Every Marine is a rifleman, but under new marksmanship rules announced this week, the few and the proud who also shoot pistols can now do so with an optic for the first time, Corps officials said.
A recent Marine Administrative Message, or MARADMIN, announced that Marines are allowed to use the M17 Romeo red dot optic for Combat Pistol Program qualifications. These types of optics use Light-Emitting Diodes, or LEDs, to project a dot at the point of aim. Military Times was the first to report on the MARADMIN.
This is the first time that Marines can use an optic during pistol qualifications, said Maj. Hector Infante, a spokesman for Training and Education Command. The optics must be purchased by their units and installed by unit armorers. Marines are also allowed to use the optic in combat.
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“Red dot optics have been shown to improve pistol lethality,” Infante told Task & Purpose. “Accordingly, some units that routinely operate with pistols have been authorized to use unit funds to procure approved red dot sights as organizational equipment.”
Though all Marines train with rifles in boot camp, far fewer do so with pistols. Marines who are issued a pistol because of their ranks, billets or as part of the Marine Corps Physical Security Program are required to qualify on the weapons, Infante said.
The Marine Corps has allowed Marines to use the red dot optic on the pistol range to make sure they train and qualify with the same weapon they will use in the field, said.
Made by Sig Sauer, the M17 Romeo red dot optic is designed to be used on the U.S. military’s largely identical M17 and M18 pistols, which are also produced by the company.
The Combat Pistol Program was first introduced in 2012 in which Marines fire at targets at ranges of 7, 15, and 25 yards. To pass, Marines must score at least 264 out of 400 points.
The change is the latest example of the Marine Corps adopting combat optics to help Marines become better shooters. It’s been more than a decade since Marine recruits at boot camp switched from iron sights on the rifle range to optics.
Last year, a Corps spokesman confirmed that deploying Marines would be equipped with an advanced smart scope that can be mounted on an M4 carbine to help shoot down small drones.
