Phnom Penh Shooting Range

One day Don and I took a taxi out to the RCAF (Royal Cambodian Armed Forces) Special Forces Airborne Base at the western edge of Phnom Penh.

There the Cambodian military runs a public shooting range, using weapons and ammunition accumulated during 50 years of war.

Upon arrival we were offered beer or soft drinks, and presented with a plastic menu of weapons to choose from.

Rifles
AK-47
M-16
UZI
K-50
Shotgun
Handguns
CZ75(22mm)
K54(Takarov)
.45 ACP (Colt)
Revolver 38
Ruger 22

Price
$30
$30
$30
$30
$20

$12
$10
$10
$12
$12

Also available (off the menu) were tripod-mounted M-60 machine guns, rocket launchers and hand grenades (no photos allowed.)

Don and I both chose 30 rounds each ($30) on an AK-47 Kalashnikov, the world's most popular weapon.

Here's a video of Don squeezing off a short burst on full automatic (turn on your speakers and click the photo; the file is fullauto.avi, 1.1 MB.)

Boys and their toys.

They offered us a live chicken to shoot, but we passed on that. I wonder if they'd let you drive a tank or take up an RCAF plane and strafe a village if you paid them enough?

Return to Chris in Cambodia 2

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