I just missed this training revolution, although I remember a mechanical system limited to making sure you were using the iron sights correctly:
Since the 1990s the military has increasingly adopted EFS (Electronic Firearms Simulators) to not only augment use of the traditional firing range but also to provide training that was previously unavailable to many troops. ... While crude by current standards these early firing range systems were revolutionary because they made it much cheaper to provide a lot more firearms training. This made it easier for troops whose main job was ground combat to become more deadly with their firearms.
As the technology improved, the usefulness expanded beyond marksmanship. But the marksmanship skills greatly improved with the technology.
The technology is also improving for the weapons themselves, and one day, as I wrote on the USNI Blog, all that marksmanship training will be unnecessary because the ability to hit the target will be embedded within the weapon itself:
The U.S. Marine Corps proudly says every Marine is a rifleman. But what happens if even enemy insurgents and militia fighters are just as accurate? New technologies are hastening that day of reckoning. Marines must cope by developing new training priorities, technology, and tactics to maintain their competitive advantage.
Science Fiction author Arthur C. Clarke in a 1973 publication coined a “Third Law” regarding technology that states, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”[1] The “magic BB” of military lore—the seemingly random but deadly single shot that comes out of nowhere—is about to be based on technology.
The skill level needed to be a marksman will drop, with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) already attempting to develop a sight that shows where the operator should aim.[2] That was an early prototype too bulky and primitive to be used by infantry. But the path is clear.
The technology to assist shooters has reached the point where it has entered the civilian market. The TrackingPoint rifle introduced in 2013 goes beyond aim assistance, refusing to discharge the weapon when the trigger is pulled until the weapon is aimed to strike the target after factoring in variables that require aiming at a point other than center-of-mass.[3] Such weapons have been pitched to the Marine Corps and Army.[4]
The pairing of simple bullets with smart sights and automatic firing protocols must change the way Marines prepare for infantry combat. Dumb-but-controlled (DBC) firing employed by even ill-trained forces will revolutionize infantry combat.
When the smart weapon itself provides the accuracy, training time for American troops once devoted to shooting will need to be used for tactical proficiency because enemies will eventually be equipped with smart rifles.
