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Before the Trigger Pull: Training Decision Making for AUF

P1AR Team · October 16, 2026

In the late 1990s, the Coast Guard faced a problem it couldn’t solve from the water. Most illegal drugs entering the United States were moving by sea, in “go-fast” boats that could outrun Coast Guard cutters. In 1998, the service began testing an answer: armed helicopters.

Commander Mark “Roscoe” Torres led the team that built the answer. Working with ten volunteers, he turned the concept into an operational capability in seven months, developing tactics and procedures that hadn’t existed before. That team became the Helicopter Interdiction Tactical Squadron, HITRON.

The interdiction goal was to stop a vessel by disabling only its engines, so it could be boarded safely for inspection and further action. From the start, the mission was defined by restraint as much as by accuracy.

Where our gunnery focus comes from

After retiring from the Coast Guard, Roscoe is now Executive Vice President of Priority 1 Air Rescue, and the same discipline he built into HITRON is the foundation of P1AR’s aerial use-of-force (AUF) training.

More than 25 years later, Roscoe’s work continues to impact the Coast Guard. HITRON remains the Coast Guard’s only dedicated airborne use-of-force unit, and it recently completed its 1,000th interdiction. The capability has also expanded beyond counter-drug work, with many Coast Guard air stations now armed to provide airborne security for major U.S. ports.

More than ballistics

Marksmanship matters. A gunner who cannot consistently put rounds on target is a safety risk. But hitting a target is just the last step in the process. A critical prior step is the shoot/no-shoot decision.

AUF follows a deliberate use-of-force continuum. Each step is its own decision, made under agency policy and rules of engagement, with the appropriate level of authorization. It’s made from a moving, vibrating aircraft, often at night, with incomplete information and seconds to act.

Then comes the part a range never tests. Every round fired has to hold up to review. The crew needs to explain clearly what they saw, what they knew, and why they acted. A good shot fired at the wrong moment is still a wrong shot.

That’s why our training treats judgment as the core skill. The key training outcome is crews who consistently make explainable, defensible decisions in pulling (or not pulling) the trigger.

Training the decision

Live-fire ranges are essential to train real world accuracy. However, the range cannot reflect the nuanced context behind the shoot/no-shoot decision making.

Real engagements are everchanging. An individual complies at the last second. Someone unexpected occludes the shot. Communications drop. A situation that looked routine suddenly escalates, or stabilizes. The crew has to read the change and decide again, in real time. A wrong choice—in either direction—can result in fatal outcomes.

This is where synthetic training shines. In the simulator, instructors can build scenarios that unfold differently on every run, branching on the crew’s own actions. Shoot/no-shoot decisions come up unpredictably, so crews practice recognizing the moment rather than memorizing a script. Night and night-vision work and other intricacies can be repeated as often as needed. Every run is recorded, so the debrief can focus on why a decision was made, not just whether the rounds hit.

None of this replaces live fire, but developing a multi-modal training program significantly expands the training envelope. The range is where crews prove their marksmanship. The simulator is where they build the judgment that decides when their marksmanship skills should be put to use.

Built for the mission

Whether you’re a Coast Guard air station, a county sheriff, or any other agency building an AUF capability, the standard is the same: decisions that can be defended in court, delivered accurately when they’re needed.

P1AR offers aerial use-of-force training at both our Mesa, AZ facility as well as in Bordeaux, France. Talk to us to explore adding AUF to your program.

For further reading:

https://nationalcoastguardmuseum.org/articles/hitron/

The appearance of USCG or DoD visual images and references to USCG or DoD to not imply or constitute endorsement.

Cover image credit: Sioux City's Embarked Coast Guard Det Conducts an Airborne Use of Force Exercise, by PO1 Juel Foster