Operating with a Gas Mask

Gas mask, breathing device designed to protect the wearer against harmful substances in the air [1]. It is often recommended that you practice as much as possible with your equipment so that when the time comes to use it for real, everything will become natural. One aspect of officer training that is frequently overlooked is shooting while wearing a gas mask.

Gas masks of all types are available for both law enforcement and civilian use. Consider the following if you have a say in which mask you or your department will wear. Aside from being an effective barrier against chemical and biological agents, your ability to see through the mask is critical.

No matter what mask you have, your peripheral vision will be affected, in some cases as much as 25%. This is a concern for operating in high-risk environments, since you must maintain good situational awareness by being able to see what is going on around you. Limited vision forces the wearer to move his head much farther left and right than he is used to. Besides affecting your vision left and right, your ability to look down is also limited. This will become evident when you attempt to locate gear on your belt or vest and have not practiced without looking. You will not be able to see where your equipment, such as magazines, handcuffs and radio. [2]

I have seen my classmates become so frustrated and uncomfortable wearing the mask they will suddenly rip it off to get some relief. Others will just break the seal and try to let in some fresh air during the exercise. This simply cannot happen in a toxic environment, no matter how uncomfortable the mask becomes. It takes some time to get used to using a mask. Your breathing patterns will be altered, and you will need to learn how to control your breathing, particularly if you are exercising.

Our instructor guided us and gave some tips; the fundamentals of shooting do not change while wearing a gas mask. They just become a little harder. Your stance, grip, and trigger control all remain the same, but your sight alignment and sight picture will suffer. If you can turn the rifle inward in order to compensate for the mask and face shield, you will be able to align your sights and obtain a better sight picture. Depending on your mask and physical build, it may only be a slight cant. Shooters also need to be aware that when you cant the rifle, you affect the impact of the round. Your weapon is sighted vertically, and when it is canted left or right, you change the location of the bullet impact.

[1] https://www.britannica.com/technology/gas-mask

[2] https://www.swatmag.com/article/good-guys-wear-masks-operating-with-a-gas-mask/#:~:text=firing%20a%20handgun.-,SHOOTING%20WITH%20A%20GAS%20MASK,and%20sight%20picture%20will%20suffer.