rhodesian mercenary mike rousseau

He named it after the country where the incident occurred, dubbing his drill the Mozambique Drill.. People have an annoying habit of wanting to move around when you are shooting at them. [58], Foreign volunteers who were accepted were required to swear an oath of loyalty to Rhodesia, and the Rhodesian government considered them to be members of the security forces rather than mercenaries. |-- DU Groups [71] There were concerns that many of the volunteers were motivated more by a desire to fight in a war than a commitment to Rhodesia. [17] The Army's structure of administrative corps was similar to that of the British Army, and many of its officers had undergone training in the United Kingdom. [14] Rhodesia's security situation deteriorated during the mid-1970s when the nationalists were able to establish bases in Mozambique as Portuguese rule faltered and finally ended in 1975. | ContactUs | PrivacyPolicy. All rights reserved. One would figure two slugs to the chest would drop the enemy fighter, but no. While catchy mottoes are easy to remember, the technique itself can be difficult to master. All Rights Reserved. Guerrilla forces of the Mozambique Liberation Front (or FRELIMO) became embroiled in a war of independence with Portugal. | Discussion The Portuguese used WWII vintage pistols in their two decades long colonial wars in Angola and Mozambique (some claim the gun Rhodesian mercenary Mike Rousseau used in the original Mozambique . They observed that the volunteers "failed in their efforts to protect the white regime, but not before they supported and contributed to a conflict that lasted fifteen years and claimed tens of thousands of lives". The need for non-Rhodesians to sustain the country's independence was also considered problematic. All too many of the other great tragedies of history - Stalin's atrocities, the killing fields of Cambodia, the Holocaust, to name but a few - were perpetrated by armed troops against unarmed populations. It sought to attract more white immigrants to the country, but from 1973 onwards the white population decreased. Rousseau hit an . slams Colorado gun control bills, Biden's FAA Nominee Can't Answer a Single Question About Aviation, Russell Brand was challenged to give examples of MSNBC pushing misinformation (that was a BAD idea), Trump Reveals What He'll Do If He's Indicted, California - Do Not Sell My Personal Information. These letters were closely scrutinised, as many of the men who had written them were considered "obviously nuts" by the Rhodesian Army's recruitment officer Major Nick Lamprecht. While Im no gunfighter and there isnt any (sane) person who wants to learn gunfighting from me, Id offer another alternative that might be more slightly attainable to more people, and which is suggested by our own Stephen Wenger based off of his decades in studying armed self-defense. However, here we are more concerned with your shooting than tactics, because the subtle nuances of the proper tactics can vary from situation to situation. Until the early 1970s the Rhodesian Security Forces had little difficulty in defeating the guerrillas. The ZANU was supported by China and the ZAPU by the Soviet Union, both of which were communist countries. In the 1980s, the Los Angeles Police Department began teaching the drill but renamed it the more politically correct Failure Drill. [40], Foreign volunteers for the Rhodesian Security Forces were generally motivated by personal political and ideological beliefs or a desire for adventure. Home The third shot should be aimed to destroy the brain or brain stem, killing the target and preventing the target from retaliating. Rhodesian Mike Rousseau was serving as a mercenary in the Mozambican War of Independence. ), Shoulder Holster: 8 Pro Up-Top Carry Options (2023). In the chaotic maelstrom that swallowed up untold treasure and an entire generation of people, soldiers of fortune found employment opportunities on a previously unprecedented scale. Rumored to have begun with Rhodesian mercenary Mike Rousseau and adopted into coursework at Gunsight Academy, the Mozambique Drill is intended to drop an advancing threat immediately. Then, they can make a smooth transition to the third V2 shot if it is necessary. Rhodesian Mike Rousseau was serving as a mercenary in the Mozambican War of Independence. Oops, there's been an error. As he turned a corner, he encountered a FRELIMO guerrilla armed with an AK-47. How rude! [37] Some of the Americans volunteered to work as security guards on farms in Rhodesia as this offered the opportunity to fight communists while receiving higher pay than that offered by the security forces. Due to the sanctions against Rhodesia, these ads were generally lodged via front organisations and were vague about the country the volunteers would serve in. Rousseau fired two quick shots that struck the enemy soldier in the chest, but failed to stop him. The latest content straight to your inbox plus an automatic entry to each of our monthly giveaways! Rousseau relayed this story to Jeff Cooper, who then began employing this failure to stop drill in his teaching at Gunsite. It is not the only way to do things, and was never intended to be taken as the one true way.. While a thousand organizations use the Holocaust as a platform for speeches about tolerance, Alex Kozinski, Chief Judge, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Children Of Jewish Holocaust Survivors [Jews Can Shoot]. page. Rousseau immediately performed a "double tap" maneuver, a controlled shooting technique in which the shooter makes two quick shots at the target's torso. Sorry, an error occurred and we could not sign you up. Fighting at the airport at Loureno Marques (modern-day Maputo), Rousseau rounded a corner and encountered a FRELIMO guerrilla, armed with an AK-47 assault rifle, at 10 paces (~7.5 . Id argue that if the two shots at (and hopefully in) the chest of an aggressor fails to convince him to break off his attack, then youd be better to drop your aim to fire the third shot (and perhaps fourth and fifth shots) at the pelvis next. Rousseau immediately brought up his Browning HP35 pistol and fired two bullets into the target's upper chest, usually enough to incapacitate or kill outright. Handgun Training for Personal Protection. All Rights Reserved. The pelvis does not move as erratically as the head or shoulders, and should be an easier target than a bobbing and weaving head. [34][62] Rhodesian recruiters told prospective Australian recruits that the cost of living was much lower in Rhodesia. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Jeff Cooper created The Modern Technique of the Pistol and the Combat Mindset. |-- Ask the Administrators Those who were combat veterans resented being placed under the command of younger and less experienced Rhodesians. Two to the body, one to the head, is guaranteed to leave them dead.. The Portuguese government banned Rhodesian recruitment in the late 1970s, but was unable to enforce the legislation. (snip) Rousseau related the story to an acquaintance, small arms expert Jeff Cooper, founder of the Gunsite Academy shooting school, who incorporated the "Mozambique Drill" into his . MOZAMBIQUE DRILL.. Rhodesian Mike Rousseau was serving as a mercenary in the Mozambican War of Independence. the opinions of Democratic Underground, LLC. I came about after Rhodesian mercenary Mike Rousseau told the story of an encounter he had in combat at an airport. So why not just send the first shot to the head? In many countries it was illegal to serve with the Rhodesian Security Forces. [32] For instance, the American neo-Nazi Harold Covington claimed to have served in the Rhodesian Army before being deported due to his racism. Manage all your favorite fandoms in one place! The volunteers were often labelled as mercenaries by opponents of the Rhodesian regime, though the Rhodesian government did not regard or pay them as such. One such soldier of fortune was Mike Rousseau. [28] This magazine had been established that year to promote mercenary opportunities, and provided a positive portrayal of the lifestyle available to mercenaries. Setup: 1x USPSA Silhouette Target: Rousseau was fighting at the airport at Loureno Marques, which is now called Maputo. Relying on instinct and training, Rousseau delivered a double tap to the combatants chest with his Browning Hi Power pistol and 9mm ammunition. Mike Rousseau, a Rhodesian mercenary during the Mozambican War of Independence, was armed only with a 9mm Browning Hi-Power pistol, and he rounded a corner at Loureno Marques (now Maputo) Airport and came face-to-face with an African guerilla armed with an AK-47 assault rifle, less than 25 feet away. [72], The Rhodesian Army regarded the volunteers as disloyal and undisciplined. They could also be wearing body armor. [26][34] Other volunteers were expected to pay their own way. FRELIMO attacked targets in typical guerrilla-style warfare and, like other small insurgent forces, they made full use of hit and run tactics, their knowledge of the terrain, and used the monsoon season to their advantage. the phrase was coined by a rhodesian mercenary named Mike Rousseau while he was serving in Mozambique. As he turned a corner, he bumped into a FRELIMO guerrilla armed with an AK-47. [1] From 1962 its government was led by the Rhodesian Front political party. Thank you for your support. Doing so was illegal under laws banning mercenary activity in Israel, West Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands. The Mozambique Drill, which is also known as the Failure Drill, Failure to Stop drill, the "Djibouti Shooty", or, informally, "two to the chest, one to the head," is a close-quarters shooting technique that supposedly originated with a Rhodesian mercenary, Mike Rousseau, in the Mozambican War of Independence, hence the name. Remember that 9mm ammo circa late 1960s and late 1970s was marginally better than 9mm ammo from WWII. The term refers to his encounter with an AK-47 armed guerilla at an airport in Mozambique where he was armed with a Browning Hi-Power. Big Forums [82] British citizens were prohibited from joining the Rhodesian Security Forces under the terms of an embargo enacted in 1968, with those who did so potentially facing fines or imprisonment. [22][24], Another strategy used to address white manpower shortages was seeking white volunteers from outside the country, which the Rhodesian government began doing in 1973. [32][33], The Rhodesian Security Forces' recruitment staff responded to people who wrote letters of inquiry after reading the advertisements. [48] The British intelligence agencies also infiltrated agents into the Rhodesian Security Forces.[49]. Got a message for Democratic Underground? FRELIMO was the dominant political party in Mozambique fighting for independence from Portugal. Springfield Armory recommends you seek qualified and competent training from a It was finished in 1980 and published in 1991. Sundry populist uprisings supported by distant communist benefactors strived to nip at the forces and institutions of the European colonial powers long enough to draw blood. It kind of worked. The Carter administration considered taking steps to stop Americans serving in Rhodesia, but this did not result in any policy changes. If the target continues to advance despite two well-placed shots to the torso, the shooter follows up with a more precisely aimed (and more difficult to accomplish) head shot. If you can successfully perform the drill in under five seconds, youre doing better than most law enforcement officers. It is vital to mix up your training, firing different numbers of shots into your targets, at different locations, because you never know if your first shot or your fifteenth is going to be the one that stops the threat. Click Historian Michael Raeburn put the figure in 1978 as between 1,500 and 2,000. [35] Organisations representing veterans were another method used to contact potential recruits. [46], In addition to the actual volunteers, thousands of South African Police and South African Defence Force (SADF) personnel were deployed to Rhodesia by the South African government to serve in or alongside the Rhodesian Security Forces. Mike Rousseau was friends with Colonel Jeff Cooper, a legend in the firearms training world and the founder of Gunsite Academy. [39] An exception was a group of almost 200 French military personnel who enlisted together in late 1976. 20 Best Concealed Carry Guns In 2023 (Updated! At the start signal, draw from concealment and fire two shots into the V1 zone and one shot into the V2 zone as fast as you can do so without missing either zone. Important Notices: By participating on this discussion You can also take two steps to the side to get offline of the attack before making the final head shot. The drill is also sometimes called the Failure Drill, as the third and final shot is made in response to a situation when the double tap fails to stop an advancing threat. Its a port city in southern Mozambique where it can be hot with humidity over 80 percent. In this work she estimated that around 100 Americans served with the Rhodesian Security Forces between 1976 and 1980. As of 2021, the literature largely comprises brief discussions of the topic as part of books and academic journal articles on broader issues. [101] Robin Moore included profiles of twelve volunteers as part of a non-fiction book he wrote in 1976 that argued that the Rhodesian government was not racist and sanctions against it should be lifted. A par time for this drill should be four seconds. Accurate hits will beat fast misses every single time. Rousseaus exploit turned into the Failure Drill and was included in the Academys curriculum starting in the late 1970s. views and opinions of Springfield Armory. Two shots to the chest failed to stop the guy, so Rousseau had to transition point of aim for a head shot. This proved impossible due to the large numbers and difficulty of checking their backgrounds. certified instructor prior to handling any firearm and be sure to read your owners manual. After a quick assessment of the situation, Rousseau tried for a shot to the mans central nervous system. This unit performed poorly and committed atrocities that included raping women during operations. [34] Foreign volunteers were also offered land if they settled in Rhodesia after completing their service with the security forces. [11], UDI and Rhodesia's racial inequalities led to the outbreak of the Rhodesian Bush War. Engaged in a firefight at an airport in Lourenco Marques, Rousseau encountered a guerilla fighter armed with an AK-47. However, even with two new and bleeding nipples, the guerrilla was still coming at him, so Rousseau tried for the head. Habah l'hargecha hashkem l'hargo -- "If someone is coming to kill you, rise against him and kill him first.". [60] Foreign volunteers who openly expressed extreme racial views were deported. Two to the body, one to the head. [86] Due to the difficulty of drafting legislation that could effectively ban Britons from serving with Rhodesia or enforcing the measures that were brought in, there is no record of any British citizens being punished for serving with the Rhodesian Security Forces during the war. There is evidence that the Departments of Justice and State tacitly encouraged Americans to volunteer for Rhodesia as part of efforts to prevent the country collapsing before a negotiated solution to the war could be finalised. According to anecdotal history, the technique originated with a Rhodesian mercenary, Mike Rousseau, engaged in the Mozambican War of Independence (1964-1974). I prefer the original name, but whats in a name? [34], American and Australian volunteers who had fought in the Vietnam War were generally well regarded by Rhodesian soldiers, and were often posted to the elite SAS and Selous Scouts. As the story goes, a Rhodesian named Mike Rousseau was serving as a mercenary in the Mozambican War of Independence. This is a great exercise to work on speed, accuracy and self-defense tactics. They generally joined the Rhodesian Security Forces individually after seeing advertisements or after being contacted by recruiters. [31] The ads and other coverage of Rhodesia in Soldier of Fortune led to a "steady stream of volunteers". Miss the zone, and the projectile could deflect off the bony areas of the skull without eliminating the threat. Although in most situations, the two perfectly placed shots to the chest should disable an attacker, there are several reasons they could fail. Rousseau later related the story to an acquaintance, Jeff Cooper, who incorporated the "triple tap" or "Mozambique Drill" into his practical shooting technique. John McVicar Malloch ICD, was a South African-born Rhodesian bush pilot, gun-runner and sanctions-buster who flew in World War II and in various legal and illegal roles around Africa and the Middle East until the early 1980s. This led to a rapid growth in the insurgency which the security forces were unable to contain. He offered Rhodesia the services of these men after they completed training, though he intended to eventually use them to retake Albania. Rhodesian officers also sought to use their networks in other militaries to attract volunteers. Live The Armory Life. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Cooper_%28colonel%29. The drill was inspired by an incident encountered by Rhodesian mercenary Mike Rousseau during the Mozambican War of Independence (1964 to about 1974). Your goal should be three accurate shots in under four seconds. Rousseau related the story to an acquaintance, small arms expert Jeff Cooper, founder of the Gunsite Academy shooting school, who incorporated the "Mozambique Drill" into his modern technique shooting method. The third shot should be aimed to destroy the brain or brain stem, killing the target and preventing the target from retaliating. The Rhodesians' brutal counterinsurgency tactics also proved counter-productive. Portugal had ruled Mozambique for . If any of your three shots miss, you have failed the drill. [4][12] The resistance to the Rhodesian regime was dominated by two black nationalist movements, the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU) and the Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU). [43] The academic Luise White has written that they were commonly opposed to the establishment of governments run by black people and did not have any particular commitment to Rhodesia itself. |-- Topic Forums So, as the story goes, Rousseau was involved in a firefight at the airport. The ethnographic and historical researcher Henrik Ellert has written that there were 1,500 in 197778. Felons can be high on adrenalin or drugs to the point that they do not recognize or respond to pain. Shooting Skills: The Mozambique-Failure Drill, Light Em Up: Home Defense Lasers and Lights. During the Mozambican War of Independence, a Rhodesian mercenary by the name of Mike Rousseau was engaged in a firefight at the airport at Lourenco Marques. Now you understand the history and background as well as the importance of the Failure Drill. Get 12 Issues a year of the country's best firearms writing. It doesnt matter how fast you can pull off rounds if they dont hit your target.

Asphalt Modified Chassis Builders, Redeem Sam's Club Membership Tickets At Work, Sewell Funeral Home Obituaries, Articles R

rhodesian mercenary mike rousseau