PART 1
CQB Single Man Introduction
When we talk about CQB, we are talking about “tactical geometry”, or the study of angles in reference to space in a three-dimensional environment and the integration of strategies and tactics which involve the use of firearms.
The CQB is the application of dynamics and tactics that must respond and adapt to a given environment/context, aimed at a goal, their effectiveness is determined precisely by the relevance they will have with respect to the context, the three-dimensional environment and the goal. Crucial will be the ability to read and compensate the space/environment of those who are involved in CQB.
In the Single Man condition, however, all this takes on a completely different meaning because the interaction with the context, the space and the infinite variables must be absorbed and managed by a single man.
When we talk about CQB Single Man we must necessarily talk about the application of conservative, preventive dynamics completely different from the dynamics of teams or multiple teams.
Wanting to simplify a lot and going on some concepts which are a bit archaic but absolutely effective we can say that when we talk about Team level, we talk about “immediate entry” (mainly belonging to the SF / MIL sector) or
“delayed entry” (more typical of the LE).The latter are more conservative dynamics based on an application methodology that exploits maximum the cover and concealment, minimizing the risk of exposure.
The Single Man is therefore generally a condition that is oriented to the application of tactics and conservative dynamics that are configured in the “Deliberate” and not in the “Emergency” which prefer a “delayed entry” and not an “immediate entry”, but as already said there is nothing in the Single Man that can be considered absolute.
This leads us by logic to establish that there cannot be dogmas in terms of application or in terms of dynamics and tactics, there cannot be only one way of applying, because the variables are infinite, and these define the priorities and the priorities define the application and therefore tactics.
In fact, we must understand that the Single Man is such a complex application, that even an operator extremely trained in team tactics will still need time and a lot of work in training to be able to acquire the technical tools, movements and biomechanics necessary to apply in CQB as Single Man.
The CQB Single Man condition for a civilian
There is a huge difference between CQB Single Man applied by a civilian in an ordinary context and a Single Man applied by a LE or MIL operator, indeed even if rarer there are conditions for which even in the case of Teams they can have needs and conditions that require them to work as a CQB Single Man.
In the case of a civilian who finds himself involved in a CQB fight, 99.9% will be as a Single Man condition and 90% will be inside his home or in any case, probably in an environment related to him.
Not only that, we must necessarily consider some fundamental variables, if statistically we know that the greatest probability for a civilian will be that of “home defense”, we must for logic and common sense consider a further complication, the presence in the same environment of other people such as family members, who probably will not have any kind of technical training and will therefore be much more exposed to Stress Stroke.
The differences in the application in the CQB Single Man condition between a civilian and a LE or MIL officer are enormous, starting from mindset and training base, to the fact of not having an immediate access to direct comms and a support system behind.
The equipment in terms also of specific devices as for example flashbangs, CS Grenades , the possibility of being ballistically protected wearing a body armour, the greater availability of ammunition, the high probability of having to face also Low Light condition as well as that of CQB Single Man without any flash light or weapon light.
These are only some of the differences in terms of conditions, but for sure for a civilian the CQB Single Man condition is way harder than for an LE or MIL officer .
The most common problem in CQB and CQB Single Man Training Courses
The main problem that I have had to face in these years of profession as a Firearms trainer, in the CQB Single man courses was the technical inconsistency and the widespread poor ability to manipulate the firearm by users, mainly due to a lack of fundamentals
To make the picture of the situation even more serious is the almost absolute absence of a solid biomechanics which is also indispensable in this application.
When we talk about shooting and the use of firearms, we must understand that we are talking first of all about the interaction between two elements, the shooter and the tool, that is the firearm.
Only after I have built a solid and effective interaction between shooter and firearm, I will be able to manage the complex interaction of the two elements with a third, the environment/3Dspace, which is also the essential basis of the CQB.
If you do not have a solid and safe handling of the firearm, if you do not have a solid biomechanical base it is impossible to acquire the tools necessary to work in CQB, especially in Single Man condition.
This is a transversal problem that involves the civilian side of the industry in a massive way, but it is also quite widespread among the professionals of the LE and MIL.
People more and more frequently enroll in a CQB Single Man Course, without having the basics of the fundamentals of shooting and firearm handling, sometimes without even knowing how to grip a firearm, pretending to become CQB “experts” after only 2 or 3 days of course.
This derives from the type of mentality of the large majority of people in this industry, extremely superficial, from the approximation with which these people approach firearms training , underestimating the brutality of the consequences of carrying a firearm without being trained.
A large part of the blame also comes from the instructors side, from what should be professionals and as such should also have a professional ethic, who keep selling what people ask of them, what attracts the most, instead of selling them what they really need, transforming the civilian market of firearms training into a large “tactical amusement park”.
In the average mindset of a civilian subject in this industry, it is better to take a CQB Team Tactics course that he will never apply, rather than taking a basic course on shooting fundamentals.
Better to wear the SWAT or NAVY SEAL costume for a couple of days of CQB Team Tactics course, than to wear your own clothes, those of everyday life, trying to learn the basics of biomechanics and firearms manipulation applied to the artificial three-dimensional environment where they live everyday, which is by the way completely different from the shooting range which is a 2D controlled environment.
