Snipers threaten to take out GAAW balloons

BornToKill

Story from the Galway Advertiser:

Snipers threaten to take out GAAW balloons

Galway Advertiser, May 28, 2009.
By Kernan Andrews
A group of individuals in Galway have threatened to use airsoft rifles to shoot any red balloons The Galway Alliance Against War releases at its protest against the Red Arrows display this weekend.
The GAAW will hold another of its 99 Red Balloon peace events in the Spanish Arch on Saturday at 12 noon as a protest against the presence of the Red Arrows at the Galway Ocean Race stopover.
However the group received a threatening email which claimed it would sabotage the protest. The email said: “You d**kheads...Those balloons won’t be going into the air on Saturday be assured. A team of six will be at vantage points near the Spanish Arch with airsoft rifles. Any balloon we see will be immediately popped before it reaches five feet into the air.”
In response, the GAAW’s Niall Farrell replied to the email. He said: “Wow, that should make headlines: ‘Marksmen To Protect RAF Killers From Deadly Red Balloons’. Well, I suppose Airsoft Rifles (whatever they are) sound a lot more dramatic than pins or knitting needles. I would suggest you procure automatic airsoft rifles, as we will have a lot of balloons.”


Is it possible? Is it legal? Link:
http://www.advertiser.ie/galway/article/12818

horgan_p

And your final jepordy answer ??


"how do you define idiocy ?"


You win !!

Puding

if only they where that accurate......if only a bb could pop a ballon at range bb are not the best....

garda should arrest them and charge them, one of the irrony of the new bill, want it to come in some it make it easyer for garda to deal with idouts like this

mle1324

Puding wrote: »

if only they where that accurate......if only a bb could pop a ballon at range bb are not the best....

thats true a bb is not the best thing to burst a balloon as i have tried it myself before at close enough range (1m) and it took me two shots with a M4 that was shooting at 320fps so a sniper at distance wont be any good.

NakedDex

Is it possible? No. Not a snowballs chance in hell. Not even from 3 feet. This has been proven. Even an automatic rifle from that close won't do it. That's not to even consider the logistics of how close they'd need to be with any airsoft rifle to even hit a balloon sized target in those conditions.

Is it legal? Not even close. That's firing a rifle, not just in public, but at the public.

Whoever these people are, they're clearly misinformed idiots. Not only are they threatening the impossible, they're making an announcement that they intend to fire on the public. They need to be found, arrested, charged and prosecuted to the absolute highest strength the law will allow.


I personally don't see the problem with the Red Arrows doing a few passes at the event, but if the group wants to peacefully protest that, they are more than entitled to do so.

A note to anyone from the public reading this.
Not one airsofter condones this incredible situation. This kind of threat brings into disrepute all parties involved. Airsoft devices are inherently safe and incapable of carrying out any action threatened in that letter. I think I can speak for all airsoft enthusiasts when I say we would like to distance ourselves completely from such an action, as no member of our community would be so foolish as to make such an irresponsible threat, regardless of views on the event.

hitman_

That story is dated 28th May, is there a follow up ??

Hope the Red Arrow guys weren't too put out by the Baloons :D:D

horgan_p

Just the thought of any kind of threat using an AEG - even an outrageous one , is abhorrent.
It totally undermines what so many in the community have been working for , and i hope that in some way the incoming ledglisation will stop these fools before someone really gets hurt.

I hope these donkeys get ( or got ) rounded up and got the book thrown at them

weeder

ladies and gentlemen

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRu1bfFA5z0

in most cases the baloons took multiple hits before giving up the ghost

NakedDex

hitman_ wrote: »

That story is dated 28th May, is there a follow up ??

Hope the Red Arrow guys weren't too put out by the Baloons :D:D

I was wondering why I hadn't heard about a Red Arrows event. I normally hear about them a few weeks in advance in work (related occupation). I've been away on holiday for a couple of weeks though I assumed I just missed an announcement.

Still though, the point stands. That's beyond idiocy and it needs to be stamped out.



Weeder's post is the proof I mentioned. It seemed like a simple idea but we resorted to popping them with our hands as it was more effective. Says a lot about the power and ability of a fired bb.

bullets

Wow thats a funny story.

I tried a few times to pop a balloon with an AEG and
the bb's bounced off the rubber and ballon remained unharmed.

Duuno what ejjits would have any objections to seeing
a Bunch of jets flying about the place doing stunts.

~B

hitman_

Sorry to go off topic but....

The last paragraph of that article makes it clear where these guys are coming from :

Mr Farrell also went on to say: “I have no doubt you and all your pals - including those who invited the RAF killers -were shocked and disgusted by the revelations of the Ryan report into the abuses in the industrial schools. You are nothing but a bunch of hypocrites as you refuse to face up to what these RAF killers have done to little children and their families in foreign lands.”

Captain Chaos

The GAAW are a bunch of idiots with too much time on their hands imo.

They pulled that same stupid stunt in 2007 to try and wreck the Salthill airshow which was a great day except for the weather and low cloud deck which limited a few of the high performance displays. Oh and for a door that fell off an RAF chopper and hit a foreign national at the end when they were leaving.:eek:

Heckler

I'd nearly listen to these guys till they come out with **** like "RAF Killers". Sometimes words fail me............How the hell do they expect to get anywhere with such inflammatory rhetoric. ****.

Rew

Can't see this thread going anywhere it hasn't been already.