Police pursuits

Dis86 · 6 May 2014 at 18:47

Haggisman said:
Lets play "spot the guy who's never fired a gun before and is basing his experience on hollywood action films"

Oh look. I win.

Except I have fired a gun. At a moving target from the back of a pickup.
Granted I missed but not by much. Others with me didn't.

And I'm not a highly trained and experienced marksman with a military grade weapon.

Burnsy2023 · 6 May 2014 at 18:48

Dis86 said:
Except I have fired a gun. At a moving target from the back of a pickup.
Granted I missed but not by much. Others with me didn't.

And I'm not a highly trained and experienced marksman with a military grade weapon.

Chances of this being true = 0.

Antony101 · 6 May 2014 at 18:52

Burnsy2023 said:
Chances of this being true = 0.

Chances of anyone accurately firing a .50BMG from a moving helicopter = 0.

There is a reason most helicopters have chain guns in the door and not a semi automatic rifle.

I can't imagine tracking a 70MPH car with a high magnification scope would be easy.

Participant · 6 May 2014 at 19:00

One word: deterrent.

Tefal · 6 May 2014 at 19:02

Admiral Huddy said:
.. but what leads them into a fast chase in the first place? the fact they have there sirens going? What is really that urgent that warrants a chase? Surely a more "stealthier" approach is more effective and safer?

how stealthy can you be exactly? gotta stop them somehow and flashing the lights and asking them to pull over is pretty much the only way. unless police need to follow every driver they want to pull over for say no tax to their destination and get them when they get out

Dis86 · 6 May 2014 at 19:04

Burnsy2023 said:
Chances of this being true = 0.

Chances of you being wrong = 1

Tefal · 6 May 2014 at 19:04

Dis86 said:
Why not? Trained marksman. Correct timing. Chase over.

Safer than a stinger for the occupants of the car!

massive road closure to clean up all the oil/car parts/potentially burning car/potential gunshot wounds not to mention the inevitable fatal crashes caused by fire/oil obscuring drivers view?

Dis86 · 6 May 2014 at 19:06

Source http://www.military-sf.com/Sniper.htm

NVP · 6 May 2014 at 19:06

Redz said:
I believe that is the protocol if there is any possibility of danger to the public. They can always call out a police helicopter to follow from a discreet height.

gort said:
If no heilcopter available then little choice but to continue pursuit unless it is cancelled as the bandit vehicle is driving far too dangerously where the control room will terminate the pursuit as there is too great a danger of a collision.

dacads said:
anyway I thought if the risk is too high ie over a certain speed limit then the officers pull back to avoid a fatal accident, think I've only seen this happen once though on TV. Usually they catch the culrprit on foot after coming to a stop or get the ole chopper out

gort said:
If no heilcopter available then little choice but to continue pursuit unless it is cancelled as the bandit vehicle is driving far too dangerously where the control room will terminate the pursuit as there is too great a danger of a collision.

I was pulled once and they'd told me they were apparently pursuing me 30mins earlier but were called off as it was "too dangerous to continue the pursuit" according to their HQ/control or something, I had no clue I was just in a rush

(in a 5ltr V10

)

When pushed, dangerous driving was simply driving fast around a roundabout (where they must have just joined as I was exiting) and overtaking a lorry (on the A5 dangerous?!), perfectly safe in my M5, I guess not in their patrol car - tbf I'm pretty sure it was just the speed they had issues with.

Woden · 6 May 2014 at 19:06

Dis86 said:
Speed becomes irrelevant when matched. Don't need to be several hundred metres away. Target isn't small in terms of target sizes that marksmen are trained to shoot. Erratic movement becomes less likely as they're not being chased by police cars.
Boom. (not headshot)

Dude, do you even physics?

Tefal · 6 May 2014 at 19:08

Dis86 said:
Sourcehttp://www.military-sf.com/Sniper.htm

even snipers miss, also you didn't answer all the fully pertinent ramifications of the sniper pulling a perfect shot into the engine block.

Dis86 · 6 May 2014 at 19:08

Woden said:
Dude, do you even physics?

Between two objects with equal speed and direction the relative velocity is zero.

Tefal · 6 May 2014 at 19:09

Dis86 said:
Speed becomes irrelevant when matched)

100+ mph wind speeds will make shots significantly more difficult especially as they will be continuously changing direction as the aircraft moves through the airflow's and changes direction.

Dis86 · 6 May 2014 at 19:10

Tefal said:
even snipers miss, also you didn't answer all the fully pertinent ramifications of the sniper pulling a perfect shot into the engine block.

They do, but not often. That's why the risks need to be weighed and the shot only taken when acceptable to do so. Cars don't just explode when you put a solid slug through their engine block.

Tefal · 6 May 2014 at 19:11

Dis86 said:
Between two objects with equal speed and direction the relative velocity is zero.

but the speed don't remain equal, both vehicles will be continuously changing their velocities relative to each other.

in the case of the car radically compered to the helicopter as it negotiates obsticals and corners

Antony101 · 6 May 2014 at 19:11

Dis86 said:
They do, but not often. That's why the risks need to be weighed and the shot only taken when acceptable to do so. Cars don't just explode when you put a solid slug through their engine block.

What do you think will happen to a car going 70MPH when you shoot the engine block and front axle off?

Are you and your friends professional drivers too that can drive a car perfectly safe in traffic with no front end?

Burnsy2023 · 6 May 2014 at 19:11

Dis86 said:
Cars don't just explode when you put a solid slug through their engine block.

The engine very well might. Damaging the structural integrity of something spinning so fast isn't going to be pretty.

Tefal · 6 May 2014 at 19:12

Dis86 said:
They do, but not often. That's why the risks need to be weighed and the shot only taken when acceptable to do so. Cars don't just explode when you put a solid slug through their engine block.

wqho said explode?

the **** out a few gallons of oil, they potentiality blind the diver with smoke, fire or shattered windscreen as the pistons and moving parts of the engine destroy themselves and the diver will also crap himself and probably crash.

and dude they miss all the time.

Took Oswald a trained marksman 3 shots to finally get Kennedy from a stationary building with a slow moving convertible.

so you're gonna have to scrub that road or explain to the family of the motorcyclist who dies the next day when he wipes out iun the huge oil/desil slick you leave.

Dis86 · 6 May 2014 at 19:13

Burnsy2023 said:
The engine very well might. Damaging the structural integrity of something spinning so fast isn't going to be pretty.

Not in terms of a rapid expansion of gasses. There may well be catastrophic structural failure.

Tefal · 6 May 2014 at 19:16

Dis86 said:
Not in terms of a rapid expansion of gasses. There may well be catastrophic structural failure.

which is gonna size moving parts, cause the car to react violently and uncontrollably, remove the power steering and potentially the brakes nd again make the driver **** himself.

and it's almost certainly going to result in a fire once the car has stopped moving as the hot engine block will be smothered in fuel and oil.