Talk:Three-volley salute

I used to be good at math, but this is a little over my head ;)

• "In the case of a 3-soldier firing party, this equals a total of 7 shots per soldier."

I expected "3-volleys" to be each gun is fired three times. Or is this related to the 21-gun salute somehow? BartonM 21:30, 1 November 2006 (UTC)

Each member of the firing team fires three times. This is what three volleys means. This means that on most occasions, a total of nine rounds are fired. Now, also, as it happens, the M-14 and M-1 Garand which are used for military funeral honors are both semi-automatic. But yes, we use blanks. The notion that a blank round will not cycle the action of a semiautomatic rifle is simply false. The M-16 will not cycle with blank ammunition without a Blank Firing Adapter, which clamps onto the end of the barrel and forces the gasses to work the action. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 149.152.191.253 (talk • contribs) 17:57, 29 May 2007 (UTC)

Yeah, DUHH wikipedia. i'll fix it. 64.231.62.252 (talk) 11:03, 1 April 2008 (UTC)

Notes on ceremony

These are just some notes to describe how the sequence of the salute goes for the US military, just using lay terms. I'm no military person, just taking this down if it may be useful later:

NCO Command	Rifle Party Action
Load!	Turn part way to right, raise rifle in front of chest, and pull charging handle to chamber a round
Ready!	Take rifle off "safe"
Aim!	Raise rifle to shoulder and take aim at 45 degrees
Fire!	Fire a shot, then bring rifle back to chest
Ready!	Pull charging handle to chamber the next round
Aim!	Raise rifle to shoulder and take aim at 45 degrees
Fire!	Fire a shot, then bring rifle back to chest
Ready!	Pull charging handle to chamber the next round
Aim!	Raise rifle to shoulder and take aim at 45 degrees
Fire!	Fire a shot, then bring rifle back to chest
Present Arms!	Hold rifle vertically

— Preceding unsigned comment added by Legitimus (talk • contribs) 14:49, 24 July 2008 (UTC)

gas action disabled

This statement is a little bit misleading: a gas operated semi-automatic weapon will not cycle when using blanks, as there is little if any pressure generated. Nothing has to be done to the weapon. 69.29.207.109 (talk) 13:57, 18 June 2010 (UTC)

You are right, normally a blank-firing adapter is needed when firing blanks if one wants the weapon to cycle automatically after the first shot. According to the Marine drill manual, it mentions an extra "ready" step during the sequence after the first shot to manually cycle the weapon. There seems to be three versions of this drill that depend on the gun and the type of squad. The real old-school one often seen in movies (and heard in the audio clip) requires the gun to be cocked before each individual shot. With a BFA on, the sequence just goes "Aim" "Fire" for the second and third shots, with no "Ready." Some police funerals with pistols don't even "Aim" after the first, just "Aim" "Fire" "Fire" "Fire."Legitimus (talk) 15:54, 18 June 2010 (UTC)

Unreliable source, unclear language

The linked source purporting to explain the origin of a three-volley salute (https://www.va.gov/opa/publications/celebrate/gunsalute.pdf) is not trustworthy. The Veterans Affairs department is not an authority in this area and the file linked provides no sources or verifiable references to substantiate its claims.

Additionally, the phrase "European dynastic wars" is unhelpful and non-specific. The period referred to is unclear and offers no useful context for understanding the claimed background of the practice. — Preceding unsigned comment added by WhampoaSamovar (talk • contribs) 17:45, 30 December 2020 (UTC)

I dug into this a little bit and I agree. I've found a few sources agreeing with this but I've also found some saying it comes from Romans saying the deceased name 3 times when removing them from the battlefield.

https://www.mdwhome.mdw.army.mil/ceremonial-support/military-funerals was the best source I could find on the subject Smcnicho (talk) 23:47, 9 December 2023 (UTC)