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Help! I need answers...

usaf

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ok,

I leave for basic training monday. I've always carried a handgun in my truck. Its the rules of the south. im 18. once i'm out of basic will i be able to carry my gun everywhere??
 

ralphb72

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VERY DOUBTFUL. Rules vary by what military installation you are on, find out ahead of time, most bases are very limited on what is allowed if any firearms at all, and state laws very widely also.

Ignorance of the law is no excuse and will get you prosecuted, find out the laws of your state and any state you travel to. In other words, the officer and the judge will NOT listen to the reasons why you didn't know the law, and military courts are even less sympathetic.
 

usaf

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My main goal is to be able to carry a firearm everywhere. I would really rather not have to wait to get a concealed weapons lisence. Another question... when i'm active will i be able to buy handguns??
 

ralphb72

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I wasn't in the Air Force, the Army, but in general their attitude is, if we didn't issue it to you, you don't need it.

Those who lived in the barracks had to keep their private weapons locked up in the armory, very little access to them. I lived in on base housing with family, I could have mine in my quarters but had to register them etc etc and NEVER could carry them on base.

That's a good goal but please go about this LEGALLY, or you will loose your right to carry anything.

Start with the basics, Most (but not all) States require a permit of some type. Some states do NOT require a permit to openly carry a handgun. Some states do not allow open carry even with a permit. Most (if not all) states that require a permit, you must be 21. IN my experience, Most but not all military posts will NEVER allow personal firearms carry at all. Confused yet, it gets better. Each state has it's own lists of places you cannot carry at all, and there are Federal laws on it also.

From what I have read, you must be 21 to buy a handgun from a dealer, although it may be possible in some states to buy from a private sale at 18. Being active duty has NOTHING to do with state handgun carry laws EXCEPT for the issued weapon that you are carrying while ON DUTY.

The main page on this site has a map you can click on to read about the state, there are links on each state's page to that state's laws.
http://www.opencarry.org/

You can also check this other site:
http://www.handgunlaw.us

Oh, yea, and just because you have a permit from one state does not mean that it will be accepted in another state, some do, some don't.

And forget about taking a handgun to basic, I doubt if they would even let you on the bus.
 

Kevin Jensen

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Joining the military does not give you any more rights. In fact, it seems that I lost some rights after I joined. (That's a whole different story! :p ) Most (if not all) posts or bases prohibit service members from carrying firearms. When I was stationed at Fort Carson, Colorado, we were required to keep our personally owned weapons in the Provost arms room. Some soldiers kept pistols in their barracks, but if they were to be discovered, they would have suffered UCMJ punishment.

You will still need to be 21 to purchase a handgun through a licensed dealer. However, depending on what state you are in at the time, you may privately puchase a handgun at the age of 18.

If you plan to keep a gun in you vehicle, be careful! You may be violating the law or post policies. Some MP's are known to be bigger A-holes than some of the worst LEO's.
 

usaf

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Thanks for all the information guys. I won't hesitate to ask any more questions, but it looks like I won't be posting anything for another couple of months...lol.
 

soloban

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First off, good luck at BMT. Its the most 6 1/2 weeks of fun you'll never want to have again. I've got a couple points for you.

On most AF bases you can have a handgun...however....

You need to be 21 to purchase it, 18 to own it per federal law. You wont be allowed to have one at Lackland or your Tech School.

Each base has its own rules about firearms on base due to different operations, regulations, MAJCOMs, Base Commanders, etc... Once you get to your PDS, call Pass & ID or the Base Armory and they can tell you the regulations for that base.

I happen to know from personal experience that Vandenberg AFB allows members to have weapons in base family housing (not to be confused with the Dorms) with their Commanders authorization via filling out a form and filing it with your Unit Orderly room and Security Forces. Most bases will require that when you transport a weapon on base you'll need to have it registered, locked, and unloaded. I can almost guarantee that you won't be allowed to CCW or OC a weapon on base unless you are SF or AFOSI and you are on duty carrying an M-16 or M-9.

As a single Airman, you'll be living in the Dorms and you will need to store any weapons and ammo at the Security Forces armory in what they call courtesy storage. This includes pellet guns and paintball guns. In order to store your weapon, you'll have to fill out a form and you can go check it out whenever you want to go shoot.

Most single Airman wont get to move off base until they are close to SSgt or they get married. Again, each base is different.

Typically the check-in / check-out process takes 10 - 15 mintues and it isn't something you'll want to do on a day to day basis and the armorers will probably hate you if you check it in and out every day. Unless you are SF and are buddy buddy with the armorers.

CCW and OC requirements vary from state to state. You'll probably be best to come back and ask once you finish BMT and Tech School and get to your Permanant Duty Station.

Hope this helps! Good luck and thanks for serving! Feel free to PM me if you have any questions since I was Active Duty AF just a few years ago.


P.S. as far as purchasing a Handgun once you turn 21. I'm assuming you will keep your LA residency and ID. In most states you have to be a resident to purchase a handgun. As an active duty military member you can buy a Handgun in state you are stationed in. You will probably have to show your Military ID, State ID, and proof of address for your assigned duty station like a utility bill.
 

cajun_airborne

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Almost all military bases are off limits to carrying firarms... If you are single (living in the barricks) you have to put all of your firarms in your company arms room and sign it out when you want to go shooting...... big pain in the butt....

If you are married, you are allowed to keep your firearms in your house but you are only allowed to carry in your vehicle going to and from hunting, shooting range, or coming on and off the base....

Coming on and off base is a pain in the butt too, because the military police are just as ignorant about gun laws as some civilian police officers are. I went on base one time with my M-4 in the back glass gun rack, no magazine in it....... the MP told me i couldnt have that on my back glass like that, that i had to put it under my seat and asked me if it was loaded.....haha i had to explain to him the laws about vehicle carrying.... i thought it was kinda funny....

But as far as carrying on base all the time, thats a big no no....... it would only end in bad things for you... IMHO

good luck
 

WhiteRabbit22

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Yeah, I live off base, and drive to base everyday. I really wish I could bring my weapon with me to work and just leave it in the car so I have it when I get off of work (just in case I need to run to the store after work or anything). It's a major PITA to have to go straight home and get the gun if I want to go to Walmart (especially in New Orleans because I don't feel safe without it.)
 

Kevin Jensen

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soloban wrote:
usaf wrote:
I leave for basic training monday.
Bet he's loving life right about now....Lets see today is Wednesday of week 0, should be round about haircut and uniform issue day. :D

Basic training for the Air Force can't be too bad. He is probably staying in a luxury hotel compared to the crap they give the Army and the Marines!
 

WhiteRabbit22

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NavyLT wrote:
Well let's see. I did Army Basic Training in 1984, learned how to shoot, dig a fox hole after marching 20+ miles, live in a pup tent, shoot some more, and don't forget...clean, clean, clean that gun...OOOOPs I mean weapon...this is my weapon, this is my, this is for fighting....get gassed, put on the chemical suit....don't drop that weapon while you do....

Then in 1988 I went to Navy boot camp. 13 weeks of learning how to fold clothes for locker storage.

Then in 2001 I went to Officer Candidate School, 13 weeks with USMC! There I learned how to yell a lot, eat like a robotwhile staring at the guy accross the table with no expression, eat dirt, run, eat more dirt, yell a lot more until I lost my voice, run a lot, eat lots of dirt, bury the M-16 in the dirt the day before an inspection... but, most of all, learn how to store clothes in a stand-up locker, because officers get stand-up lockers!
lol at the Navy part. That's pretty much what it is. they're teaching you how to be a housewife.
 

soloban

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SGT Jensen wrote:
soloban wrote:
usaf wrote:
I leave for basic training monday.
Bet he's loving life right about now....Lets see today is Wednesday of week 0, should be round about haircut and uniform issue day. :D

Basic training for the Air Force can't be too bad. He is probably staying in a luxury hotel compared to the crap they give the Army and the Marines!
At the risk of completely derailing this topic.....

I picked the AF for a reason.:dude: AF BMT isn't all that bad. Food was great, dorms were A/C'd to the point that I used two blankets and slept in sweat pants in San Antonio in July! The TIs were hard on you for the first few weeks but they lightened up once you got your stuff together.

[funny story] My only complaint were the beds. One night a spring must have been pressing on my leg just right because when I jumped out of bed that morning it was completely dead. I fell flat on my a$$ when I stood up and it took about 3 minutes for the blood to recirculate and wake up the leg to where I could stand. Kind of freaked me out for a minute [/funny story]

I went through it in 2004. Its 6 weeks and your days are for the most part:

For the first 4 weeks:

Wake up at 0445, form up at 0500, PT at 0515, Breakfast, Shower & Dorm Maintainance. After that its classroom time or marching or some other inprocessing thing. Lunch, more classroom or inprocessing or marching. Dinner, dorm time, shower, clean dorms, bed at 0930. As they issue you more uniforms, your dorm inspections get harder and harder.

At the end of week 4 you take a PT test and a written test, if you don't pass you do like Michael J. Fox and head back in time to another flight until you get it right. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. :lol:


Bringing this post back to firearms....

Week 5 they send you out in the field and do the fun stuff like shoot M-16s, Gas Chamber day, eat MREs, live in tents, confidence course, etc... I wish we could have got more than just 3 hours and 50 rounds with the M-16's. The one I was issused at the range wouldn't cycle after I fired off a round. I ended up using a spare that one of the instructors had brought along. From what I understand the Army and Marines get a lot more time on the range. Back in '06 I heard they were issuing trainees a realistic but non-firing M-16 with a blue stock and body. They were supposed to carry it around from week 1 to week 5. The replica could be completely field stripped just like the real deal but the mag well and barrel were solid. I never heard if they decided if it was an effective training tool and kept it around. Maybe the OP can tell us when he gets internet again.

Week 6 is doing any final paperwork and getting orders for tech school. Practicing marching for graduation parade. Oh and they let everyone who is willing donate blood that week since their is a major hospital on base that always needs blood and plasma.

All in all, not that bad. They keep talking about wanting to add another week in between Week 5 and Week 6 and do more weapons training and stuff but it all boils down to $$. Repace 40 year old jets or add a week to BMT?
 

WhiteRabbit22

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The Air Forcehas already put inorders forsome 1,200 F-35s, after that, they shouldn't need to replace any aircraft for another 40 years.
 

soloban

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WhiteRabbit22 wrote:
The Air Forcehas already put inorders forsome 1,200 F-35s, after that, they shouldn't need to replace any aircraft for another 40 years.
Now I'm going to completely derail this topic....

They should be set for fighters for awhile once all the orders are filled.

The F-22 is replacing the F-15 and the F-35 is replacing the F-16, A-10, A/V-8, F-18 and F-14.

But they need more than fighters. You still need Tankers, AWACS, Bombers, and Transports. The heavies are all older than dirt. It ain't your daddy's Air Force but it is your fathers airplane...

B-52s are 40+ years old and are expected to be in service till 2020.
AWACS and KC-135s are Boeing 707 airframes and are 30+ years old (the tanker replacment is being decided now)
C-5s are 30+ years old.

That being said, the maintainers are doing a heck of a job keeping em flying and deserve many kuduos.
 

Eagle

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AWhiteRabbit22 wrote:

The Air Forcehas already put inorders forsome 1,200 F-35s, after that, they shouldn't need to replace any aircraft for another 40 years.

At $350 million each they'd better last longer than 40 years. Which I won't, by the way.:shock:
 
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