Course Description:

Shooting from a helicopter is normally taught only in elite units, and most soldiers and police officers never get to do it in their entire career. With us, you don't have to serve in a special unit or be a member of the armed forces. In two days you will go through everything from zeroing your rifle to shooting from a helicopter in flight.

Aerial Platform Operations (APO) is a two-day course in shooting a semi-automatic rifle from a helicopter. Outside the United States, we are the only place where you can legally attend it. On the first day at the range, you will precisely zero your rifle with and without a suppressor and shoot at distances from 50 to 150 meters, including dynamic shooting under time pressure. The second day belongs to the helicopter. After the theory and the safety briefing, you will dry practice boarding, securing yourself, shooting positions and exiting. Then comes live fire: first from a helicopter on the ground with the engines off, then in a hover and during air taxiing. Next come firing passes over the targets: the helicopter flies a circuit away from the range, runs in over the targets from a set direction, and you have just a few seconds on each pass to engage. Finally, you will shoot during a quick stop into a flare.

Besides the shooting itself, you will learn to bring together safety, communication with the crew and working in conditions that keep changing throughout the flight. We never have more than 6 students per instructor, so everyone gets real attention.

Don't have your own rifle or the required gear? Just add a complete package and the mandatory accessories to your booking: a suppressor, a brass catcher and a seat harness.

Choose a date in the calendar below.

Who Is This Course For:

For experienced shooters who have mastered the rifle and want to experience training they would normally never get to. Dynamic Rifle 1 is required, but we recommend having completed the higher levels of the Dynamic Rifle series as well.

What You Will Learn:

After two days you can precisely zero a rifle with and without a suppressor and shoot accurately at distances of up to 150 meters. You know how to move safely around and inside a helicopter, how to board, secure yourself and take a shooting position. And you have experienced shooting from a helicopter in a hover, during air taxiing, on firing passes over the targets with only a few seconds to hit, and during a hard quick stop.

Contents:

Day 1 (from 12:00 pm): precise rifle zeroing with and without a suppressor, zero confirmation and shooting at various distances from 50 to 150 meters, drills focused on dynamic shooting under time pressure at longer distances.

Day 2 (from 9:00 am): APO theory, safety briefing for working around and inside the helicopter, PowerPoint presentation of the full program for the day, dry practice in the helicopter (boarding, securing yourself, shooting positions, exiting), shooting from a helicopter on the ground with the engines off, shooting from a helicopter in a hover and during air taxiing, shooting on repeated firing passes over the targets (the helicopter flies circuits away from the range and runs in over the targets from a set direction), shooting during a quick stop into a flare.

Required Equipment:

Comfortable civilian or tactical clothing or a duty combat uniform and solid outdoor or military boots (both suited to the current weather and outdoor temperatures), a belt with a spare magazine pouch, or a plate carrier or tactical vest with pouches for magazines and gear, shooting glasses, hearing protection (earmuffs, earplugs, etc.), tactical gloves and a work seat harness.

Weapon:

Semi-automatic rifle (AR15, BREN, AK74 that can be fitted with a brass catcher) with zeroed sights and a red dot, a sling, two magazines and at least 300 rounds, or a sniper rifle with a zeroed scope, a sling and at least 100 rounds. A brass catcher and a suppressor.

If you do not own a gun or would like to try a different one, we can provide a rifle, ammunition and other accessories for your chosen course date. Just click on the course date and you will see a full list of weapons available for that date. In the first section you will find complete packages, which always include a rifle with two magazines, a kydex magazine pouch, a sling, eye and ear protection and the number of rounds needed for the course.

If you bring your own factory ammunition, you can choose to rent the gun only. The full list of rental guns, along with the option to order ammunition, pouches and course accessories such as a suppressor, a seat harness, a brass catcher or protective equipment separately, can be found in the sections below. Please note that a brass catcher and a suppressor are mandatory for this course.

Firearms and the Law:

You do not need a firearms license, background check or criminal record extract to attend this course. Our instructor will hand you the weapon and you will train with it under his constant supervision. Czech law sets no fixed minimum age, but a minor participant must be reasonably mature, both mentally and physically. We do not recommend registering children under 15 for a course this intensive.

There is no restriction on the barrel length of semi-automatic rifles, and high-capacity magazines are allowed. Suppressors and weapon-mounted lasers and lights are legal in the Czech Republic.

If you hold a European Firearms Pass (EFP) with your firearm listed in it, you may temporarily bring it to the Czech Republic and use it for training. Under Czech law it is enough to prove the purpose of your visit, for example with your course booking or another document confirming the reason for your trip. An official invitation is not required by law. The EFP also covers carrying an amount of ammunition that matches the purpose of the trip, for example for a competition or training. Please note that transit countries or your airline may apply their own limits or requirements. If you plan to travel through several countries or by air, contact us and we will help you prepare any documents you may need, such as an invitation.

Timing:

Class starts around 12:00 pm on the first day and at 9:00 am on the second day. Please arrive at the range no later than 11:30–11:45 am and 8:30–8:45 am respectively. The end of the day depends on the number of participants and is usually between 4:00 and 6:00 pm. There is a 30-minute lunch break during the day.

Venue:

We run our courses at various locations across the Czech Republic. You will find the exact venue for each date in the calendar, just click on the date. For multi-day courses that use more than one location, all venues are listed there.

Please check the venue carefully before booking. The same course often runs at different locations on different dates. Every now and then a student books a date expecting it to be at our home base, the Oleško shooting range, only to find out on the day that the course is taking place in Moravia, some 300 km away. To avoid this, always click on the date before booking and check where that particular date takes place.

Language:

Czech with English translation available.

Accommodation and Food:

Accommodation is not included in the course fee, each participant arranges and pays for it themselves. There is a 30-minute lunch break, so bring food that doesn't need cooking or ordering, such as an Adventure Menu type ration, an MRE or food from home, and enough to drink for the whole day.

Where to Go Next:

If the helicopter has got you hooked, continue with Air Assault, where you will learn to insert and extract a team from a helicopter using ropes. If you want to improve your long-range precision shooting, you will find follow-up training at Dynamic Rifle 4 or in our Sniper courses.

Have a Question?

You will find answers to the most common questions in our Questions and Answers section. Didn't find what you were looking for? Write or call us using any of our contacts, we will be happy to help.

Aerial Platform Operations Video Clip:

On our YouTube channel you can watch a short video clip from our very first APO course, so you can see what awaits you.

Got everything you need? Choose a date below and don't forget to check where your chosen date takes place.