. It all seemed perfect. Contact was made, and the plan for once appeared to be surviving contact with the enemy. However, before long everything started to fall apart, as the numerically superior Allies smashed through the first line of defence; the radio net was full of my platoon commanders desperately seeking new orders, back-up rally points and casualty reports. Never one to throw in the towel too quickly, I had a rapid conflab with my longsuffering 2IC, Evo, and we decided the best course of action was to pull back to a smaller frontage before attempting to outflank the allies. Now that was my plan, but actually putting it into the hands of the guys on the ground, the players, the lads doing the hard workâ&#x20AC;Ś that was the trick.

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EVENT REVIEW | THE GOTHIC LINE

But with top quality platoon commanders, and some nifty map and compass work, we managed to extricate our platoons from combat and into a much tighter defensive line at a ‘choke point’ on the site. Now the shoe was on the other foot; not only were our men much closer to ammo resupply points, but we were also quite closely packed, so platoons were able to give each other fire support.

Tank hunters Deciding now was the time, I advanced the right flank of the German line forward, out-flanking the Americans facing them, and then proceeded to advance the force platoon by platoon, both forwards and towards our own left flank, using the mechanised platoon to quickly plug-up any gaps in the line. Slowly the German line pivoted, anchored on our left flank and, like a giant door slamming, forced the allies back to their starting positions. This is a tricky enough manoeuvre with real soldiers, so to pull it off with guys playing at soldiers was a real tribute to their skill and discipline in the field. Seizing the momentum, the Axis forces kept up the pressure and pushed the Allies right back to the positions held at the start of the day.

A real thorn in our side had been the Allies’ armoured car, which was impervious to most small arms, and I was overjoyed to be told over the radio that our tank hunter team had destroyed it with a bazooka after stalking it for over an hour, showing real patience, skill and team spirit by sticking to the plan rather than chasing easier ‘kills’. And thus, at the end of the first day we Germans felt we were in with a fair chance here; we’d taken a beating, but given back as good as we got. Whether we could hold on for another day was the real question: one that could only be answered in the field after a good night’s sleep. I awoke the next day to find my tent pretty much covered with ice – it was literally freezing. But with the usual Gunman professionalism, the event team

got all the players up, breakfasted and into the field pretty much on time: some feat given that the weather was so damn cold.

Everything falls apart Back in our defensive positions it was clear that today would be much tougher, as with many events that span two days. With an option to buy day tickets, we’d lost a few men who’d gone home (understandably given the weather). Nonetheless, undaunted we planned for a renewed Allied assault. Digging in around the AT guns, we sent our motorcycle and sidecar units on a mission to mine the major approach roads with some artfully-crafted repro ‘teller’ mines that pressure-detonated flash bangs, before withdrawing them to provide mobile fire support from their sidecar-mounted

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EVENT REVIEW | THE GOTHIC LINE

MG42s. Thus, with a sound plan in place, Evo and I stood by the radio while it all fell apart! The Allies were really on form, coordinating their assaults well. Position after position fell, and within a few hours we were close to being totally overrun, forcing Evo and I to move our HQ to a more secure site. But eventually even this position was in danger of being overrun and, deciding we’d done all we could to delay the Allies, we decided to withdraw. Each platoon was tasked with making their best efforts to destroy an Allied radio post before

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exfiltrating to a rally point on the map, and we wished them Godspeed as we sent them off Sadly, we were pretty much surrounded, and only a few guys managed to get close to the radio point before being taken out. In our eyes, the Allies had broken through the Gothic Line – but we’d retained honour by holding them off until the 11th hour.

Pyrrhic Victory Well, that’s how it looked to us anyway. As fate would have it, Gunman’s main man Josh explained at the debrief

that the Allies, while romping all over objectives, had utterly failed in their main task to locate and clear a route through the mined roads. And so, while their infantry basked in the glory of a job seemingly well done, they were told that the advancing ‘breakthrough’ armour had suffered horrendous losses due to mines. The moral of the story, it would seem, is to always focus on your objectives, not on the gunfights. Driving home, Evo and I couldn’t help feel that, despite some tiny frustrations (as you’re always going to get with an event hosting more than 100 players), it was probably one of the biggest and best WWII events we’ve been to yet. And we’ve been to a lot!

INFORMATION & PRICES GUNMAN AIRSOFT WEB: www.gunmanairsoft.co.uk TEL: 07854 277264 EMAIL: enquiries@gunmanairsoft.co.uk SITES: Tuddenham, Norwich, Eversley, Midlands PRICES: £25 one day; £50 with hire. £40 weekend; £85 with hire.

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THE ARMOURY | WE M&P

MEASURING UP THE M&P Scott Allan gets to grips with the WE Smith & Wesson Military & Police 9mm to see if it delivers on its promises

“S

mith & Wesson Military & Police 9mm”… Who actually names these things? Could Wei Tech be laughing in the face of Tokyo Marui after beating it to release this M&P 9mm? WE has been making budget pistols for a long time, but more recently some bizarre evolution occurred and it started to make heavyweight pistols that didn’t just feel good to hold: they also stood up against the big boys at KWA and TM. The first of these that I noticed were the XDM and the Glock Gen 4. They were snappy and they held a good charge of gas. Best of all, the prices haven’t really changed.

TM promised an M&P pistol a couple of years ago and did not deliver. Now WE has produced something that looks nice – but is it worth the excitement? The Real Steel version is a Zytel polymer-framed, lightweight military and police pistol (no surprises there). Released in the middle of last decade, it sports some lovely ergonomic design features and a low-profile top slide. The jointed trigger is an unusual feature – halfway down there is a hinge that allows it to move further into the full firing position. The real version, like many pistols these days, comes in a variety of calibres: S&W’s proprietary round the S&W 0.40 cal, 9mm,

.45 ACP and .357 SIG. All in all, exactly what you would expect from a modern-day pistol aimed at that particular market. Externally the pistol sports the ‘wow’ factor. The box depicts a couple of toucans. I have no idea why, but it made me chuckle. Opening the box you are presented with the pistol, along with a selection of six grips. Small, medium and large in the lower frame colour or…pink. I don’t pick the colours, I just review the pistols. Changing them, however, is easy, so I found my ideal fit quickly. There are no trademarks, which is a shame, but considering the whole package costs less than £100 I won’t complain

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THE ARMOURY | WE M&P

This is one of the best pistols WE has ever produced, and at £94.99 it is one of the best-value pistols made at the moment too loudly. There are WE markings on the lower pistol grip and 9mm engraved on the breach. A nice touch, too, was the unique serial number. It also has a fully functioning ambidextrous slide-release, which is good for both right-handed and left-handed players and, to top it off, a 20mm rail for pistol lights or lasers. I never expect a great performance from a pistol, and I expect slightly less from a WE. This one did surprise me – the slide blasted back sharply and crisply after a quick gas and pull of the trigger. I smiled and got excited as I loaded the 24 rounds into the magazine. It blasted through the first 20 rounds and then struggled with the last few, but still locked back. Given that the warehouse I tested it in was only around 15 degrees, I can’t complain at all. The only drawback is that the hop-up wheel does not move. This is a factory design flaw, and after a quick

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internet search we found a fix that involved a bit of filing and it now works fine. The chronograph readings displayed an average of 300fps on a Blaster 0.20g BB, which is fine by me. This is one of the best pistols WE has ever produced, and at £94.99 it is one of the best-value pistols made at the moment. Few offer so much performance, looks and consistency for so little money. For a company I went off for while, it has really turned it around and started to impress me again. Even the spare magazines are reasonably priced at around £25 a mag. The standard WE 1911 14mm CCW thread adaptor does fit too, so don’t be surprised if you see someone dual wielding these with silencers very soon. I have high hopes for it in a game, maybe not on cold damp days, but that’s true for almost every gas airsoft product on the market today.

In conclusion: If you need a pistol, look no further; I am whole-heartedly impressed with this little handgun. And this is coming from someone who runs a NBB P99 because I was sick of expensive magazines and pistols that didn’t really live up to the hype. For the price tag, it really is a bargain, and something a bit different from the Glocks, 1911s and Sigs that dominate our sites.

INFORMATION & PRICE HOP UP: Adjustable (once fixed) SHOOTING MODEL: Semi SEMI MUZZLE VELOCITY: 300fps (0.2g BB) MAGAZINE: 24 (6mm airsoft BBs) SYSTEM: Gas blowback INCLUDES: Gun, magazine and grips PRICE: £94.99

THE ARMOURY | WE M&P

“This is one of the best pistols WE has ever produced, and at £94.99 it is one of the best-value pistols made at the moment.” too loudly. There are WE markings on the lower pistol grip and 9mm engraved on the breach. A nice touch, too, was the unique serial number. It also has a fully functioning ambidextrous slide-release, which is good for both right-handed and left-handed players and, to top it off, a 20mm rail for pistol lights or lasers. I never expect a great performance from a pistol, and I expect slightly less from a WE. This one did surprise me – the slide blasted back sharply and crisply after a quick gas and pull of the trigger. I smiled and got excited as I loaded the 24 rounds into the magazine. It blasted through the first 20 rounds and then struggled with the last few, but still locked back. Given that the warehouse I tested it in was only around 15 degrees, I can’t complain at all. The only drawback is that the hop-up wheel does not move. This is a factory design flaw, and after a quick

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11/1/13 09:49:08

Ron Mahoney gets out his ghillie suit to take on EU/NATO forces in Chechnya

OPERATION

SCIMITAR â&#x20AC;?S

everal years after the final subjugation of Chechnya, the Russian economy has all but collapsed. Increasing pressures from the bulging Chinese superpower meant that military attention was required elsewhere, with Chechnya no longer seen as an area of geo-strategic importance. The Russian army has simply left, leaving behind it a non-existent economy and a starving and uneducated people with a lack of even the most basic amenities. Chechen militia groups in the area have been far from quashed, however. Although activity in the region has temporarily ceased, this

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time has been used to amass arms and troops. Gradually, smaller factions have united under the banner of Ruslan Kadyrov, a fighter from the Vedeno region with aspirations to join the wealthy ranks of mafia entrepreneurs. Ruslan has a long history of paramilitary action and atrocities in the region, and has bigger plans than the usual hit-and-run affairs Ruslan wasted little time on the locals either, most of whom he considered to be collaborators with the old Russian occupiers. Unarmed civilians stood little chance against his private force, and those villagers and townsfolk who refused to join

his swelling ranks were tortured and killed. Fortunately for the people of Chechnya, their plight had not gone unnoticed. Western aid organisations were quick to condemn the militia groups, and to condemn Russia for failing to police the area that they themselves had ravaged. Soon they had organised aid relief into the area, but this relief was quickly seized by Kadyrovâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s men, and used as the controlling currency over the region. Starving people vote with their stomachs and whoever controlled the aid controlled the people. Three abducted convoys later, Western patience has run out. Aid is

MILSIM | IED AIRSOFT desperately required and a NATO/EU task force is mobilised in the area, with the intention of destroying militia forces, and ensuring future convoys could go through unmolested.” This SIT-REP (Situation Report) read like something that a strategist from Jane’s Defence or Chatham House would provide. With this level of detail and back story, I got the impression that this was going to be a good event – and having attended a couple of earlier MilSim events with IED Airsoft, there was no doubt that every detail had been thought through; every detail, that is, apart from how the team dynamics in this 24-hour operation would pan out. This event was initially planned to run at one

of IED’s main sites in the Ceri Forest of Shropshire. However, as the event neared, news broke that the team had secured the use of the MoD training facility at Nesscliffe and, as photos appeared of the semi-urban setting, the event seemed to grow overnight. Nesscliffe Training Area was originally constructed during WWII as a central ammunition depot (CAD) and it continued in operation until 1959, after which it became an army training area. Today it comprises over 1,700 acres of flat pastureland, situated on the western end of the North Shropshire Plain. For our event, we would be operating around a small area of the site – but it still

presented plenty of room for the teams to carry out their missions. There were half a dozen buildings ‘in play’, with the Acsea farmhouse complex as the focal point. Having gone through the check-in procedures, we headed down to the buildings that would form a safe zone storage area during the event. With bergens and cooking and sleeping gear stowed, a pre-match hush descended, as players began charging low-cap magazines and kitting up. One key player was really quiet; in fact, he hadn’t said a word to anyone, and just continued to lay on his poncho. As the briefing started, Reg continued kipping, and when his role was identified we were asked to try and avoid

“ I think the first stint where I lay in my OP lasted about two hours – and I’m pretty sure that there was some form of small explosion every five minutes during that time!”

IED EXPLAINED In case anyone gets a bit sensitive about the name IED Airsoft, it’s worth mentioning that the name is, in fact, taken from the initials of the guys who set the company up several years ago. The threat from Improvised Explosive Devices to our troops in theatre was as real then as it is today. The team are all ex-military and IED is popular with serving and ex-servicemen from all branches of the armed forces, including some with special forces backgrounds. IEDs do form a part of the mission threats that players face and the whole issue around IEDs is treated seriously – not just for sensationalist airsoft reasons.

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snapping his arms or head off as we moved him. As you’ve no doubt guessed by now, ‘Reg’ was a full-size mannequin, hostage to our Chechen team and NATO forces’ primary rescue objective. We moved off to our TAC HQ on the other side of a series of large, grasscovered open ammunition storage bunkers, which gave everything a greater air of reality than the standard corrugated tin buildings used for hard cover at most skirmish sites. Reg had to be carried everywhere (in the scenario he was wounded) so our Russian teammates (a well-disciplined team from Dragon Valley Airsoft in Wales) would provide our cover party while Reg was moved to his first secret location. I was set up in the sniper role and given the task of over-watching an intelligence cache that NATO forces would also be looking for. Reporting on every detail of the event would require more space than I have here – so I’ll summarise what I thought were the highlights of the next 24 hours. From my position I had a great vantage point to see the ebb and flow as the main Acsea farmhouse complex was assaulted, captured and counter-attacked time and time again. As in many a battle, this landmark was a crucial objective. If NATO could hold it, they could push patrols out

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into our territory and try to locate Reg. If the combined Russian/Chechen force held it, then NATO would be forced to concentrate their efforts on re-taking the position, as it was a vital link back to their regen point. Both sides’ assault on the farmhouse involved the use of copious amounts of pyros. To try and take the front of the farm without smoke was suicidal and, once close enough, each room needed clearing with grenades or flash bangs. I think the first stint where I lay in my OP lasted about two hours – and there was some form of small explosion every five minutes during that time! While I was lying up, a constant stream of NATO players passed within metres of my position. This was one of those occasions when you had to trust in your camouflage and concealment skills – though it still got the adrenalin pumping as they walked straight towards me. As twilight fell we developed a plan to move Reg a bit closer to the enemy, so once again the Russian team became our offensive force as Reg was moved slowly along the tree-line to the base of a fence in the corner of the field. In the open darkness of the corner of a field, the light discipline would be stricter than it may be while searching inside a covered structure. Our gamble was that the NATO forces wouldn’t trip over Reg!

During the evening I was given the role of providing an overview of the open field that led to our TAC HQ. Although a springersniper rifle without night vision was limited at night from my position, I could still give a constant update if anyone was spotted moving towards our position. It didn’t take long till I heard noises in the hedgerow and started to catch the dim shape of NATO forces coming over an obvious stile – about five feet from where Reg was knocking out the zulus. I let our team know of the current situation and settled back to listen to the carnage. Not long after the NATO team had crossed the open field I heard a loud rustling behind me. I cursed, thinking that my last radio transmission had been overheard, and that I was about to pay for the slip-up. If you are used to relying on your camouflage, then you become used to the slight corner-of-the-eye glance, rather than following your instincts and spinning around to see what is behind you. As I slowly turned my head to the left I was both shocked and relieved to see a large badger about a body’s length away. His senses told him I was there, but he just couldn’t figure out what this bunch of smelly jute string and grass was; thankfully he gruffled off in the other direction.

MILSIM | IED AIRSOFT

The evening saw intense fighting at our TAC HQ, as waves of small-scale NATO attacks were countered. By midnight many players had retired for a rest; however, I was impressed by a NATO team with NV goggles, that kept the pressure up till 3am. Everyone was up early after an IED ‘early alarm call’ – a MK4 into the sleeping area – and our team quickly spirited Reg away. Our plan was audacious: while we held the farmhouse, we would move him into one of the farm buildings that had a pitch black room at the top, as the only light was a missing brick vent. With no windows, the top floor was pretty useless from a tactical perspective, and so we figured Reg could rest easily in the shadows. Over the course of the morning, the action again centred on the main farm buildings, and our Russian team seemed to hold it for several hours from first light. I was tasked with harassing the NATO forces at the rear of the farm complex, and this involved a constant game of cat and mouse

with their patrols. As we neared end-ex, I moved back from the surrounding fields towards the farm. As I arrived, the Russian team seemed to be in a heightened state, with lots of shouting that puzzled me. We were about 20 minutes from the end, and yet they seemed to be gearing up. Then I heard why. Despite almost constant domination of the complex, NATO had sneaked in and found Reg. He was now on the way back to their HQ, and with about 20 minutes to end-ex the clock was clearly against us. Would we be able to turn it around? Our team put a valiant effort in to try to recapture Reg, but as he was being moved towards the NATO camp our re-spawn point got further and further away, and the sheer weight of numbers meant that the inevitable rescue was completed. As end-ex was called, it was evident in the number of tired but happy players that the weekend had been a definite success. It’s always interesting to note the dip in

banter around the period that everyone spends packing their gear away; it’s as if nobody really wants to leave. But then chatter about the next event invariably springs up, with questions like ‘any chance of something in between?’ proving the customers are left wanting more – always a great sign. Would I go back on another IED MilSim event? Well, this was my third of the year, which kind of speaks for itself. They have hosted events in both forestry and now rural/semi-urban and proven that they know how to keep a demanding client base happy. Roll on the rest of 2013.

INFORMATION & PRICES IED Airsoft WEB: www.iedairsoft.co.uk PRICES: Single-day event – £20.00; Weekend event – £30.00

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Does the third helping of Far Cry live up to the hype, or will it crash and burn? Over to Alex Wharton...

he first Far Cry game, released back in 2004, featured amazing graphics and introduced the kind of artificial intelligence that is pretty much taken for granted today. Where enemies in most contemporary games generally acted out a pre-decided set of moves, usually involving simply charging or taking cover, Far Cry’s enemies actually thought, making decisions on the fly to counteract you. However, the story later introduced monsters, and the tactical combat with mercenaries gave way to tedious scenes involving moving through darkened areas with things running at you. Then came Far Cry 2. This started well, dropping the fiction part and getting rid of the monsters and aliens. Set in the desert savannahs of Africa, you spent a great deal of time travelling around and surveying your enemy before diving in. Parts of this game were great, but though it still had its flaws, the series’ reputation was not irrevocably damaged. Indeed, Ubisoft has now released the third part in the Far Cry

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saga. Have they learnt from their mistakes and created a good game, or does a promising title forget to tie its shoelaces and fall smack on its face? Well, I’m going let you know straight away: Far Cry 3 is awesome. I would even go as far as to say that it is a top contender for the best game of 2012, though my vote goes to Mass Effect 3 for that title. The game is just fun from start to finish. It also does very little badly,

and sometimes it just isn’t about doing some some things exceptionally, but doing nothing badly. That isn’t to say this game doesn’t have some great touches. Far Cry 3 starts with you skydiving onto a tropical island. You and some friends have been on a bit of a bender around Asia, and you are all looking at this last skydive as the finale. However, you all get kidnapped by the local pirates. Somehow you manage to

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MEDIA REVIEW | FAR CRY 3

escape and, with the backing of the local freedom fighters, start the fight back to rescue your friends. It’s not the most original story, but it serves a purpose, and has some great characters and cut-scenes. The initial bad guy is one of my favourites, with some superb voice work and animation. This guy is veritably insane and it just makes him all the more scary. Generally, you will find yourself fighting pirates. Now before you get the wrong idea, I’m not talking about peg-legged, hookhanded, eye-patched, parrot-carrying swashbucklers, but modern day, AKtoting bad-asses. These guys put up a good fight, and will drop you if you are careless. They react well to things going on around them, but perhaps give up looking for you a touch too fast after you’ve just dropped their mate, while going back to patrolling over his dead body. Working your way through their camps, silently picking off every odd target so they don’t raise an alarm, is endlessly enjoyable, though. Once you have taken one of their camps, the locals move in and secure it, making that area just a little safer. Between the camps is the jungle, and this place is packed with life, most of

which will have a good go at you if you aren’t careful. There is a crafting system in the game based on things you can find in the jungle. For example, at first you can only carry a single weapon. In order to carry a second, you will need to find animal skins. Each rank, up to the full complement of four weapons, requires a number of skins from different animals. This applies to all inventory stuff to carry more ammo, more grenades and more health syringes. Alongside the crafting system, there is a skill tree. Killing pirates or completing missions earns you experience, and this allows you to unlock new moves. Some of these are great, and can really change the way that you take down enemies. For example, right from the beginning you have a take-down option. Get close and you can knife a guy quickly and silently. But they fall where they are, and this means that you have to be careful, as you will leave the tell-tale body there. However, you can unlock a take-down drag skill. So now on a take-down, you can drag the body back with you into cover. Other skills cover everything from taking less damage, to more health, to silent running and better accuracy with the weapons.

Weaponry in this game is an airsofter’s dream. Each of the guns can have attachments purchased for them: everything from scopes and red dots to silencers. There’s also a great selection of weaponry on offer. You start out with a simple 1911 or an AK, but soon you have access to M4s, M14s, MP5s, machine guns, RPGs and my favourite, the compound bow. It’s a jungle out there, and running around playing Rambo with explosive tipped arrows is just awesome. There really is nothing that I can point at and say I didn’t like about Far Cry 3. Now that’s not something you can say about many games at all. So if you haven’t grabbed it already, or didn’t get it popped down your chimney for Christmas, you could do a lot worse than picking this up.

INFORMATION & PRICES Developed and published by Ubisoft PLATFORMS: Windows, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 RATED: 18 PRICE: £22.50 - £27.00 depending on platform (prices from Game.co.uk)

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The G33 is another G36 without a licence. Scott Allan asks what ICS can do differently from everyone else

CS has a strange place in airsoft for me. I cannot say I have seen a really bad example of an ICS product, and I know a lot of players swear by them. But though I’ve owned a few of the company’s guns, they have never truly given me the ‘wow’ factor that the likes of G&P do. But then there’s more to it than just the ‘wow’ factor. The ICS G33 comes in two colours: dark earth and black. It’s a kind of futuristic G36C, and ICS has really gone to town in making it look a little more… Gucci. The real G36 is manufactured by Heckler & Koch. An ultra-short assault rifle, chambered for the NATO 5.56mm round, it is a versatile platform used by police and

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THE ARMOURY | ICS G33

military organisations all over the world, including the UK. One drawback is the unique magazine; it is extremely reliable, but a pain to store in pouches, and the G36 does not accept the standard magazines from the SA80/M16 range. That aside, fieldtesting has proven that it is reliable and tough in all conditions. Its largely polymer body keeps the weight down, but does not compromise strength. Firing the G36 is a pleasure, and it is comfortable to use, while

ammunition. The magazine release works in the ordinary format, or via a M4 style button. All the rails are polymer, which is a little disappointing, but there is a lot of rail spare for extras. The battery is located in the front hand guard as usual, and the locking pin sports a sprung catch, so it shouldn’t fall out, unlike on many standard G36s. Removing the hand guard reveals a big let-down for me, however: the flash hider and outer barrel are plastic. The outer barrel

As it’s an ICS, I didn’t expect a massive rate of fire, but I hoped for good accuracy and consistency. With a Blaster 0.20g BB it registered an average of 333fps, which was perfect the sight stays neatly on target regardless of how fast you pull the trigger. The G33’s design, meanwhile, is unique to ICS, but isn’t too gut-wrenchingly bad. It has an unusual stock that is adjustable in length and height, and it still folds, making it extremely short. The fire selector is ambidextrous as on other G36 versions, and it feels positive, unlike the JG models that tend to wander into different positions like a sheep casually grazing. The pistol grip has a slightly different design, but is nice and comfortable, while the magazine has been designed to take regular, TM-style M4 magazines as standard, instead of G36

itself barely exists; it’s just a little plasticformed gas tube, and you can see the inner barrel. It looks like a corner has been cut here! I have no idea how many pennies were saved, but it really cheapens the look. As it’s an ICS, I didn’t expect a massive rate of fire, but after testing the Sig 552 a few issues back, I hoped for good accuracy and consistency. With a Blaster 0.20g BB it registered an average of 333fps, which was perfect. I filled up the Canada-style Thermold magazine (which looks as cheap as Christmas selection-box plastic), set up on the 25-metre range and tried single-shot. The trigger response is decent, though there does not seem to be any form of

positive engaging point, and it is a fairly long pull with little resistance. All the shots landed neatly in behind each other, very much like the Sig 552, and testing the fully-automatic again shows a very tight grouping. Despite some cheap-feeling parts, the accuracy was above average for an outof-the-box gun. Overall, it is lightweight, short, adaptable and shoots above average. Downsides are the amount of polymer used, and just how tough the outer barrel/gas tube parts would be in the event of a nosedive. I doubt the spares would be expensive or difficult to source from an ICS dealer either. The magazine and hop unit well appear to be bespoke, meaning no magazine well conversions to use standard, TM-style G36 magazines, which I find strange. Gaming with this would be a treat; the accuracy and number of rails means it is a good all-rounder for outdoor and indoor sites. Personally, I don’t like Thermold magazines as they look nasty and feel cheap, but it is a high capacity magazine, so if you’re new to airsoft it’s a bit of a bonus. The batteries are mini NiMHs or the 1200-1300mah LiPos, which I prefer. The ‘what if it catches fire?’ argument seems to be fading with the reply, ‘what if you are in a plane crash?’ It is very unlikely, so we do it anyway.

In conclusion If I wanted a G36 replica I might be tempted by the G33, but I prefer accurate to real steel weapons. G&G and ICS are both moving to these futuristic ‘nearcopies’, which is fine as long as someone is making the real steel copies for guys like me. I certainly wouldn’t discourage anyone who likes the G33 from buying one, as the performance is good and the price is fair for the quality on offer. My biggest grumble is the amount of polymer used in places where a little metal would have gone a long way.

INFORMATION & PRICES MUZZLE VELOCITY: 310-350 FPS MAGAZINE CAPACITY: 300 Rounds PACKAGE INCLUDES: Gun, Canadian C7 high cap magazine WEIGHT: 2.5kg LENGTH: 515mm (folded) – 745mm (unfolded) PRICE: Around £220

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BIG BOYZ TOYZ | HOTCHKISS M201

HOTCHKISS M201

Made in France after WWII, “La Jeep” was created from Jeeps left behind by homeward bound American forces. Ratty takes up the story...

f you attend any military or air show you will see plenty of iconic jeeps in various guises. Over 95 per cent of them will be in American military liveries of some shape or form. The original Ford GPW or Willys MB series – which spawned an entire new type of vehicle – are highly collectable. And not just within the military vehicle enthusiast circles, but by classic car collectors too. Prices anywhere between £14,000 and £ 20,000 depending on age, condition and spec are pretty much the norm. However, there was another jeep that appeared post-war, which looks almost identical to the Ford GPW and Willys MB series and has had a service career all of its own. These overlooked jeeps you will find at many of the military shows, but most of their owners have given them the look of their wartime American cousin. The French-built Hotchkiss M201, commonly known as ‘La Jeep’, saw service from 1946 to 1981. But even then the

last ones weren’t withdrawn from service until 2000, and so deserve a greater reputation than ‘the jeep’s poorer relation.’ At the end of WWII, there were great numbers of jeeps that had been used by the Allied forces scattered across Western Europe, North Africa and in jungle theatres too. Those the Americans didn’t take back or require were sold off to various governments for restructuring post-war armies. Many were sold off as surplus and found new working lives on farms and other industries. However, the US Army gave the French government 22,000 jeeps, a mix of Ford GPWs and Willys MBs, with the aim of quickly re-equipping the French military. Of these only about half were in a useable condition, so in 1946 the ERGM (Etablissement de Réserve Générale du Matériel Automobile) started to make good as many as possible of the other half. Hotchkiss, a car manufacturer dating back to 1903, based in a north-east suburb

of Paris called Maltournée, were responsible for this process for the ERGM. The jeeps that were in the worst condition were broken up and used as spare parts. This created a massive stock, more than would ever be used. Hotchkiss began work on making the other parts required, so that a great many jeeps were a unique mix of new Hotchkiss-made and original Ford/Willys parts. By the late 1940s the French military wanted to replace the Hotchkiss M201 with the French-designed and built Delahaye VLR. The VLR was technically more complex than the MB jeep, but the French military continually insisted that this was not a problem for them. Yet between 1949 and 1955, only 9,623 VLRs entered service and Delahaye was in dire financial difficulties. Production of the VLR was suddenly abandoned, Delahaye ceased trading and Hotchkiss bought its assets. Even in 1955, the ERGM was still supplying re-manufactured jeeps using its stocks of

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surplus parts, with Hotchkiss making up the missing bits. By now Hotchkiss was also manufacturing its own jeeps in France, under licence from Willys, which had been for sale on the open civilian market. They had, at that point, a good understanding of the jeep and had made many improvements on the original Willys MB/Ford GPW design. Though the basic design remained pretty much unchanged, things like stronger leaf springs and more powerful engines set the Hotchkiss apart from the original. The French military, after the collapse of Delahaye, still required a supply of light, all-terrain reconnaissance vehicles. The answer was obvious. In 1955 the French military bought 465 of the Hotchkiss-built jeeps. This first batch of vehicles was called the Hotchkiss Licence MB, but from 1956 onwards this was changed and they were designated simply as the Hotchkiss M201. Sales of normal Hotchkiss cars went into decline and the company was bought by Brandt, who made household appliances.

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BIG BOYZ TOYZ | HOTCHKISS M201 Owing to the amount of M201s required for the military, production and assembly were moved to a plant at Stains, just north of Paris. In 1981, with over 8,000 M201s still in service, the French army finally made the decision to replace this now aged vehicle. The Peugeot P4 (a French-built version of the Mercedes G-Wagen) started to enter service in the same year. The last M201s were eventually withdrawn from service in 2000.

French airborne forces as well as elements of the French Foreign Legion. Some M201s were even fitted with surveillance radar dishes! A Sahara version was developed for French Colonial Forces in North Africa which featured a strengthened chassis, firmer rear suspension and a second fuel tank under the passenger seat as well as a supplementary tool box under the front grille.

Operational service

Combat operations of note: Algeria

The M201 was defined by the military as a VLTT (Véhicule Léger Tout Terrain) or Light Vehicle All- Terrain and most were used simply as staff or radio cars originally. But as time went on, the M201 saw itself being adapted as a platform to fit various weapons systems. The M40 106mm recoilless rifle, MILAN anti-tank and ENTAC wire-guided anti-tank were all fitted to the M201 platform giving this lightweight vehicle a real punch on the battlefield. These versions were favoured and used widely by

Between July 1955 and April 1961, 1st Foreign Parachute Regiment (1er REP) was based in Algeria fighting the terrorist organisation, the Algerian National Liberation Army (ALN) in what was still a French colony. Their task was simply to seek out and destroy the ALN on a ‘shoot to kill’ basis. Jeeps were used to patrol the Tunisian and Moroccan borders to stop supplies of weapons, ammunition and other equipment from getting through to the ALN, and to pursue ALN cells.

Production of the M201 ceased in 1967. However E.R.G.M., using a mix of Willys MB/Ford GPW and M201 parts, were still churning out remanufactured Jeeps until 1978

Operation Leopard On the dawn of 13 May 1978, the Katanga province of south-east Zaire (renamed Democratic Republic of Congo in 1997) was invaded by Angola-based separatist rebels known as the FNLC (Front de Libération National de Congo) or Congolese National Liberation Army. They overran the town of Kolwezi, which was the centre of a major copper and cobalt mining area. There were over 3,000 European inhabitants in and around Kolwezi, mainly mining experts and their families, who were all regarded as potential hostages by Major Mufu and his 4,000 FNLC troops (known more commonly as Tigers). The Zairean army assigned to protect the area fled when the shooting started and the Tiger rebels ransacked the town, raping and pillaging as they went. On 17 May, believing that the lives of the European residents of Kolwezi were in imminent and deadly danger, the French decided to intervene. In Calvi, Corsica, 2nd Foreign Parachute Regiment (2e REP) was put on standby and at 0130 on 18 May, the mobilisation came through and Operation Leopard had begun. It took eight hours to get from Corsica to Kinshasa, then a kit preparation that was cut to the bone, followed by a four hour trip in paratrooper transporters to the drop zone. Included in the kit to take were some M201s, collected from another Foreign Legion outpost in Chad, of which a handful were heavily armed and fitted with AA-52 machine guns. The first wave of 500 Legionnaires dropped in broad daylight on 19 May into two drop zones near Kolwezi. Without any reconnaissance or support, the Foreign Legion paratroopers were jumping blind and once on the ground (fearing that the Tiger rebels would go on an all-out massacre), it was a desperate race against time to save the lives of the Europeans. Elements of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd REPs quickly fanned out and took key buildings, setting up a command post within 15 minutes of landing. The Tigers vastly outnumbered the Legion paras and put up a stiff fight to begin with. Soon, though, morale and discipline among many of the Tigers crumbled as the Legionnaires cleared through a large part of the town. Within two hours of the initial jump, the Legion held virtually the whole town and many European lives were saved, although those held hostage at the Impala Hotel were killed long before the Foreign Legion reached them. By now the jeeps had arrived and patrols were sent out to take the fight to the

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BIG BOYZ TOYZ | HOTCHKISS M201

remaining pockets of rebel fighters. They were instrumental in forcing back the Tiger forces across the border into Angola. Over 2,000 European lives were saved by the Legion’s actions in those few days. On 28 May 2e REP handed control of the city to a multi-national African force and on 4 June returned to Corsica. The operation came at the cost of the lives of five Legionnaires, with 20 wounded out of the 700 that took part, while 250 of the FNLC were killed out of a force of 4,000. Rebel losses also included two armoured cars, four recoilless rifles, 15 mortars, 21 rocket launchers and 10 heavy machine guns. The Hotchkiss jeeps played their part in taking the fight to the enemy over a wide area.

Operation Manta Operation Manta was the code name for the French military intervention in Chad between 1983 and 1984, during the Chadian-Libyan conflict. Libyan units alongside the Chadian Transitional Government of National Unity (GUNT) rebels invaded Chad in June 1983 but France was initially reluctant to participate. However, when Libya bombed a strategic outpost on 31 July, France started assembling its forces in Chad, amounting to a total of 3,500. Included in this force, aside elements

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of the Foreign Legion, was the 3rd Squadron of the 1st Parachute Hussar Regiment (1er RHP), who were part of the 11th Parachute Division. Although the Hussars can trace their history back to 1720, they were now in a rapid deployment role and were equipped with Hotchkiss M201s fitted with M40 106mm recoilless rifles and MILAN launchers. Rather than trying to fight back the combined Libyan/GUNT forces, the French drew a line in the sand and amassed their forces along the 15th parallel, which was later altered to the 16th parallel. A stalemate ensued and eventually a mutual withdrawal of troops was negotiated.

M201s for sale There are a fair few Hotchkiss M201s on the open market today. Prices vary, but they are going up all the time as they become more collectable. One in really good condition will set you back in the region of £10,000. Others that are road legal and running but require work to bring them up to show condition should be anywhere around £4,500 to £7,000 depending on condition. I first looked at buying a Hotchkiss about 10 years ago at The War and Peace Show. A load of them had just become available from war stocks and were in immaculate condition, with

very low miles. They were only £3,000. Am I kicking myself about missing that one? Without sounding like a scratched record, when looking at one with a view to buying it, do your research well. Know what to look out for, and don’t buy the first one you see because it looks cool. Again, being a member of the MVT (Military Vehicle Trust), IMPS or a jeep society is always advisable, for information and sourcing parts as well as cheaper insurance. The jeep is such an icon that the Hotchkiss M201 is always overshadowed, which is a great shame. Although initially built as a copy, these lightweight off-roaders had a service career in their own right and were in uniform for just over 50 years. Although the US Willys MB and Ford GPW are perhaps more glamorous in many respects, their service life was far shorter than that of the Hotchkiss. For me personally, I am quite saddened that nearly all the M201s are painted up to look like their WWII US military counterparts, when underneath their Jeep could be a war hero all of its own. Come the day when I look seriously for a jeep, I will be looking for an M201. All its upgraded and modified parts compared to Willys and Fords make it more useable as well as a more viable option. Mind you, there will be no stars painted on mine!

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ADAPTIVE TRAINING PISTOL A big box from Switzerland at Christmas? Is it chocolates or has Santa taken up airsoft? Ratty rips off the paper to find out

hen a big, heavy parcel arrived from Switzerland, I was confused. What on earth could this be? Could it be the contents of my Great Uncle Klaus’ safety deposit box, which he had stashed away back in ‘45? Unfortunately it wasn’t, but it was the next best thing: two new offerings from KWA, a pistol and a rifle. Defiance Airsoft is a new name in the world of airsoft distribution, but it comes from a reputable background. It is the European distributor for KWA, which is no small task. KWA has been making high-end, quality gas-blowback pistols for many a year. Its patented NS2 gas delivery system represents a significant improvement in the power and efficiency of operation compared with other brands of pistols. The combination of advanced, lightweight, composite gas piston and two-stage, internal expansion chamber means that gas is delivered to the

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chamber more effectively. This creates a crisp blowback action and reduces the cooldown effect. Over the last few years, KWA has also been the market leader with its Professional Training Pistol (PTP) range. The Adaptive Training Pistol (ATP) on test here is a completely original design from KWA, and a new addition to the range. I will be looking at it from two angles: can it cut the mustard as a skirmish-ready airsoft pistol; and how does it compare as a training aide in this everexpanding marketplace?

First impressions Having been a fan of KWA pistols for a long time, I was intrigued by the ATP. There are two variants: the semi-auto version (on test here) and a (selectable) full-auto version. As with all KWA pistols, it comes in a sturdy but plain KWA branded box. The label on the

side is the only indication of what lies within. Interestingly, the label also features the unique serial number of the pistol. KWA states in its blurb that the ATP was developed in collaboration with various military and law enforcement agencies. Immediately on opening the box, the ATP looked striking, if a little odd. The aluminium top slide is instantly recognisable as Glock-style, while the composite polymer lower frame has overtones of Glock and Smith & Wesson’s M&P. Picking it up, it feels lightweight but solid. Now personally I am not a big fan of Glocks, mainly due to the size of the pistol grip, which inhibits me from operating the pistol one-handed. However, I was impressed with the grip on this ATP. For me, it’s more comfortable, and with interchangeable back straps (included in the box), it should give you a good grip no matter the of size your hand.

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THE ARMOURY | KWA ATP

“ I took aim and fired at my static target. It has a nice trigger pull and, despite the conditions, it fired with a real crack. The top slide cycled with a hard kick and loaded the second round into the chamber.” The grip itself is textured and contoured; with your hand wrapped around it, it gives you the confidence that it won’t slip out of your grip, whether you are wearing gloves or not. The trigger itself is identical to a Glock series pistol, and unless pulled properly, won’t fire. The magazine release catch is located on the front left-hand side of the pistol grip, just to the rear of the trigger guard: nice and easy to operate with your thumb. The slide release catch is easy to get to without having to move your hand away from the grip itself. Moving forward of the trigger guard on the lower frame is a short multi-slot rail allowing you to mount various torch/laser units, or an accessory of some description. It is also on the underside of the lower frame that you will find the stamped unique serial number (which should match the one on the box label). The top slide looks rather funky with the serrations cut into it at the front and rear (to ease cocking), but it keeps the simplicity of the hammerless Glock style design. Its three-dot combat sights keep things basic, but then, realistically, do you require any more than that?

Dropping the mag out and pulling the top slide to the rear with the slide-stop engaged allows you access to the adjustable hop unit. As with all KWA pistols, this is adjusted with a key (provided in the box) and is very simple to do. The magazine itself is, again, very Glock-esque – it’s double-stacking and holds 23 rounds. It also features a heavy-duty base plate, which you slide forward to gas the mag up. In many real-world combat situations and training scenarios, mags get dumped or dropped onto the floor, but with a normal airsoft pistol mag this is not wise (we have an engineer’s work-bench full of various mags which have been treated this way), so the rubberised bases help minimise damage. Taking down the ATP for cleaning and maintenance is really simple. A quick pulldown of the release catches (located on both sides of the lower frame) allows the top slide to slide straight off. Internally, virtually all of the working parts (including the outer barrel) are aluminium and seem very robust. One thing I was curious to find out was what holster the ATP would fit. After researching and reading up on the matter, it

seems there are many on the market that the ATP will drop into. Obviously, the ATP will slip in and out of any canvas-style, non-weaponspecific holster for medium frame pistols.For moulded holsters, this could be more difficult. Being so similar to the Glock in so many ways it should fit most Glock 17 holsters. However, according to various US sites, the likes of G-Code’s XST RTi, Razor Concealment Kydex for Smith & Wesson’s M&P as well as OTG Spadex holsters are all capable of fitting the ATP. It will also come as a big relief to many that the ATP drops snugly into BlackHawk Serpa holsters for the Glock 17. Phew!

On test With snow on the ground and the car computer saying zero degrees on my way into work, I thought to myself that this would be an interesting day. With most GBB pistols I wouldn’t have bothered attempting to test with conditions being what they were, but with the reputation of the NS2 system, I felt confident about getting a good result. After a quick squirt of silicone spray in the relevant places, and a rough set of the hop

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THE ARMOURY | KWA ATP

unit, it was time to see if it’s worthy of its ’Training Pistol’ moniker. For the first round of testing, I used Blaster Devil 0.20g BBs and ASG Ultra gas. With the mag full (it’s a big reservoir that took 30 seconds to fill) and the mag loaded up with 22 rounds, off I toddled to my test area. After racking back the topslide and loading the first round, I took aim and fired at my static target. It has a nice trigger pull and, despite the conditions, it fired with a real crack. The top slide cycled with a hard kick and loaded the second round into the chamber; after a few rounds I started double tapping. The ATP emptied the first mag faultlessly. With the last round fired, the top slide locked back to the rear as it should. Fantastic. I went back into the warm for a refill of gas, a reload of ammo and a quick adjustment of the hop unit. I was keen to get back out into the cold as soon as possible (did I just say that?) so the mag didn’t have chance to warm up too much. I wanted to see if the NS2 system is as good as its reputation says it is. Okay, this time I wanted to see my fall of shot onto the target. With a mixture of single shot and double taps I soon emptied the second mag. It never missed a beat the entire time, and, upon inspecting my target (placed at 25ft), I found some really solid groupings. I even amazed myself! Despite the hard recoil, the fact that I was firing using the combat sights, and how comfortable the ATP feels, the pistol never deviated from my point of aim. After another reload, it was time for a quick chrono check. From start to finish, the ATP fired at 305fps, going down to 287fps by the end of the mag, which, bearing in mind the weather

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conditions and the fact that the hop was set, was a decent result. My next task was to use some of my own advice, so I broke open a bottle of Blaster Devil 0.25g BBs, along with a bag of Madbull Precision Grade 0.30g. Using the same static target, first off I tried the Blaster Devils. After a mag of test shots to adjust the hop, I then carried out a mag’s worth of chrono results, followed lastly by a mag of accurate shooting. The difference in accuracy is quite phenomenal – in a good way – while the results on the chrono varied between 268 and 245 fps. I then repeated this process with the Madbulls. With this weight, the hop was pretty much adjusted to the max, but again, the accuracy over this range was another improvement with the groupings getting ever tighter. On the chrono, readings went from 240 to 227 fps. Still very respectable. Being a bit of a diehard 1911 and Sig man in both airsoft and real steel, I really didn’t want to like this pistol. If you are a Glock addict then you will no doubt love it. However, after a while, I really started to like the way it presents itself. Functionality and usability can be beautiful too! Certainly for me, the massive bonus is in its ergonomics compared to a standard Glock. I like the way it feels in my hands, lightweight yet robust, and I love the way it operates with its crisp, sharp and hard recoil. With the weather conditions being what they were while testing, it still performed well and returned some decent results. As an airsoft skirmish pistol it ranks way up there, and as a training aide it ticks all the

boxes for durability, reliability and usability. With the bonus that it will fit issue holsters as well as personally purchased ones, it really does transgress from the airsoft market into real world training. KWA has really hit the mark with this one and will help keep them among the higher echelons of GBB manufacturers. This pistol could well be the only pistol you ever need. Sorry Defiance Airsoft, this one may get lost in the post on its way back to you! (Actually Ratty, Defiance has agreed to let us give it away as a competition prize! See a future issue for details – Ed.)

INFORMATION OVERALL LENGTH: 205mm [8.07”] OVERALL HEIGHT: 145mm [5.71”] INNER-BARREL LENGTH: 94mm INNER-BARREL DIAMETER: 6.05mm WEIGHT: 0.70kg [1.54 lbs] MAGAZINE CAPACITY: 23 rounds VELOCITY: 104-107mps [340-350fps] GAS SYSTEM: NS2 PROPELLANT: Green gas

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SKILLS ROOM | BILLY BASICS

Having been trampled on by his instructors, Billy digs in and We all know what they are but how do you set one up and use it effectively? concentrates on constructing the perfect observation post Over to someone who has been there, seen it and done it for real…

ESTABLISHING AN OBSERVATION POST

ach time I’ve done an OP in the past, the same thought has run around my head: ‘Why?’ As I explained earlier, they are, on the whole, an unpleasant experience. In fact, there was only one I can remember that was actually a bit of fun. We were on an exercise in the south of England, and had dug a shallow subsurface OP in a hedgerow, making use of a small bowl in the ground. It was a good spot, and we had ‘eyes-on’ without too much hard digging. I think the trick with OPs is to be forever critical and look for ways to improve the cam. If you get complacent and a bit slack, then you might be caught out. Anyway, there are some things that you can plan for in your orders and ‘actions on’, and

some you just can’t. At about lunchtime it was my turn on stag, and I was just getting the spotting scope on the target when I heard a horn blowing somewhere to our left. Now I’m not a country chap at all, but I knew what that horn indicated: a fox was being chased down, not far off from where we were. Sure enough, a few minutes later a pretty relaxed-looking fox passed the back of the OP and glanced in at us, probably thinking ‘This lot’ll slow them up’. What followed was a tsunami of hounds bouncing, barking, licking and tail-wagging their way right through our position. We must have smelt pretty awful already, and we were just too good to resist. We all collapsed in fits of giggles and must surely have been compromised from the target

area, but no mention was made of it in the debrief, so there you go.

Building a surface OP Let’s begin with surface OPs. You’ll need to take an OP construction kit with you, which should contain items such as gardening gloves, a folding saw, secateurs, a folding shovel, sand bags, cam nets, chicken wire and some pre-cut poles, or extendable poles, for holding it all up above your head. When you’ve found your site, do a comms check back to base, and then make sure you can see the target from within the OP, lying on your belly and using a scope through a hole in the cam net. Once you’re satisfied, lay a poncho out at the rear of the OP site (where

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you’re all entering from) to prevent the area from getting torn up. There’s going to be a lot of traffic on this bit of ground with the guys humping bergens in and spoil out. You want the rear of the position to be as well cammedup as the front, and, to ensure your survival, it needs to be good enough for a walk-past at least five metres away. One man now opens up the entrance and crawls in on his back, either tying branches back with lengths of string he’s got in his pocket, or snipping them carefully with secateurs. All the clippings must remain inside the OP. When he’s in and has made some wiggle-room for himself and the others, the other team members move in and prepare their areas – remembering, of course, to leave at least one, preferably two, on stag, positioned away from the area so they can hear approaching enemies. Remember that you need to make room for all your gear, and be able to move and change stag positions, without making noise – unless, of course, you’re just going to pass the scope across to the guy who is on stag,

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which isn’t always practical. This is where real determination comes in. It takes real effort to realise that it’s not big enough and you’ve got another few hours of digging, when all you want to do is get it finished and get in your bag for a few hours’ kip before the routine begins. When you’ve made it big enough in your bush, you need to push the roof up a bit to give yourself that room and make it as weatherproof as you can – chicken wire is great for this. On one side you can secure a waterproof liner, and on the other side a camouflage side made of dirty hessian. If each man carries one of these, roughly six feet long (they’ll fold up with a bit of rough treatment and fit under the top flap of your bergen), then you can make a rough roof and prop it up with tent poles or pre-cut poles. Deciding to find bits of wood so you don’t have to carry them is, in my experience, not a good plan. At least if you’ve got them, you’ve got them. Now all this sounds easy as I sit here in my slippers tapping away at the keys. But it’s bloody hard work! There’s a lot of waiting around, and tempers fray, eyes get scratched,

jackets get torn and sometimes string gets caught, and the whole thing is on the verge of falling in. And sometimes there only seems to be one person working while the others sit and watch, but that’s the way it is. Teamwork, patience and keeping focussed on the mission are the keys. The patrol commander may well decide if there’s time that he wants an extra bit of protection for his team, so out come the shovels and the sandbags. Digging is hard enough at the best of times, but digging into ground which will probably be crawling with roots – you’re in a bush don’t forget – and in which you can’t stand up or sometimes even kneel up properly is a nightmare. If it gets too late then you may have to satisfy yourself with filling as many sandbags as you can and packing them up in front of the OP to afford you some cover from incoming fire if you’re compromised. Talking of compromise, it’s not always as cut and dried as when the enemy spot you and take you on then and there, which I discussed in the last issue. That’s a ‘hard compromise’

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SKILLS ROOM | BILLY BASICS

When you’ve found your site, do a comms check back to base, and then make sure you can see the target from within the OP, lying on your belly and using a scope through a hole in the cam net

when you’re in no doubt that the game is up, so you’re on your toes fighting a rearguard action to prevent your arses from getting ‘shot orf’. There may be occasions when there are local civilians whose allegiance you can’t confirm, or the enemy have seen you, or you reckon they’ve seen you but they withdraw. Is it a feint? They certainly wouldn’t take you on if they thought they’d get a shoeing, so they might be walking back to raise the alarm. This is called ‘soft compromise’; it’s a ballsy call to make, and takes leadership and courage – the risks of getting it wrong are pretty final. Another thing to remember about your cam and concealment is that it’ll have to be good – not just okay, but really good. This is because, if the target you’re looking at lives there, or is stationed there, then they will know the ground well, and any changes will stick out – so don’t skimp on the cam! A quick point before we move on. If you do have spoil and lots of other stuff that you’ve cleared out of your bush, lay out a poncho or tarp to the rear while you’re building, and two of you can then dispose of it in a stream or

bury it. It should be easy enough to disguise as long as there’s not tonnes of it. But if there is going to be lots of it, then you’ll need to factor this in when you’re formulating your plan. Your hide might take a couple of nights to dig in, in which case you’ll need a spot, further away from the OP, from where you can have eyes-on during the middle day, to be certain nobody’s discovered it or, worse, booby-trapped it. With regards to the cam, if there’s not enough in the vicinity, then you’ll have to go farther afield to collect it. Remember to always go in pairs, as you might be constructing an OP, but you’re still in the enemy’s back yard, and you still need to patrol properly. So have one man collecting, probably looking like a cross between Jason Bourne and a florist, and the other guy on covering duties. When you’re ready to occupy the OP, the patrol commander will get everyone inside and do a final walk around. This should be as early as possible, so that you can all get in and get set up before sun-up, and your eyes-

on time. The PC should, at this stage, be very critical and meticulous about the cam, and also careful where he puts his feet. He should, if at all possible, avoid the front of the OP completely.

Building a subsurface OP A subsurface OP is not too dissimilar to the surface OP but if, unlike the above scenario, there is no cover at all, you’re going to have to dig into the turf and get rid of a load of soil. It’s hard work, but it’s the job you’ve been given mate, so man up! As before, you’ll most likely have chosen the site from a map recce, but make sure you can see the target from your belly, and that you can get comms. Next, mark out the ground so that you can fit the patrol and their bergens in. You’ll need to stack the turfs carefully, grass on grass, so that you’re not left with a huge square of muddy soil above your head when you crawl in. Next time we’ll look at the occupation, routine in the OP, and what to do when you get bumped. Till then, play safe. Billy out.

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HIGH RISK ENTRY:

PENETRATION FLOOD Continuing his tactical series, Andy Nightingale from Pro-Tact explains the skills needed for a successful penetration flood

n January’s issue I looked at one of the most common room-clearing tactics, known as the ‘wall flood’ method. In this issue, I will look at another common method of entry – the ‘penetration flood’. Wall floods are used to clear large structures and rooms that may have obstructions in the centre of the room. Factories, warehouses and schools all fall into this category. Penetration floods are more suited to residential areas, such as homes and disused buildings, which are more likely to have furniture and other obstructions placed around the outer walls. This method will allow the entry team to move deep into the structure safely and dynamically, to secure doorways leading to adjoining rooms, and also to secure areas that are secluded in oddly-shaped rooms. The penetration flood is much slower to perform, and so less dynamic than the wall flood – and it’s also harder for the room

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commander to control and communicate with the rest of the team. However, once you have learned the skills to execute the penetration flood, it will become another skill in your bag of tricks next time you have to flush out the enemy stronghold or take down the terrorists holding a hostage to ransom during your next skirmish operation. Here I will look at a typical four-person entry team, but any even number can be used, so long as you don’t overcrowd the room with team members. As ever, intelligence rules the world of high-risk entry. Try to gain as much information on the layout of the ground and the avenues of approach – as well as the room, and what it contains. Once you have decided that a penetration flood is the preferred tactical method of entry, then you can prepare your weapons and kit to enter the room. As with the wall flood, when executing the penetration flood the team must

approach the structure silently (so as not to give away their intentions) and stack up outside the doorway, being careful not to make any noise during the approach phase. It’s also important to be aware of any light concerns. Once all the entry team members are in place, the end operator, when they are 100 per cent ready, will pass on a physical signal to the person in front until all the entry team members have passed on the signal and the first person in the stack is tapped. All members of the entry team must be ready to move as soon as the person in front moves. Keep your weapon up into the aim and stick to your area of responsibility (AOR) once inside the room. The first person enters the room as fast as possible, without compromising personal and entry-team safety. Move forward through the door and travel about two thirds of the way into the room, then turn to face the outer wall. The second person into the

SKILLS ROOM | CQB TACTICS clear, three not clear hallway, four clear’. If all team members call clear, then that room or area is deemed clear and safe. You can now move onto the next task. If, however, the call ‘not clear’ has been given, then that issue has to be dealt with before moving on. The person that called not clear will have the task of clearing the problem, also known as an oddity (the problem, not the person!). The person directly behind will turn (if their area is clear) and assist in clearing the oddity, via a search, or even another entry into a closet or smaller room. Once clear, leave the room and start to move on. There may come a time when you will have several rooms to clear, and you may have to mix up the entry techniques. You may have to juggle several wall and penetration floods when searching a large building or structure. This should not be a problem. If you encounter the bad guys and the shooting starts, you have lost your element of surprise and can now go loud, but if you clear a room without any shots being fired, then you will still want to move in stealth mode. Make all team communication in the form of hand signals to maintain silence. Make sure that all the team members know and are familiar with the signals being used. Don’t make new ones up on the spot as room will follow and take up position next to the first – only this time they will face in the opposite direction, so that the first and second entry team members in the room are now facing back to back. The third member into the room will follow suit, and travel about one third of the way into the room, facing in the same direction as the first person – and likewise the fourth person will mirror image the third. If any bad guys are encountered during the entry phase, and they are not in your area of responsibility, then you should leave them be. Let your team-mate covering that area deal with the threat. If all the members of your entry team enter the room as one body, and you have the element of surprise on your side, then the bad guys will not have time to react to your room assault. You should now have all four operators in the room facing back to back. When in situ, the team must not be touching each other when stood back to back, but should have enough room between them to enable another operator to pass between them safely. This is so that, if the need should

arise that someone else needs to enter the room, or another team needs to pass through and onto another location, they can do so without passing in front of any friendly guns. It can also be used as the safe route of escape for your hostage or a casualty. This particular method of room entry will give the entry team all round protection and observation once inside. All members of the entry team will have their own AOR. They will have interlocking arcs of fire with the person to their rear and to their side. As with the wall flood, the first person into the room has control of the situation and will ask the team to identify their AOR as clear or unclear. Each person will call out in numerical order of entry into the room their state of responsibility. If the area is clear, then ‘clear’ can be called, but if the area of responsibility is not clear, be sure to say so and give a brief description of what is of concern – such as a doorway, closet or hallway. Be sure to state your number before you call out. For example: ‘one clear, two

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SKILLS ROOM | CQB TACTICS

they can easily be misunderstood. If you can gain the intelligence first it will make the whole job easier but, as with most things during a skirmish, things do not always go to plan. Communicate as a team and decide on the appropriate method of entry before going in, and don’t make the same person go first into the room every time. The first one in is always the first to get hit if things go wrong, and they will find themselves downhearted and back at the safe zone nursing their hits. If the situation is too hot to enter then you can consider the use of entry shields. The same techniques can still be used, but you must make sure that the right person in the stack carries the entry shields. If you are clearing just one room then you may want to consider using two entry shields. Operators one and two would carry these left and right for entry protection. If you are using a six-person team, and have multiple rooms to clear, for example along a corridor or hallway, then the first two operators in the four-person entry team would carry

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an entry shield each, and the number five person in the stack would carry another entry shield and stay outside the room, along with operator number six – to protect the the entry team’s exit. As for weapons, during high-risk entries the use of long guns is the preferred tool, but if you are carrying an entry shield then you will not be able to operate your long gun proficiently. Your side arm will now have to come into play. Remember to do a full reload if shooting has taken place inside the room before you exit. The plus side of entry shields during a high-risk entry (such

as the penetration flood) is the level of protection they provide against a shower of BBs – but the downside is that they can be heavy and cumbersome, meaning the team lacks firepower due to the use of handguns by entry-shield operators. Whatever tactics or techniques you decide to use, and whatever kit and weapon system you use, spend time practising these skills with your local team. High-risk entry tacticians spend months getting these drills right and it pays off. If these tactics work in the real world of pain then, with time and practice, they will work for the airsoft skirmisher too.

PENETRATION FLOOD PROS Very quick Direction into the room is determined before entry Clears some oddities on entry Overlap arcs of fire to opposite corners Clearly-defined AORs

CONS Can be outflanked Shooting lanes become tight in small rooms Command and control is hard for the room commander

THE ARMOURY | KING ARMS GALIL

Jay Slater checks out the full metal King Arms AEG

KING ARMS D

espite being packed and ready for an airsoft special in Israel in late 2012, the Foreign Office had other ideas for me. Thanks to an escalation of violence between Israel and Gaza – including missile attacks and a bus bombing a stone’s throw from our apartment in Tel Aviv – the British government recommended that we avoid public transport in Israel. Indeed, avoid anything that involved the public. Do not go to Israel. Which seemed to make it all pretty pointless. So we opted for the Algarve. Israel is armed to the teeth; it has perfected offence and defence. Many of its neighbours in the Middle East despise it. Despite being the 100th smallest country, it is a nuclear power that refuses to be subjected to

aggression and tyranny. Often striking first and asking questions later, Israel possesses an aerial arsenal of over 250 F-16s, the largest fleet of military aircraft outside the US. With a $100 billion economy that is larger than all of its immediate neighbours combined, Israel is also the largest immigrant-absorbing nation. Not only does it make a cracking Yemenite bone soup, Israel also invented the iconic Galil assault rifle. The Galil, based on the Finnish RK 62 and the AK-47, came about after the Six-Day War of 1967. During the brief conflict, the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) experienced issues with its main rifle, the FN FAL, due to the fine sand and arid conditions of the Arab battlefield. However, they noted that the AK-47 was used

against them with success – and so they decided to develop a new assault rifle. Introduced in the early 1970s to see action in the next Israeli-Arab Yom Kippur war, the Galil was respected by friend and foe alike for its simplicity and man-stopping power. The basic platform mutated into a series of variations to feed the 5.56 mm and 7.62 mm round, including a sniper rifle and the MAR subcompact assault rifle, better known as the Micro-Galil. Its success was short lived, however. In the early 1970s, Israel imported large numbers of US M16 rifles, and the Galil was superceded, its future use relegated to South American, African and Asian territories. Civilian versions are modified to fire a tenround magazine and remain a highly collectable weapons on US markets, fetching over $3,000. The Galil can be best described as a superior update of the ageing AK-47 design. With improved internals, left- and right-hand safety selectors, a folding stock and superior front and rear sights – with efficient nighttime accuracy at 100 metres – the Galil was something different. As the masses socked it out on the airsoft killing fields with M4 and AK-47s, I wanted variation on a theme. Therefore, my very first AEG was the King Arms SAR Galil. This Israeli beauty comes in many shapes and sizes, including the AR, ARM and MAR variants. Cheaper models can also be obtained from TSI, VFC/Avalon and

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ICS, while Inokatsu and Action manufacture additional kits. King Arms has earned a reputable standing for a good reason; it manufactures excellent hardware that is reliable, accurate, constantly powerful and hard-hitting. With components reeking of top quality, this naturally came at a higher price (ÂŁ450) when the SAR was a new kid on the block. Limited to 500 units, this is a full-metal slugfest. With official Hebrew markings, a 7mm gearbox, dummy left-side selector, a 9.612v battery that is housed in the gas tube, and a 130-round metal low-cap magazine, this is airsoft wanderlust. Weighty, tough and sturdy, it feels ever so right as a field weapon. Also, the metal stock can be folded inwards for tight situations, and even used, if necessary, as a side arm and in CQB to blitz interiors with an incredibly high rate of fire. On first inspection, the King Arms SAR Galil is sturdy. Despite a small gap in the plastic handgrip, it is highly durable, made of strong materials, including a metal base plate. There are no creaks or wobbles: this beautiful creature is built to last. With King Arms, no upgrades are necessary, as it is

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a high-end AEG, and single/fully automatic operation is very respectable with no jams or blockages. Each shot fed seamlessly, bar a few remaining BBs. With an output of around 330fps, the rifle was extremely accurate at over 100 feet, and its rate of fire is jaw-dropping. The 14mm thread allows the birdcage flash hider to be replaced with silencer aesthetics, and the crisp, electric blowback is pleasingly reassuring, with a deafening, metallic sound as the gearbox and piston go hell-bent for leather. Make no mistake, this truly is the King Tiger II of AEG Galils. But are the high costs and limited parts for King Arms a bittersweet thing? RIS compatibility would have been appreciated; however, the King Arms model is faithful to the real steel. The electric blowback is not to all tastes (King Arms also produces a non-blowback version), and is admittedly an attractive feature that does not hold a candle to the solid, resonating clang, bang and wallop of a GBBR. As for spares, Firesupport was able to source whatever I wished for. On the other hand, after three years of constant and demanding use, the King Arms

SAR had its spring replaced after a lowering dip in BB whack. Two mid-cap magazines had seen better days, their internal springs shot to hell due to abuse. The fire selector came somewhat loose and was tightened internally. And thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s it. The King Arms SAR Galil begs for more. The preferred layout consists of two high-caps (400 rounds each) and four lowcaps, the latter taped together for faster replenishment of ammunition in the field. An IDF Galil sling was also purchased for that genuine Hebrew cordite razzmatazz. For further field modifications, King Arms promised a scope mount base that has yet to surface; however, a simple AK-47 side rail should not be an issue. King Arms also offers

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THE ARMOURY | KING ARMS GALIL

â&#x20AC;&#x153;With official Hebrew markings, a 7mm gearbox, dummy leftside selector, a 9.6-12v battery that is housed in the gas tube, and a 130-round metal low-cap magazine, this is airsoft wanderlust.â&#x20AC;?

a beautiful wooden handgrip for those who want to further enhance and individualise their SAR beyond what is essentially a unique AEG in the first place. The King Arms SAR is a truly astonishing AEG. Heavy like the real steel, this beast remains constantly on target with a cracking range, and it hits with a devilish glee, as opponents in the catacombs of Elite Urban Epsom can testify. Recommended to all without hesitation, the only bugbear is perhaps the cost this bella donna of AEGs commands. That said, reliability, high-quality materials, workmanship and design, as well as devastating performance, all come at a price. What can I tell you? You pay your money and you take your choice.

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CELCIUS GETS SERIOUS Following the successful launch of the MX-3 platform, Celcius gets kitted up

ot so long ago, very few airsofters would have given the name ‘Celcius’ a second thought. The MX-1 and X-Max had come and gone and, putting it mildly, didn’t leave a wonderful impression. Then a new company, Specialist Tactical Training Solutions (STTS), obtained the European distribution rights and set about transforming the Celcius name, and its reputation.

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The MX-2 went a long way to re-establishing the gun as a potential game-changer, and the range was expanded to include UK-only limited editions, proving that it is possible to create excellent airsoft weapons here in the UK – albeit at a price. Mind you, when you consider what comes with these packages, the phrase ‘you get what you pay for’ certainly applies. More recently, the MX-2 has been superseded

by the MX-3, and the range has been updated, expanded further, and now includes two items that scream to be recognised for what they are – but more about those in a moment. The M4 CQB Team Alpha II contains all the goodies you would expect to find in the MX-3, but at a lower price, due to many of the external components being made of a slightly lower grade metal. However, don’t be put off

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WEAPON UPDATE | CELCIUS by that; the internals are the same and STTS covers it with a UK three-month parts warranty. Other developments include the STTS/ MDD Hop Unit (which has just been updated to refine the throughput and make it even more air-tight), plus a retro-fit ECU package that offers enhanced functionality and modes of fire. In fact, STTS produces so many different parts you’d think they could sell their guns in kit form! Guess what... the Team Alpha MX Professional Kit is exactly that! Based on the MX-3 platform, the kit contains all the parts you need to build an M4 CQB Team Alpha MX-Pro – all you need is a few tools, plus time and patience. However, if you are anything like me (I used to end up with more glue on my fingers than the parts when building Airfix models), then you might need a little help and, thankfully, this too is available. JD Airsoft has recently been awarded UK exclusivity on the whole STTS Celcius range, and will be providing a full support and warranty service. One of their engineers, James (aka ‘Fuse’), has been specially trained in all aspects of Celcius weaponry, and also offers an awesome build service for the MX Professional Kit. At the time of writing, the cost of the kit is £559 from JD Airsoft (which is considerably cheaper than the £800+ for a boxed unit), and Phil expects the price for James to put a kit together to be sub-£100. Based on that, you can get a hand-built, hand-finished Team Alpha MX-Pro for around £650 – an absolute bargain, we’re sure you’ll agree. Another JD item that recently caught our attention is the new Celcius CNC Complete Mechbox for CTW/PTW, which is eyewateringly expensive at 1p under £300 but, when you consider what has gone into making it, then you can see where the money has been spent. This little beauty weighs in at 150g and the body halves are CNC-machined from a solid block. They make only one a day, and every component is hand-inspected, finished and tested before assembly. The gears are possibly the smoothest I have ever felt and the whole thing just oozes quality. £300 is a lot to spend, but let me ask you this: if you want to build a world-class racing car, would you ‘economise’ on the gearbox? There was one other item we wanted to get our hands on but, with only two in the country, short of hiding it under my coat and making a run for it, there was no way Phil was going to let me escape with a Celcius MX-Ghost. We’re keeping tight-lipped about the Ghost here, though… but watch out for it in a future issue!

If that wasn’t enough, STTS also sponsors the guys at Stirling Airsoft, so expect them to be sporting super-upgraded CTWs at some time in the near future. Overall, it’s clear to see that Celcius has come a long way over the last 12 months, and now with the confidence of JD Airsoft behind the brand, the future must look very bright to them indeed.

INFORMATION Specialist Tactical Training Solutions WEB: www.celcius-ctw.com JD Airsoft WEB: www.jdairsoft.net TEL: 01543 466356

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DEBATE | TWO-TONES XXXXXXXX

TWO GO TO WAR

iscussions over hit-taking, real steel vs repro, and the merits of milsim are as old as the sport itself. But the biggest controversy in recent years, in safe zones and on online forums, has surrounded ‘two-tone’ guns. So are two-tones killing the sport and destroying realism on the skirmish field, or are they a vital gateway into the sport for young players? Are they tactical day-glo liabilities, or a necessary evil if we want to continue to attract new blood? Some site operators ban them, while others use them among their hire guns. For those of you wondering what on earth we’re on about, I’ll summarise. Without a ‘defence’ to buy a realisticcoloured airsoft gun, over-18s are only allowed to buy AEGs (and similar), where the predominant colour is one of a set list of bright hues – simply so no one can mistake it for a real gun. To many, though, airsoft is about realism. While you might not be playing a full-on MilSim, having a neon green M16 either in your hands or in your sights destroys the suspension of disbelief that a large proportion of players enjoy while crawling around local woodland on a weekend. But others also point out that when you’ve got a side composed of 30 guys in random uniforms wearing bright red armbands, the colour of the rifle makes little difference! We asked a sample of our readers for their views and many players think they ruin the feel of the game. ‘Blackoperative’ said it felt like taking a water pistol to an airsoft game and made you feel less of a player. ‘Mr Smile’ thinks that having a two-tone actually compromises his game. “As a newb who’s stuck with two-tone, I personally hate them. It immediately puts new players at a disadvantage, being easy to spot from half a mile away.” Not all players feel this is an issue, though. Anthony from Nottingham said:

“You’re normally too focused on shooting and taking cover to notice that the gun firing at you is bright blue, and they work just as well as the gun you’re holding. There are always those who put too much stock in making airsoft as realistic as possible. Personally I go to have a laugh and a good time with my mates.” Anthony’s teammate, Christopher, echoes his feelings: “I think that some of the gun companies use it as an opportunity to charge more for the RIFs, just because they are real steel colours. A two-tone weapon with exactly the same body manufacture, internals and operating limits will be sold for a much lower price.” For many younger players, having a two-tone gun really is the only option, and this is only if it is bought by a parent or guardian.

PLAYERS’ VIEWS ‘CURLY’, GUNMAN AIRSOFT REGULAR: “On two-tones, it does dim down the realism that people want when they have spent loads on chavcam and complete load outs. It also affects the second hand market it seems. No one wants to buy a repainted two-tone gun. It is a necessary evil, but it doesn’t take long to get your UKARA number, unless you are under 18 of course.” ‘TEE83’, GUNMAN AIRSOFT REGULAR: “Two-tones are for impatient people who can’t wait the few months to get their UKARA sorted. On the basis that it puts newbies at an unfair advantage because of the colour, why not go for a clear gun? Unless you’re laying in situ for most of the scenario, chances are you’ve been seen long before you get shot at, regardless of the colour of your gun as the range on airsoft rifles isn’t huge. Two-tones should be looked on as a deterrent to encourage people to go down the UKARA route.” PAUL STICKS: “I’m not a fan of two-tones, but they open the sport up to younger players. I find the law to be a farce. I was amused by a friend who used his firearms certificate as ID to buy an RIF. He was told by the staff at a major airsoft retailer, ‘Sorry we can’t accept that to sell you an airsoft weapon’. He can buy a real weapon but not a toy one!” Matthew Marshall: “I think they’re unnecessary to be honest. It’s easy enough to get a UKARA licence these days, it just means being patient for around two to four months and in that time you could probably save up to get something half decent.”

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DEBATE | TWO-TONES Most of our readers seem to feel this is a good thing. Gunman regular ‘Dark Angel’ said: “Two-tones are a great way for people to get into the sport, especially younger guys. My first gun was a JLS FN2000 in bright green, and it didn’t feel any different. There is no difference apart from a bit of paint, after all.” ‘Guerrilla Will’, though, feels the perils of renting are encouraging players to get their own gun as quickly as possible, regardless of colour. “I can completely see why someone would buy a two-tone,” he said. Under-18s can’t buy a RIF at all, and once you’re over 18, you have to rent at least three times. Given the state of some sites’ rental guns, that is not an experience I would want to pay for if I could buy something that was actually reliable for twice the price.” Airsoft marshal ‘Sc0rpion’ (Steve) said, “Under-18s are more likely to show their gun to their mates or wave it around at a party to be cool – you know how young’uns love to show off. The law is there, and all and sundry have to put up with it. That may seem harsh, but the rules are there for everyone’s protection, not just airsofters.” Whatever your view on two-tone guns, it’s probably good to remember that ultimately it’s about getting out there on the skirmish field and playing. Hannah Rocha-Leite of last month’s featured NTUSAS said: “I don’t think twotone guns are particularly damaging to the realism of a game – not when I’ve seen single-tone bright pink M4s being used. Personally, I’m into airsoft to enjoy myself and I don’t require exacting standards of realism for that.” Overall, the issue seems to be pretty evenly split three ways: those that hate them, those that don’t and those who don’t care so long as they are having fun. Personally, I think the two-tone debate is likely to continue for as long as we play airsoft. So I guess we’re going to be talking about them for a long time to come.

“I don’t think two-tone guns are particularly damaging to the realism of a game – not when I’ve seen single-tone bright pink M4s being used” 064

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HAVE YOUR SAY Got an opinion on the two-tone debate? Got an idea for a future topic? Get in touch with Airsoft Action. Letters can be sent to the address on page 4 or emailed to: nigels@blazepublishing.co.uk.

TO ADVERTISE CALL TONI ON 01926 339808

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SOVIET MOTOR RIFLE Gadge investigates one of the world’s most iconic looks: the Soviet infantryman in his cold-weather combat gear

any people have a perception of the USSR as a land of snow and ice – but that is far from the truth. The former Soviet Union covered a vast proportion of the world’s landmass, and controlled countries with extremely warm climes, as well as those that were nearly always at sub-zero temperatures. Most Soviet troopers’ equipment reflected the necessity for clothing and battle accoutrements that could cope with both a southern European summer and a northern European winter. The Soviet Union issued its uniforms within a variety, and sometimes confusing set, of uniform ‘scales of issue’. A rifleman could expect to have several uniforms of different types, to cope with a host of weather conditions and duties. The Soviet Army, however, was notoriously lax at enforcing many of its uniform regulations.

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The Soviet forces recognised four types of ‘dress state’: parade/walking out, everyday duty, field dress and working dress. These dress states each had a summer and winter category, but a third, less common lightweight category was authorised for wear in the warmer southern states of the USSR. While parade and working uniforms are out of the scope of this article, we will look in more detail at the differences between everyday and field uniforms. As an aside, it is fair to say that, for many enlisted men, parade uniforms were smartened everyday uniforms and work wear was often older, damaged or unserviceable field clothing.

Arms of service Everyday uniforms were easily distinguishable by their much brighter trimmings and accessories. For example a parade M69

blouse had coloured arms of service collar patches – red for infantry, black for tanks and sky blue for airborne. It also had shoulder boards denoting rank and an equally brightlycoloured arm shield denoting the branch of service. Confusingly these were not always the same colour and a tank driver in a motor rifles division may well have had black tankers’ collar patches and shoulder boards, but a red motor rifles arm shield. In contrast the field uniforms were less ostentatious. Conspicuous coloured hat trim, arm shields and collar patches were replaced with subdued khaki versions (referred to by the Soviet Army as ‘olive’ in shade) or removed entirely for a more tactical appearance in the field. This, at least, was the theory. In practice, many soldiers were not actually issued enough clothing to comply with the directives to remove insignia or to

COLD WAR WARRIOR | SOVIET MOTOR RIFLES

avoid brightly-coloured shoulder boards and so would leave them on. This departure from army regulations was especially evident with items like greatcoats, as soldiers were highly unlikely to actually receive the official issue of two coats. In some units, and in some areas of the Soviet Union considered arctic, the soldier could expect his winter issue to consist of thicker, padded uniforms with a heavy, synthetic ‘fish fur’ collar. But outside of the worst areas, these were the reserve of senior NCOs and officers. For most motor rifles conscripts, the main addition to their winter kit had changed very little since Tsarist days. In one of our very first issues we looked at the Soviet rifleman in his winter field gear. This month, we take a look at the winter field scale of issue for the Russian infantryman. While his external appearance is very different from that of his summer-issue comrade, it’s probably worth noting that, underneath these clothes, his basic issue

would most likely be the same M69 Hebe utility combat uniform.

Unmistakably Russian The notable differences in this kit, however, are unmistakeably Russian. Replacing the summer pilotka side cap is a synthetic fur cap known as an ushanka, popular in Russia for centuries. The ushanka, bearing a red Soviet Army enamel and metal star, can be folded down over the ears and back of the neck in extremely cold weather, but is normally worn as our rifleman here wears it – and at a similarly jaunty angle. While the ushanka was often seen in winter dress worn on its own, in the field it was not uncommon to see it worn underneath the issue SSh40 or 60 model steel helmet on manoeuvres. Covering most of his uniform is a grey, thick woollen greatcoat, conspicuously marked with his branch of service insignia. Soviet greatcoats often had no visible buttons, instead having internal ties to allow them to expand when

worn with heavier winter clothing and, as can be seen here, the everyday (or possibly even parade) insignia is worn on the greatcoat, rather than being removed for the field, as per regulations. Once again, the vagaries of the Soviet procurement and supply system often meant that, while the greatcoat was officially grey, it was not unknown for examples to be anything from light brown to dark green. As with his summer scale of issue, our soldier wears high leg sapogi boots with a leather bottom and felt calves. While these are usually adequate for winter wear, in particularly cold postings, fur-lined or padded boots may well have been issued. The Russians have typically eschewed the use of socks, and preferred wearing cloth ‘foot wraps’ under their boots, for superior comfort over socks in wet and cold weather.

Spartan equipment As with all Soviet soldiers of the era, load-carrying equipment was spartan and

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COLD WAR WARRIOR | SOVIET MOTOR RIFLES

somewhat outdated by Western standards. Unlike NATO soldiers, the Soviet infantryman was not expected to operate for any length of time away from his squad’s armoured personnel carrier (APC) and support services. Our soldier’s equipment pouches are carried on a rubberised canvas belt and yoke similar to WWII German ‘Y straps’. Attached to this harness are his water bottle, an ammunition and cleaning kit pouch for his assault rifle, and his rifle’s 6Kh4 bayonet. Fitted to the central rear strap is a groundsheet capable of serving as a waterproof cape or shelter quarter. This item is again similar to the WWII Soviet design and is known as a plastch. Consisting essentially of a square of waterproofed canvas of roughly five square feet, the plastch has a number of eyelets, grommets and ties that enable it to be secured around the body or combined with others to make shelters. Suspended across our warrior’s chest is his respirator bag for his ShM gas mask.

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This model again dates back to a late WWII design, and was vastly inferior to Western models, as the ShM covers the soldier’s ears with a rubber hood and has no speech outlet, making verbal communication extremely difficult, if not impossible, in battle. Additionally its hermetically-sealed, hood-like nature makes it extremely hot and uncomfortable to wear for prolonged periods of time. However, as with all armies of the period, the respirator was carried at all times in the field as both sides fully expected to fight a chemical or nuclear war. Missing from his kit, however, is the equally cumbersome (and unpleasantly hot) OP-1 chemical defence suit, although a foldable chemicaldefence poncho is likely to be carried in the infantryman’s haversack. For the Soviet soldier, the need to carry an NBC suit at all times was less of an issue because, as previously mentioned, the rifleman would have been expected to fight

from the confines of a chemically-protected, armoured fighting vehicle. As with most of our Warsaw Pact warriors in this series, he is armed with a model of an assault rifle from the venerable Kalashnikov family. While most motor rifle soldiers would have been issued the new AK-74 5.45 calibre assault rifle with a fully laminated wood stock, it was not unknown for reconnaissance soldiers to be seen with the folding stock variant, normally seen with airborne forces. In summary we at Airsoft Action think it’s safe to say that, while this is definitely one of the more iconic Cold War Warrior impressions we’ve displayed, it’s probably also one of the least practical for skirmishing in the UK, and this is largely because of the cumbersome, heavy greatcoat. We feel that, even if you don’t overheat within half an hour in the field, the chances of you feeling a hit through this seriously hefty winter clothing are pretty slim indeed!

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f l o w red

L A C I T C A T B AT CQ

hroughout the year, there are many special events running all round the UK. Nearly all of them are run during spring and summer to catch not only the better weather conditions, but also the greater mass of players. So it was a bit unusual to get a call to cover one such special event held on 9 December. RedWolf Airsoft UK had linked up with CQB Tactical, based in Swindon, to run a one-day, scenario-based event. I am a bit embarrassed to say that, despite it only being an hour down the road from me, I had not been to CQB Tactical – so what a great way to kill two birds with one stone.

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When I arrived, the whole place was buzzing with people sorting their kit and getting their weapons chronoed. As well as the main game, there was also a pistol competition set to run throughout the course of the day, downstairs in the basement, with the winner going home with a new RedWolf Nighthawk Custom Recon CO2 pistol.

The Venue CQB Tactical is fairly new on the airsoft scene, but has already caused quite a stir. A former factory split over three levels, it offers 96,000 square-metres of indoor close quarter battle areas. Owners

CQB Tactical is not your typical airsoft site, so Ratty took the opportunity to pay it a visit for a RedWolf Airsoft event Bryan and Steve were both excited, not just about the day’s event, but also about what the future holds. As airsoft players themselves, they have a good understanding of how to offer a good day’s skirmishing, and how to provide value for money. Out on site, the ground level play area is three large warehouse-sized rooms. These have been filled with a mix of cover made from pallets and car tyres, as well as MDF rooms and a scrapped car. They offer both the attackers and defenders plenty of scope for fire and manoeuvre. Most of the tyre walls were wrapped in thick black plastic sheeting, thus making

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EVENT REVIEW | CQB TACTICAL them more solid, and stopping the inevitable shooting through the gaps. There are two stairwells leading upstairs into a further two large rooms, again offering quite a lot of cover. Also upstairs is the sniper nest/machine gun post which adds another dimension to game days and has its own set of rules when in use. The basement area is an eerie place to be, with a mix of small rooms and open areas. If you like fighting in a low light environment, then it offers plenty of scope. With all the old pipelines that remain down there, it could be a set from Aliens – “There’s something moving down here and it ain’t us!”

The Event This event was the first of hopefully many in which RedWolf Airsoft UK will hook up with venues across the country, running scenario-based days with prizes and other competitions. With 70 players booked in, once everyone was kitted up, Gaz from RedWolf gave a full and thorough safety briefing, both for the site and for the day’s event. Marshalling was supplied by 258th Coy SOG, who are a RedWolf UKsponsored team, and there were plenty of them too. Decked out in their high-vis vests, there was going to be very little opportunity for anyone to not feel their hits and keep the day safe.

For the first game, the ITF had to get a foothold, and the EECA were not going to relinquish their territory easily. As soon as ‘game on’ was called, the action started and it was fast and furious. The ITF made a good early advance but then got bogged down in the main area. Another smaller force broke off to carry out a flanking manoeuvre via the ‘pallet room’. This room, which is a maze of smaller rooms made up from pallets, is a little darker, and again the ITF ran into some trouble. The EECA were proving a formidable force, and far from being dug in, went on the advance, pushing the ITF back some distance. For this game, the TLD buggy was on the offensive and proved a massive success helping to force back the EECA from some of their strongholds. However, no sooner had a position been freed up, than another load of EECA members took up their fallen comrades’ positions. ITF reinforcements arrived and were backing up those held up in the pallet room. This force was making good progress, moving tactically and had just started to engage the EECA when a guy appeared from nowhere in his black cloak, not unlike the Hooded Claw, and wasted four or five of the ITF with his spring

pump-action shotgun. No sooner had he appeared, than with a swoosh of his cloak he disappeared back into the darkness. Hilarious, yet slightly unnerving! With both sides advancing and being pushed back at various stages of the game it was a pretty even match, which set the tone for the rest of the day. There were breaks between each game but with quick turnaround times it allowed those players who needed to go back to the safe zone five minutes to sort themselves out. We were on the first floor for the next scenario. The ITF were now on the defensive, with the EECA trying to snatch back their nuclear device. The stairwells, as always, were a bottleneck, but with strong persistence and the TLD buggy adding assistance, the ITF were on the receiving end of some very loud bangs, and were eventually overrun by the EECA. It seemed no time at all before it was lunch, and afterwards it was back out to the game zone as the next scenario was announced. At this point, I wandered down into the basement to check out the pistol competition. Here I was greeted by Danny from RedWolf who was running this side of the day.

Overall Scenario In an unmonitored region of Eastern Europe, a powerful new threat is emerging in the form of former Yugoslavian general, Drazen Cervenko. With the eyes of the West focused on the Middle East, Cervenko managed to amass sizeable support and he now threatens the world with a new “Nuclear Age”. Cervenko’s nuclear and chemical weapons development is his most deadly threat and now an International Task Force (ITF) has been assembled to seek out and destroy his factories and stop Cervenko and his Eastern European Commando Army (EECA) before he becomes too powerful.

The Games With this in mind, the teams were split accordingly; the ITF was made up of everyone in multicam/ATACS/desert kit, while the EECA were made up of folks in woodland/black/PMC/civvy loadouts.

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EVENT REVIEW | CQB TACTICAL

“A guy appeared from nowhere in his black cloak, not unlike the Hooded Claw and wasted four or five of the ITF with his spring pumpaction shotgun.” The task sounded simple enough – move along the course and engage five targets at pre-determined points with 15 rounds in a RedWolf Nighthawk Custom Recon CO2 Pistol as quickly as possible. You could only move onto the next target once you had confirmation that the previous target was hit. The first target was at a fair distance and in the low light environment was proving the biggest stumbling block. Three guys I watched did not finish, as they had run out of rounds by target number four. With the fourth guy not getting that far, they left the area and the next four guys rotated through. Speaking to Danny, this challenge was proving far harder than most people thought, but everyone still left with big smiles on their faces! Back in the main arena, the action was still going hard and fast, with the occasional big ‘BOOM’ courtesy of TLD! Unfortunately I had to leave shortly afterwards, but with daylight starting to

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fade away, there was only another hour or so of game-time left.

Summary I spoke to many of the players throughout the course of the day and heard many comments. One player said: “The site has bags of potential, with great use of the areas and good cover”. Another airosfter reported that, “The site is different to other CQB sites. It is really up close and personal but offers a great variety of gaming experience. The semi auto fire rule is pretty much standard at such venues, and it would be great to have a pistol/ shotgun-only day there”. The guys at CQB Tactical are a friendly bunch, and with the work that they are carrying out on site, there will be ongoing changes to make it worth a revisit. The event itself was well thought-out with good themed games. The whole day was particularly well marshalled, with very little talk of non-hit taking, and any

issues were dealt with swiftly. For the first event of this type I think it went very well. For me personally, I look forward to attending more RedWolf airsoft days at various sites. It will make me want to travel to skirmish sites that perhaps, down to travelling time and distance, I wouldn’t have gone to otherwise. All in all, a great day all round. Thanks to: Bryan and Steve at CQB Tactical for making me feel welcome; Chris, Danny, Gary, Rob and Gaz from RedWolf Airsoft UK for setting up the day; and the 258th Coy SOG for marshalling.

INFORMATION CQB Tactical WEB: www.cqbtactical.co.uk TEL: Steve (07500 894224) or Bryan (07710 236316) REDWOLF GAME DAYS: www.facebook.com/redwolfairsoft

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FEATURE | LEST WE FORGET

REMEMBER THE FALLEN At a time of family fun and celebration, Dan Mills reflects on those who didn’t come home.

s I write this, 2012 is drawing to a close, and the New Year looms upon us. At times like this, my thoughts always return to those who are no longer with us. I have lost several friends and comrades over the years, as we all have as a nation. Every year, I find the time to raise a glass for them – and I hope you do, too. Remembrance Sunday in November kick-starts these feelings for me, and for many other veterans of conflict. It is an excuse for us to meet up, pay tribute to old comrades, pull up a sandbag and talk about what we did, where we fought, and how we got back in one piece. So it goes for servicemen of all ages, who have fought in different conflicts all over the world. As the year ends, and the excitement surrounding Christmas and the New Year grows, many of us spend time reflecting, thinking back over the years before, about past experiences and those we shared the times with, and also those who are no longer with us.

In an earlier article I wrote about the Christmas truce, among other things, that took place during the First World War, and for this article, it is to that event that I want to return. This year, I was lucky enough to get involved in what is, for me, a particularly exciting project: Battlefield Guiding. I have been fortunate enough to tour France and Belgium, visiting not only the historic battlefields, but the cemeteries, too, where I can pay my respects. The number of cemeteries filled with war graves is simply vast. Once the armies had fought each other to a standstill, and were firmly entrenched in static, trench warfare, many men perished in machine gun and artillery fire. Stretcher parties did their best for the wounded, but the sad fact is that lots of the injured and dead were left where they fell for one reason or another. To this day, bodies of the fallen are still being discovered. On 1 July 1916, at the Battle of the Somme, that first fateful day of

conflict saw nearly 60,000 casualties. Now, I currently live in a town with a population of about 8,000 – to me that means everyone in my town, and another seven like it, would just disappear in one day. Unbelievable, but this happened again and again. The Battle of the Somme lasted from 1 July to 18 November 1916, and cost the Germans 650,000 men, the British 420,000 and the French 195,000 men. Visiting the cemeteries in France and Belgium is a truly humbling experience. The headstones marking each grave seem to go on forever and ever, and vast monuments dominate almost every feature of the landscape. In some areas, you can stand and look in every direction and see either a monument or cemetery; they are everywhere. The pictures you see here are from my latest trips – row upon row, stone after stone, and, most poignantly of all, the names engraved on them. On the pillars of the missing at Thiepval, you will often come across

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names now blanked out, or new pieces put in to replace earlier gravestones. This is because the missing person named has now been discovered in a field or ditch somewhere, recovered and identified, and therefore no longer ‘missing’. In contrast, other memorials display names on new pieces of stone, added more recently, after bodies of the fallen were discovered elsewhere. The soldiers’ names are listed under the title of the regiment in which they served. Many of these famous regiments now no longer exist – except on these walls, or in a museum somewhere. After reading the names on the stones, and the regiments they belonged to, one of the most humbling experiences is reading the ages of many of the dead. This was a

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period when the recruiting sergeant would turn a blind eye to young boys telling fibs about their age so they could go off and fight with their friends. I have seen gravestones of young boys in their early teens. Many of them signed up looking for an adventure, a job, another way of life, but for many of them it would mean the end. Thousands never returned home to see their loved ones again. The romantic excitement of ‘doing your bit’, and the chatter suggesting that conflict would be over by Christmas, served to fill the ranks with thousands of volunteers. My last trip took me to the Somme, where whole units were mown down, wiped out, ceasing to exist. There were hundreds of thousands of casualties, as men were killed, injured, and reported

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FEATURE | LEST WE FORGET

missing in action. At a nearby memorial, there are over 70,000 names – just to those who were reported missing.The conditions in the trenches and no man’s land were so poor that many bodies simply disappeared into the mud, never to be seen again. Curiosity always catches me when I tour; I always seek out fallen soldiers with the same surname as me. I always find some. I am then left wondering who they were; could they be relations? On many of the trips, particularly with school visits, there are several pupils searching for known relatives. The advent of technology and research material has lead to many graves being visited by relatives, something I think is fantastic to see, even if it is a somewhat

tearful and tragic event. After all, it is for us, the ’future’ generation, that these young men lost their lives. German cemeteries are few and far between in the area. This is because, back then, they were not allowed to bury their dead locally on the battlefield like the British were. After the war, the Germans were initially told to remove themselves and their dead from French and Belgian soil, but this was appealed against in the interest of reconciliation. Thereafter they were to gather together their dead and place them in mass graves in a handful of appointed sites. It is worth visiting the German cemeteries, too. It is fascinating to see the differences compared with the British

ones. Bright and dark spring to my mind. I visited one of them, and learned that Adolf Hitler himself had visited the same place during WWII to pay his respects. My final note is a reminder, if ever you need one when celebrating the good things in life during festive times, when the year changes from old to new. Spare a thought for those who have laid down their lives – both back then and in modern times – in the name of freedom . I would very much recommend visting these areas to anyone who can. There is much to see and learn about the past; after all, it was for our tomorrow that these young men gave us their today. It is only right that we pay tribute. Rest in peace.

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SITE DIRECTORY Find somewhere to be this weekend… SYMBOL KEY

Is it woodland or urban? Check the key! UKARA

UKARA MEMBER UKASGB MEMBER WOODLAND

SHOP ONSITE BATTERY CHARGING URBAN PYROS ALLOWED REPAIR SERVICE DESERT

ATROOP AIRSOFT

Clocaenog Forest, LL16 4SP 07967 394976 www.atroop.co.uk

ABSOLUTE AIRSOFT

Maidenhead, SL6 3SS 07871 314951 www.absolute-airsoft.co.uk

ACE AIRSOFT WAR GAMES Penkridge, ST19 5RE 07786 192832 www.aceairsoft.co.uk

ACE COMBAT

Kent, TN12 7DG 01303 814803 www.acecombat.co.uk

AIRBORNE 101 AIRSOFT CLUB Downpatrick, Co. Down, BT30 07718 032541 robinsonm24@btinternet.com

AIRSOFT COMMANDOS Sutton, near Ferrybridge 07723 061386 andyace@ntlworld.com

AIRSOFT KGB

Porkellis Moor near Helston, Cornwall, TR13 0 Chef1322@hotmail.com www.kgbairsoft.com

AIRSOFT SKIRMISH

Stoulton, WR7 4QW 07764 587410 www.airsoftskirmish.co.uk

ALPHA ELITE GAMING

Le Mont de Rozel, Jersey, JE3 5 01534 733697 www.aegairsoft.je

AMBUSH ADVENTURES – SOUTHAMPTON

New Forest National Park, SP5 2DW 01252 315225 www.ambushadventures.co.uk

AMAZON EVENTS

Hellingly, East Sussex, BN27 4HL 0844 2570433 www.amazonoutdoorevents.co.uk

AMBUSH ADVENTURES – CHOBHAM

Chobham, Surrey, GU24 8SL 01252 315225 www.ambushadventures.co.uk

APOCALYPSE AIRSOFT

Sittingbourne, Kent, ME9 7QP 07872 348 576 www.apocalypseairsoft.com

ARENA AIRSOFT

Grimsby, DN31 3JD 07752 404060 www.arenaairsoft.com

AIRSOFT SKIRMISH CQB

Studley, B80 7LY 07764 587410 www.airsoftskirmish.co.uk

ALL ARMS AIRSOFT

Near Trawden, BB8 8SN 07909 683464 www.allarmsairsoft.co.uk

AIRSOFT ASYLUM

North Lanarksire, ML7 5 www.airsoftasylum.webs.com ayrsoft@gmail.com

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AIRSOFT SITES | DIRECTORY Huge thanks to our friends at Airbana (www.airsoftmap.net) for supplying data! AWA HERTS

Sawbridgeworth, Herts, CM23 4BJ 07732 184957 www.awaherts.com

BARNSLEY AIRSOFT

Shafton, Barnsley, S72 8RE 07779 236166 www.barnsleypaintball.co.uk

CERBERUS AIRSOFT - RIVOCK EDGE

Keighley, BD20 0LS 07891 469492 www.cerberusairsoft.co.uk

CERBERUS AIRSOFT SHEFFIELD WOODLAND

Sheffield, S6 6JE 07891 469492 www.cerberusairsoft.co.uk

BATTLETEC AIRSOFT

La Couture, Guernsey, GY1 2 07781 104068 www.battletec.co.uk

FIREBALL SQUADRON

DRAGON’S LAIR

FIRST AND ONLY – ANZIO CAMP

Houston, Renfrewshire, PA6 7BP 07853 195290 www.dow-airsoft.co.uk

Brentwood, Essex, CM15 0LA 07703 530189 www.dragonslairairsoft.co.uk

DRAGON VALLEY AIRSOFT CLOSE ACTION AIRSOFT Corby, NN17 3BB 07740 165787 www.close-action.co.uk

BETTER BATTLES

Ravenshead, Notts, NG15 9DH 07967 940043 www.better-battles.com

DOGS OF WAR

COMBAT ACTION GAMES

Maryland, Norfolk, NR10 4 01328 711867 www.combatactiongames.co.uk

Caerwent Training Area, South Wales, NP26 5XL 07921 336360 www.dragonvalley.co.uk

ELITE ACTION GAMES – DORKING

Dorking, Surrey, RH5 5AB 01784 433023 www.eliteactiongames.com

BRAVO 2-2 AIRSOFT

Leisure Lakes, Mere Brow, Southport. PR46JX 07790 715059 www.bravo22airsoft.com

BRISTOL AIRSOFT

Bristol, BS1 2HQ 07776 288826 www.bristolairsoft.com

BRIT-TAC AIRSOFT

Sheffield, S2 5TR 07795 631331 www.brittacairsoft.com

BUNKER 51

Charlton, SE7 8NJ 0870 7549653 www.wolfarmouries.co.uk

C3 TACTICAL

Longhope, Gloucestershire, GL17 0PH 07597 938011 www.c3tactical.co.uk

CERBERUS AIRSOFT - THE COMPLEX

Horsforth, Leeds LS18 4RP 07891 469492 www.cerberusairsoft.co.uk

CERBERUS AIRSOFT - THE SANDPIT

Bradford, BD2 1BQ 07891 469492 www.cerberusairsoft.co.uk

COMBAT SOUTH URBAN Portsmouth, PO6 3LS 02392 655636 www.combatsouth.co.uk

COMBAT SOUTH WOODLAND Fareham, PO17 5ND 02392 655636 www.combatsouth.co.uk

ELITE ACTION GAMES – EPSOM

Epsom, Surrey, KT18 01784 433023 www.eliteactiongames.com

ELITE ACTION GAMES – WORTHING

Worthing, BN13 01784 433023 www.eliteactiongames.com

CONTACT! FIGHT SCHOOL

Kelvedon Hatch, Essex, CM14 5 01438 368177 www.thefightschool.demon.co.uk

ELITE BATTLEZONE

Bexley, Greater London, DA5 1NX 07968 448475 www.elitebattlezone.co.uk

COOL UNDER FIRE

Doddington, Kent, ME9 0JS 07960 532613 www.coolunderfire.co.uk

CORNWALL AIRSOFT ASSAULT

Truro, Cornwall, TR2 07837 475012 www.cornwallairsoftassault.co.uk

EXPERIENCE AIRSOFT

Swindon, Wiltshire, SN5 0AN 01380 728982 www.experienceairsoft.co.uk

FIREFIGHT COMBAT SIMULATIONS

Lewisham, SE13 5SU 07973 240177 www.firefight.co.uk

CUMBRIA AIRSOFT

Dumfries, DG12 cumbria.airsoft@virgin.net www.cumbria-airsoft.com

FIFE WARGAMES

St Andrews, KY10 3XL info@fifewargames.co.uk www.fifewargames.com

DELTA TEAM 3

Skelmersdale, Lancs WN8 8UT 07986 053076 www.deltateam3.co.uk

Sutton Coldfield, B75 5SA 07582 684533 www.fireballsquadron.com

Leek, ST13 8 07862 288359 www.firstandonlyairsoft.com

FIRST AND ONLY – BATTLE LAKES

Royal Tunbridge Wells, TN3 9AP 07862 288359 www.firstandonlyairsoft.com

FIRST AND ONLY – BUNKER WOOD

Kidderminster, Worcs, DY11 5SA 07862 288359 www.firstandonlyairsoft.com

FIRST AND ONLY – KHE SANH WOODS

Otley, West Yorkshire LS21 2NA 07862 288359 www.firstandonlyairsoft.com

FIRST AND ONLY – MANCHESTER WOODLAND Bolton, BL7 9TS 07862 288359 www.firstandonlyairsoft.com

FIRST AND ONLY – ASYLUM Kidderminster, DY10 3PT 07862 288359 www.firstandonlyairsoft.com

FIRST AND ONLY – THE EMBASSY

Leicester, LE2 6EA 07862 288359 www.firstandonlyairsoft.com

FIRST AND ONLY – THE MALL Reading, RG1 1NR 07862 288359 www.firstandonlyairsoft.com

GROUND ZERO WOODLAND

Ringwood, Hampshire, BH24 2DF 01329 849818 www.groundzerowoodland.com

FINMERE AIRSOFT

Buckingham, MK18 4JT 07976 184897 www.finmereairsoft.com

www.airsoftactionmagazine.com

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SITE DIRECTORY Find somewhere to be this weekend… LAC SITE 2

NOMAD AIRSOFT

LAC SITE 3

NORTHERN ALLIANCE AIRSOFT

Gainsborough, North Lincs, DN21 4JH 07775 877057 www.lincolnshireairsoftclub.co.uk

Saxillby, LN1 2JW 07775 877057 www.lincolnshireairsoftclub.co.uk

LAC SITE 5

Kirton Rd, North Lincs, DN16 07775 877057 www.lincolnshireairsoftclub.co.uk

FREE FIRE ZONE

Farcet, Peterborough, PE7 3DH 01733 247171 www.freefirezone.co.uk

FRV AIRSOFT

Annacloy, Downpatrick, BT30 8JJ 07730 586926 www.frvairsoft.com

GASS AIRSOFT – PENN

Penn Bottom, Bucks, HP10 07907 788970 www.gassairsoft.co.uk

GUNMAN AIRSOFT – NORWICH Norwich, Norfolk, NR10 07854 277264 www.gunmanairsoft.co.uk

Piddington, Oxfordshire, OX25 1 07907 788970 www.gassairsoft.co.uk

GRANGE FARM AIRSOFT

Leicester, LE9 9FP www.gingerliberationfront.com

GREENZONE COMBAT

Co. Armagh, BT60 1NE 07772 919974 www.greenzonecombat.com

GUN HO AIRSOFT

Guisborough, TS7 0PG 07525 435696 www.gunhoairsoft.co.uk

GUNMAN AIRSOFT – CAMBRIDGE

Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, IP28 07854 277264 www.gunmanairsoft.co.uk

078

Manby, Lincolnshire, LN11 8HE 07955 487983 www.lindsey-airsoft.co.uk

HIGHLAND TACTICAL AIRSOFT IV25 3PY 07702 846090 www.highlandtacticalairsoft.co.uk

MATLOCK COMBAT GAMES

Matlock, Derbyshire, DE4 5FW 07974 507166 www.matlockcombatgames.com

HILTON PARK AIRSOFT

Wolverhampton, WV10 7HU 08000 354490 www.paintballuk.com

HOMELAND TACTICAL AIRSOFT GASS AIRSOFT – PIDDINGTON

LINDSEY AIRSOFT

Spanby, Lincs, NG34 0AT 07971 560249 facebook.com/HomelandTacticalAirsoft

INVICTA AIRSOFT – RAINDEN WOODS

Folkestone, Kent, CT18 7AY 01227 763335 www.invictaairsoft.co.uz

ISLAND RECON AIRSOFT COMBAT

Near Shorwell, Isle of Wight, PO30 07964 751047 www.islandrecon.co.uk

LAND WARRIOR AIRSOFT

Gorebridge, Midlothian, EH23 4LG 0131 654 2452 www.airsoftedinburgh.co.uk

LAC SITE 1

Gainsborough, North Lincs, DN21 4JH 07775 877057 www.lincolnshireairsoftclub.co.uk

MAW

Fenwick, Ayrshire, KA3 6AY 07904 998250 www.nomadairsoft.com

Thirsk, North Yorkshire, YO7 3LQ 01845 565465 www.northernallianceairsoft. co.uk

NORTHFLEET CQB

Northfleet, Kent, DA11 9AA 07968 448475 www.elitebattlezone.co.uk

NSC AIRSOFT

Hetton, Sunderland, DH5 0 07983 333521 www.nscairsoft.co.uk

NTAC

Durham, DL4 2ER 01642 281220 www.ntac.co.uk

Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, LE14 07562 479966 maw.airsoft@hotmail.com

OBAN AIRSOFT – HILL ARGYLL

MIA

OP-TACTICAL UK – TEAN-OPS

MILITARY OUTDOOR ADVENTURES

PATHFINDER GROUP AIRSOFT MILITARY SIMULATION

Cornwall, EX23 9JL 01288 331748 www.airsoftsouthwest.co.uk

Wrightington, WN6 9PL 01942 514724 www.*militaryoutdooradventure. co.uk

MILSIM UK

Checkley, Staffordshire, ST10 4NS 07523 916607 www.milsimuk.co.uk

Argyll and Bute, PA37 1 07967 710185 www.argyllsurplus.com

Tean, Staffordshire, ST10 4JT 07964 990831 www.op-tac.co.uk

Former RAF Camp Sopley/ Merryfield Park, Hants, BH23 02380 899369

PHOENIX AIRSOFT

Budby, Notts, NG22 9FG 01623 812483 www.phoenix-airsoft.co.uk

PLATOON 1HQ NCIS AIRSOFT

Edinburgh, EH14 4 nick@ncis-airsoft.co.uk www.ncis-airsoft.co.uk

Rochester, Kent, ME1 1 HQ 01634 829063 www.ptt-1hq.co.uk

PLAYERS OF WAR

High Bonnybridge, FK1 3AD 07767 203979 www.playersofwar.co.uk

February 2013

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AIRSOFT SITES | DIRECTORY Huge thanks to our friends at Airbana (www.airsoftmap.net) for supplying data! PREDATOR COMBAT GAMES Ballynahinch, BT24 8NF 028 4377 0566 www.predatorcombat.com

RAVEN’S NEST

Suffolk, IP8 4 01473 831563 www.ravensairsoft.co.uk

RAW WAR AIRSOFT CUMBRIA Wigton, Cumbria CA7 3SZ 01900 85645 www.airsoftcumbria.co.uk

SKIRMISH AIRSOFT BILLERICAY

SW WAR GAMES – SCRAESDON FORT

SKIRMISH EXETER

SW WAR GAMES – TREGANTLE FORT

Billericay, Essex, CM11 2TX 01277 657777 www.airsoft-billericay.co.uk

Exeter, Devon, EX4 5 01548 580025 www.airsoftexeter.co.uk

SOUTHDOWN AIRSOFT

Petworth, West Sussex, GU28 0LR 07766 770830 www.southdownairsoft.com

UCAP AIRSOFT

Antony, Cornwall, PL11 3AB 08456 345011 www.swwargames.co.uk

UCAP GREEN OPS

Linch, West Sussex, GU30 7 07590 818881 www.ucap.co.uk

Antony, Cornwall, PL11 3AZ 08456 345011 www.swwargames.co.uk

SPEC OPS AIRSOFT – BLOXWORTH Wareham, Dorset, BH20 7EU 07984 656947 www.specopsairsoft.co.uk

TA EVENTS

Hemel Hemstead, Herts, HP2 7QB 07894 059794 www.ta-events.co.uk

TACTICAL WALES AIRSOFT

Reynoldston, Swansea SA3 1AS 01792 473336 www.tacticalwales.co.uk

RIFT AIRSOFT (COTTENHAM) Cambridge, CB24 8RL 07751 586781 www.riftairsoft.com

SPEC OPS AIRSOFT – THE ROCK Portland, Dorset, DT5 2EG 07984 656947 www.specopsairsoft.co.uk

TACTICAL WARFARE AIRSOFT Warlingham, Surrey, CR6 9PL 020 8665 1299 www.tacticalwarfare.co.uk

SECTION 8 AIRSOFT

Shotts, N Lanarkshire, ML7 5AB 07974 026517 www.s8airsoft.com

STIRLING AIRSOFT

Coventry, CV3 6NX 07831 429407 www.stirlingairsoft.com

TASK FORCE SKIRMISH

Cowbridge, S Glamorgan, CF71 02920 593900 www.taskforcepaintball.co.uk

SECTION 8 AIRSOFT

Shotts, North Lanarkshire, ML7 5AB 07974 026517 www.s8airsoft.com

STORMFORCE AIRSOFT

Rugeley, Staffordshire, WS15 4LD 07515 937633 www.stormforcepaintball.co.uk

SG1 COMBAT GAMES

Co. Londonderry, BT45 8NA 07713 273102 www.sg1combatgames.co.uk

SUSSEX AIRSOFT

Slinfold, RH12 020 8150 9284 www.sussexairsoft.co.uk

UCAP SANDPIT

Bean, Kent, DA2 8 07590 818881 www.ucap.co.uk

RIFT AIRSOFT COM’S SITE 3 Chipping Warden, OX17 1LZ 07751 586781 www.riftairsoft.com

Portsmouth, Hants, PO17 6AR 07590 818881 www.ucap.co.uk

THE DESERTERS AIRSOFT Redford, DD11 07751 878175 www.thedeserters.co.uk

THE EX SITE

Mold, CH7 4 07840 001975 www.theexsitewales.co.uk

THE WARGAMES CENTRE

Stevenston, Ayrshire, KA20 3LN 08456 434326 www.scottishadventurecentre. co.uk

TROJAN AIRSOFT

Macclesfield, SK10 4SZ 07921 837658 www.trojan-airsoft.com

ULTIMATE WARGAMES – FAWKHAM

Fawkham, Kent, DA3 8NY 01268 796130 www.ultimatewargames.co.uk

ULTIMATE WARGAMES – LIMPSFIELD

Oxted, Surrey, RH8 0RH www.ultimatewargames.co.uk

URBAN6AIRSOFT – ZONE 13

Stone, Staffordshire ST15 0QN 07432 291729 www.urban6airsoft.com

URBAN6AIRSOFT – THE BLOCK Wood Street, Butron-Upon-Trent, Staffordshire, DE14 £AB www.urban6airsoft.com

URBAN ASSAULT

Ramsey, Cambridgeshire, PE26 1 01733 247171 www.urbanassault.org.uk

VIKING AIRSOFT

Welwyn, Hertfordshire, AL6 0UN www.vikingairsoft.co.uk

WARMINSTER AIRSOFT

Warminster, BA12 7RZ www.warminsterairsoft.co.uk

XSITE AIRSOFT OUTPOST Dunstable, LU6 2EE 01494 881430 www.xsiteairsoft.co.uk

XSITE AIRSOFT – LANE END Email michaelh@ blazepublishing.co.uk to add or change a site listing

High Wycombe, HP14 3NP 01494 881430

www.airsoftactionmagazine.com

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AIRSOFT

ACTION

BOOKSHOP

Total War - SRP £25.00

The Retreat - SRP £10.99

AA Price £21.00

AA Price £9.00

Tank Men - SRP £8.99

Never Surrender - SRP £8.99

SAS Operation Storm - SRP £25.00

Kill Switch - SRP £6.99

The Kill Zone (hdbk) - SRP £18.99

The Kill Zone (pbk) - SRP £6.99

AA Price £6.00

Killing for the Company (hdbk) SRP £18.99 AA Price £16.00

Soldiers Pocket Book - SRP £10.00

Cadet Pocket Book - SRP £8.00

Air Cadet Pocket Book - SRP £8.00

Army Cadet’s Log Book - SRP £4.00

Skill at Arms - SRP £6.50

AA Price £7.50

AA Price £16.00

AA Price £7.50

080

AA Price £7.50

AA Price £21.00

AA Price £3.50

AA Price £6.00

AA Price £9.00

AA Price £5.00

February 2013

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Visit www.virtualnewsagent.com for these fantastic offers. Either fill in the form below – don’t forget to put a tick by the books you’re ordering – and post/fax to us, or call us on the number at the bottom

Elite:160 World War II Infantry Assault Tactics - SRP £11.99

AA Price £10

Soldier I – The Story of an SAS Hero - SRP £8.99

AA Price £7.50

Elite:168 World War II Street Fighting Tactics SRP £11.99

AA Price £10

Elite:170 Special Operations Forces in Iraq - SRP £11.99

AA Price £8.50

Title

Author