The Role of the Air Rifle for Modern Country Sports
Although having suffered in the eyes of not only the public, but also in the eyes of the Country community, air rifles I believe have a valued role in today's sporting era.
Usually seen as a tool of the poacher or the hooligan, or even the toy for junior to use as a stepping stone to him getting a cartridge gun, the air rifle is so much more.
In the last 20 years the development of the air rifle has come on in leaps and bounds. The rifles that some might know and love like the humble Webley Vulcan and BSA Airsporter have been out stripped by the likes of the modern almost sniper like .177 Air Arms Tactical rifle or the Stalker .50 cal behemoth. This has mostly been due to target shooting. Around 21 years ago a new air rifle sport was developed. Field Target, as it is known, was originally designed to be, simulated hunting. It brought a large cross section of the community together and not only did it give people a sport that everyone can enjoy (young and old, fat and thin, all on equal terms) it kick started the development of more accurate and better engineered rifles.
So as things progressed and the shooters became better the need for better guns was paramount. The gun makers would now start to turn to previous target technology to develop their hunting guns. Used to only shooting at fairly close ranges people now realised that the guns had the ability to shoot far more accurately at further ranges. Now some people I have spoken to believe that a .22 rimfire is only good to around 75 yards. Modern air rifles set at the legal limit (12 ftlbs) are very capable of shooting out to 55 yards, but as with all shooting sports the range is only limited by the ability of the shooter.
Although the guns are a lot more powerful and accurate some people will just not accept that an air rifle is really able to be a viable tool for serious hunting. Some people from my club who participate in pest control last year removed well over 3000 rabbits from a relatively small farm which was over run by the little critters (not bad for a some guys who went down to the farm for a few hours most Saturdays). Also a large number of professional pest control companies have worked closely with airgun smiths to develop rifles that are capable of doing the job to the required standard (not easy in these days of strict Health and Safety guidelines and Political Correctness).
So now we have guns that are virtually silent and deadly accurate on small game out to 50+ yards. That means its better for the poacher or vandal. Well look at it this way, have you ever tried shooting around farm buildings with a firearm? Ever needed to control the marauding flock of crows, and rooks, but noise is a problem so the trusty old shotgun isn't suitable? This is where the airrifle comes into its own, so the coin does have two sides.
Recently the people in power have started to notice this and are realising how deadly effective the humble little "Toy" can be and have tried to put banns on them and tried to licence them. With the numbers of legitimate air gun users in Britain today reaching well in to the millions. I can see the police really enjoying that. Already over worked the licensing departments would have to work almost 24 hours a day to try and work out the basics and if there was a problem with something as there will always be it will cause months of backlogs and problems, to both police and shooter.
To most the air rifle is a tool to do a job, but to many it's also a form of enjoyment. If all of the people were to be honest I wonder how many of you would raise your hands and say that you have lots of fun with air guns. Not having to worry about being on a certified range on not having strict limits on ammo, you can shoot whenever you want. Think about he majority of "plinkers" who would be very disgruntled with their guns being taken away. Also the masses of target shooters who just shoot for sport. Many might not have set foot in the country before but due to recognising the threat to their sport will have joined the likes of SACS or BASC or one of these organisations, along with the others that use air rifles in the country. They are, although a small number of people, supporting you, would it not be nice and return the favour and support them?