FEATURE
ACTION AIR - TAIWAN
shooters in short order and impressing everyone with his
fundamental abilities.
Similarly, an increasing number of police and military
organisations are seeking to use airsoft or related systems in
force on force training, including the Taiwanese police and SWAT
teams, who sometimes train during the week at the same Linkou
“Taiwan CQB Club”/”North Training” facility we skirmish at
on some weekends. Also, an increased emphasis towards local
things perhaps a little too seriously. So, having dabbled in the
aforementioned competition last year, I decided to prepare myself
for the imminent move to pastures new by investing in the proper
Double Alpha Academy belt kit and Safariland holsters, to go with
the TTI Glock 34 I got for my 34th birthday.
Despite the continued language barrier that my limited
functional Mandarin presents I was able to pick up the movements
and key points relatively easily, thanks to Mars Liu’s tutelage and
attentions on my first session and I was soon turning up on a
regular basis to hone my skills. It has all been somewhat hectic in
reality, fitting in around 20 training sessions within the first three
months since starting but as usual, I don’t do things by halves!
GETTING LICENSED
manufacturer’s T4E (Training For Engagement) systems shows that
attitudes are changing and airgun shooting sports and training
techniques are gaining more acceptance as of late, despite
(perhaps) some earlier snubbing by many real steel users as
“pointless” or “ineffective”.
With all that in mind, I decided to throw my hat in the ring
and give it a go. I’d already dabbled in early 2019, when my
Filipina skirmishing teammate, Belinda, invited me along to a
friendly competition at her local AIPSC/Action Air “Spring Rain”
team’s facility in South-Western Taipei and had been wanting to
get into it more seriously since that first foray. However, until I
moved up to Taipei properly, the logistics were just too prohibitive
given most team’s training times conflicted with my afternoon
and evening teaching work.
Having started off March with our first Speedsoft-oriented
tournament in Taipei - as featured in my previous Island Insider
article ‘”Live and let DYE” - I decided to end it with qualifying for
my Action Air Competition License following a whole day seminar.
I understood a surprising amount, despite not always being able
to translate every single word on the fly but it certainly helped to
have prior understanding of real firearms, or live fire competitions
and the material as they tend to transfer into Action Air rules and
procedures. Those halcyon days in my school’s Combined Cadet
Force and breezing through weapons handling tests were gladly
put to good use once again!
Following a morning of procedural and administrative matters,
as well as general structure, distribution and operation of the
different levels of officials in the Asian region, we broke for lunch
and got on with the practical assessment in the afternoon. Having
already practiced, with Mars holding a few mock tests for me, on
the lead up to the examination day, the practical shooting side
was a breeze and, thankfully, the examiner also has an excellent
FIRST TASTE
Happily, in February a local friend noticed I had been getting my
equipment repaired at KIC Airsoft’s shop in Sanchong, North
West Taipei and told me that he trained in Action Air not far from
there. Having struggled to get involved with the other teams in
the area, such as “Spring Rain” (SR) and “Taipei Focus Action
Shooters” (TFAS) due to my evening teaching work timetable for
the last few months, I jumped at the opportunity to train with
“Setup Project Practical Team” (SPPT), just a short bus ride from
my new digs in central Taipei.
And so, after a brief exchange of details online I was
welcomed along to my first session to get an idea for my abilities
and what Action Air involves. I imagine I made a decent enough
first impression, as I always have to be “that guy” who takes
“FOLLOWING A MORNING OF PROCEDURAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS, AS WELL
AS GENERAL STRUCTURE, DISTRIBUTION AND OPERATION OF THE DIFFERENT LEVELS
OF OFFICIALS IN THE ASIAN REGION, WE BROKE FOR LUNCH AND GOT ON WITH THE
PRACTICAL ASSESSMENT IN THE AFTERNOON. ”
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