Letter to the Editor

It may seem they want to “remove all guns from free members of Society” by dividing Sporting shooters, but I’m not sure it really matters all that much to the powers that be.

Home affairs at the end of last year were calling on public consultation in relation to the electromagnetic weapons they would be importing for legitimate Government use (proposed by the end of 2021)
The coil gun (Gauss gun) and the rail gun.
“The coilgun operates very quietly, and does not expel a traditional gunshot sound. This means that any incident involving shots fired from the coilgun could easily go undetected by bystanders. In addition, the coilgun does not use conventional ammunition, and any ferromagnetic/conducting material may be used as a projectile”.
“The coilgun is advertised as a lethal weapon and produces a projectile muzzle velocity between 40 and 80 meters per second (similar to that of some low-powered air rifles). When using the recommended ammunition, a kinetic energy of 85 joules is achieved. This is high enough to inflict wounds and potentially be lethal in certain circumstances”.

“The Department was proposing to introduce a specific import control on electromagnetic weapons, except where the importation is for official purposes”

“The proposed import control will not be absolute, as the Minister for Home Affairs, or an authorised officer, may give written permission allowing for importation of an electromagnetic weapon only to Commonwealth, State or Territory Governments, or governments of a foreign country, under the existing ‘official purposes’ test in the Regulations.”

Submissions closed 10th Nov 2021.

Reference: Home affairs.gov.au consultation paper electromagnetic weapons.

contributed