Grapevine Police are getting a new level of firearms training. The department will receive the only full-sized digital projection shooting center in the country that combines cinema-sized video screens and live fire.
On Tuesday, February 20, the Grapevine City Council approved the purchase of the American Sportsman Shooting Center from Aimpoint Holding Inc. for $2.3 million. The purchase includes the indoor training facility and surrounding land, range software and hardware, and other equipment.
This training facility differs from all others with its unique live fire cinema range. Video projection systems used by other law enforcement agencies typically work with simulated laser firearms. Grapevine officers will be able to train in multiple law enforcement scenarios using their own weapons and live ammunition.
“While our current outdoor range is only utilized during the day, the new indoor facility will allow officers to train during various shifts, and regardless of weather,” adds Grapevine Police Chief Eddie Salame.
Any scenario imaginable can be built into the projection system, including shoot/don’t shoot and active shooter drills. Video images are projected directly onto a 12’x30’ screen inside a 25-yard indoor range facility. In addition to the cinema range, the shooting center also includes a 100-yard underground rifle zeroing facility with electronic scoring and a shooting simulator for skills development.
The City will close the existing outdoor range in the coming months but will continue to allow partnering law enforcement agencies to train in the new indoor facility. The new range will not be open for public use.
Based in Sweden, Aimpoint has built a reputation for innovation and supplying the best electro-optical sighting technology available to law enforcement professionals and military personnel worldwide. The training center in Grapevine was built to assemble and develop a state-of-the-art training facility using the most advanced technology available. When the company decided not to pursue a national expansion of the concept, Aimpoint offered Grapevine the first rights to acquire the facility, both in thanks for the City’s outstanding hospitality and support during the development of this project, as well as the company’s belief that the Grapevine Police Department will make the best possible future use of the facility in training law enforcement officers.
Aimpoint will continue to work with the City and police department during the sale to ensure a smooth transition, and provide support as the facility is adapted for full-time law enforcement training. The City will take full ownership of the range on April 30, 2018.