Cadets in the Calera High School’s Navy Junior ROTC recently took a trip to Fort McClellan Army National Guard Weapons Simulator in Anniston.  After completing a safety briefing, the cadets were able to fire different types of electronic firearms used by the National Guard.

“These weapons, although electronic in nature, function as real weapons,” said Major Aurelio Garcia, ROTC instructor. “These weapons have to be charged and fired exactly as the real weapons.”

Garia said the firearms used included M4A1 carbine, M240B squad automatic weapon, and the Browning M2 .50 caliber machine gun.  The targets were simulated targets projected onto the wall.

Cadets were also issued MRE’s, or Meals Ready to Eat, for lunch. This meal is normally issued to military personnel during deployments or training and provides the necessary calorie consumption to sustain service member during the rigors of training and combat.

“The purpose of the trip was to show cadets how the military simulates shooting qualifications and to introduce the cadets to different jobs available to service members. All-in-all the cadets had a blast,” said Garcia.