back to article Turkish groom accidentally sprays wedding guests with bullets

A bridegroom in Turkey, seeking to enliven his nuptial celebrations by the traditional local practice of firing an automatic weapon into the air, has accidentally gunned down 11 of his wedding guests in a freak tragedy bloodbath firearms discharge mishap. The BBC reports that the unfortunate groom, intending only to let off a …

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  1. Lionel Baden
    Grenade

    oh man !!

    that memory will just shit on you for the rest of your life !!!!

    feel real sorry for that bloke !!

  2. heyrick Silver badge

    If ever there was a reason why Turkey shouldn't be in the EU...

    ...the sort of place where civilians are permitted to have AK-47s, never mind use them in jubilation, probably isn't quite ready to be a part of the European Union just yet...

    1. David Eddleman
      WTF?

      What?

      What's so wrong with the AK-47? You realize that people over the pond have them too, right?

      1. Anonymous Coward
        FAIL

        @ What?

        Yes, we realise. Are you trying to reinforce heyrick's point?

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        s/people/idiots/

        That is all.

    2. CD001

      Not to mention...

      ... the fact that they were only made illegal in the UK in 1986 in response to the Hungerford massacre - correct me if I'm wrong, but the UK was part of the EU (or the EEC as it was) at the time.

  3. Mike Smith
    FAIL

    Maybe stating the obvious but

    Haven't these cretins heard of blank ammo?

    1. Squirrel
      Grenade

      blank ammo

      blank ammo will still injure at close range. There's no bullet but the wadding and packing in a blank can still cause significant damage. Then there's people thinking it's blank ammo, thus safe and it's not or is loaded with live rounds.

      Have they not heard of party poppers? (not to be aimed at people... )

      grenade... coz it's the nearest I could find.

      1. Charles Manning

        Blank ammo won't work

        There is definitely a symbolic down-side to firing blank ammo at a wedding. Firing blanks == infertility.

        Blank ammo also does not cycle an automatic/semi-auto weapon since it does not generate pressure against the bullet to feed the gas chamber.

        You could of course use one of those red muzzle plugs but that would make you look like a bit of a wuss. and line you up for innuendo about your dick being blocked.

        Nope. It has to be live ammo, fully auto.

  4. koncordski
    FAIL

    Still generally hit with lethal force?

    Didn't mythbusters do an entire episode to prove that bullets fired vertically or close to it actually tumble back to earth and with nowhere close to lethal force? The only way to maintain lethality was to have the gun fire at a shallow angle so that a ballistic arc maintained the spin of the bullet. Stupid certainly but lethal rarely, losing control of the gun certainly a fail here.

    1. Lionel Baden

      Depends on the party

      But i am highly doubting he was pointing the gun straight up otherwise we wouldnt be reading this article !!

    2. Guido Esperanto

      yup they did

      but the myth obtained a busted/plausible/confirmed rating.

      If bullet goes totally vertical (nigh on impossible really), it will be none lethal due to terminal velocity

      If bullet goes off on arcing trajectory (more common) bullet can retain lethal force, but chances of being hit are quite slim.

      they had two cases of injury sustained from airbound bullets (those not targeted) one fatally I believe.

      you gotta be some unlucky sonofabeyotch to be killed by ammo returning to earth.

    3. Richard 81

      Mythbusters

      Mythbusters = bad science.

    4. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Speaking for experience...

      I got a bullet hole in the boot of my car about 3 months after I got it thanks to someone firing a pistol into the air during the September 15th celebrations in Mexico.

      While it didn't penetrate the metal completely the bullet hit with enough force to deform it. I certainly wouldn't have wanted to have tested the theory that bullets fired in the air aren't lethal when they come down with, say, my head.

    5. Squirrel
      IT Angle

      not quite true

      Basically if the bullet does tumble you're safe, if it keeps some ballistic profile (nose first) then you're all DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMED

      http://mythbustersresults.com/episode50

    6. Nightkiller

      Myth? Maybe

      I have a friend who was serving with NATO in the Golan Heights and he reports an incident that injured a fellow soldier from just such a situation. Lethal? Maybe not, but it sure hurts like hell. Especially when it falls on your head.

    7. Marvin O'Gravel Balloon Face

      happened recently in America

      This happened recently in the States.

      http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/6927917/Boy-killed-by-bullet-fired-three-miles-away.html

      AK-47 fired three miles away went through a church roof, hit a toddler in the head and killed him.

      1. bhtooefr
        Grenade

        Journalist's Guide to Firearms Identification

        http://blog.robballen.com/2009/09/08/p3717-because-im-nothing-if-not-helpful.post

        Just because they say it's an AK-47 doesn't mean it is one. Or even close to one.

      2. Dumple McWhartingcock
        Gates Horns

        WHERE IS YOUR GOD NOW?

        YOUR GOD, WHERE IS IT?

    8. Frumious Bandersnatch
      Headmaster

      rough calculation from terminal velocity

      A bullet fired straight up won't come down at as fast as it left the gun barrel, due to air resistance. But it will generally reach terminal velocity, and that, multiplied by the mass of the bullet can easily be enough to break through someone's skull. If the gun is fired at a shallower angle, the speed of the projectile at impact is going to depend on a number of things including the angle it was fired at, the total distance and time traveled in horizontal and vertical planes (fairly complex integration, but easy enough to simplify to get a rough answer) and the drag coefficient of the bullet (which can be estimated). And not to forget that the final force is equal to speed times mass, so the mass of the bullet also has a big effect on the amount of damage on impact.

      A quick web search should turn up plenty of good sites dealing with this particular "myth" (which it isn't) in general and the physics of it in particular (with terminal velocity in a viscous fluid being the most important).

    9. Charles Manning

      Mythbusters busted

      Mythbusters make too many assumptions to be considered science. They "busted" the story about using mirrors to burn a ship because they could not reproduce it (yet MIT did manage to do it).

      IIRC, the Mythbusters on shooting vertically used pistol ammo which has a high surface area and poor aerodynamics. A rifle bullet, OTOH, has a nice boat hull shape and bloody good aerodynamics - nothing like a pistol bullet .

  5. Seanmon
    FAIL

    Well.

    You. Utter. Twat. Really, what else can be said?

    Fuckwit icon please.

  6. Ol'Peculier
    Grenade

    Fireworks

    I've always wondered if anyone has been hurt from the remains of a firework falling from the skies?

    1. Stylee

      Re: Fireworks

      I know two people who were hurt by falling firework remnants - the girl who it (metal casing - big rocket) fell on, causing a bit of bruising to her back, and her brother who burnt his hand picking it up, wondering what on earth it was.

    2. Nightkiller

      Quite Possible

      I was a a fireworks display on July 1, 2001 or 2002 where the crowd was allowed to be within 50 metres of the firing area. There were bits of plastic from the assemblies and slag from the burned metal that were raining down on the spectators as the wind had changed direction. Got some very small specks in my eye and saw some pieces land close to me. Frightened those with small children. Rightfully so.

      1. mike 32
        WTF?

        Not quite returning to earth, but...

        I was supposed to be providing wildfire suppression control one Guy Fawkes night, with the assembled masses of the Cape Flats (it turned into a first-aid evening for us).

        After watching people holding roman candles, standing in and amongst exploding fireworks (including small kids), holding catherine wheels (the spinning ones?) in their hands, etc, the evening reached it's climax when some dude shot his cousin in the chest from a few feet with a rocket. No major penetration/death, but serious burns and one very shaky person eventually carted off to hospital.

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Unhappy

    Such a nightmare!

    Unbelievable...

    And we do that in some parts of Greece as well. The peasants are thick-headed enough not to get the risks involved (what do you city people know etc.)

    Unfortunately it destroyed somebody's life for ever. I mean, to kill your own father... Really the stuff of nightmares...

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Thumb Down

      Same stuff

      These people were also peasants. Despite countless media reports of previous incidents involving guns and harsh condemnation from everybody they still do this.

      Greetings to Greece, btw.

  8. Mark 108
    FAIL

    Funeral

    If the activity is also practiced at funerals then this may well be the last generation of the family.

    1. Bobsch
      Grenade

      Darwin at work

      If the activity is also practiced at funerals then this may well be the last generation of the family.

      One can only hope.

      1. TimeMaster T
        Coat

        No

        If it had been Darwin the groom would have shot himself. Those he removed form the gene pool had already bred and now he will probably want to have some extra kids now so he can name one after each of the dead.

        Mines the one made of Kevlar.

  9. The BigYin
    Joke

    Perhaps...

    ...this would the only time a groom would be happy to be firing blanks?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Coat

      sorry,

      which one is yours?

      ;-)

  10. live2give
    FAIL

    When you postively have to kill every mother f***er in the room!!!!

    Whats that saying "Guns don't kill people......." What a complete nugget, what did he expect to happen bringing an AK47 to his wedding. FAIL for obvious reasons.

    1. Richard 81

      Guns don't kill people

      ...but they clearly make it a hell of a lot easier.

      Not the blanks would be much better. They have a tendency to break up a bit and spit shrapnel everywhere. It killed the guy in The Crow and is the reason the army uses 'crap catchers' when shooting blanks.

      1. This post has been deleted by its author

      2. TimeMaster T

        Actually ...

        As I understand it was a combination of a blank and a slug that killed Brandon Lee.

        In an earlier scene they had used dummy cartridges (no powder but still had a live primer) to show the gun being loaded, then someone pulled the trigger. The primer in the "blank" dummies still had enough power to push the slug out of the drum and into the barrel of the revolver. When the same prop gun was used with true black powder blanks for the "Bang, Bang" there was enough pressure to shoot the slug in the barrel with enough force to kill.

        for full details; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandon_Lee#Death

      3. Charles Manning

        blank firing attachment

        Is that "crap catcher" a blank firing attachment?

        Yes there is a safety element to this, but the main purpose is to build up pressure in the barrel/gas chamber to cycle the reloading mechanism.

  11. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Shouldn't laugh, but...

    "in a freak tragedy bloodbath firearms discharge mishap"

    Shouldn't you be working for the readtops with prose like that. Cheered me up no end.

    However, regarading your later comments, shirley bullets fired straight up would come down with no more force than a hailstone of similar mass, gravity and air resistance being what they are.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Happy

      "Shouldn't you be working for the readtops with prose like that."

      They are working for a redtop. It's just a digital redtop aimed at the IT industry.

      That's why The Reg has the best title and sub-head writers around.

      Long may it continue!

    2. Anonymous John
      Grenade

      Re Shouldn't laugh, but.

      Bullets are heavier than the average hailstone. And if you google, you'll find that hail can be fatal.

      Grenade as I'm going to a wedding at the weekend.

  12. tom 24
    Grenade

    I have a Great Big...gun!

    "...and will still generally hit with lethal force when they do." Really? I've heard that bullets falling at terminal velocity might knock you unconscious, but that's about it. Assuming, of course, you fire them upwards in the first place.

    This is why you train in the use of a weapon before you go around shooting it. Sounds like an AK was outside this guy's range of experience. Overcompensating, perhaps?

    1. David Eddleman

      Precisely!

      "This is why you train in the use of a weapon before you go around shooting it."

      When I've taught people how to shoot, I show them all the features on the firearm and shoot a few rounds off first to show them what it's like, plus teach posture, form, etc. If you start firing any round on automatic, even the low-recoil .22LR, you might get spooked and drop the weapon which could cause a slam fire.

      1. Trevor_Pott Gold badge

        @David Eddleman

        Why in the name of $deity would anyone fire a weapon on automatic unless they were trying to kill someone, or training to do exactly that?

        There’s no possible reason except killing another person to even own an automatic weapon. (Semi-autos I actually don’t have much of a problem with.)

        1. David Eddleman

          Title

          Because it's a matter of skill? Trying to say that ANYTHING is designed exclusively to kill someone is a logical fallacy. Let's see you try to fire on automatic and even keep your sights on a target, let alone score some decent hits.

          1. Trevor_Pott Gold badge
            FAIL

            @David Eddleman

            I would never be firing on automatic. There's no possible reason for me to do so, except to kill someone.

            All of my guns are semi-auto or manual, and I am a reasonably good shot with them. I keep them locked up at all times, with the ammo locked up separately in another room. I only take them out for practice at a licensed facility, or for hunting. Should the revolution come, I will be more than able to defend me and mine with a semi-automatic weapon that I can use surgically instead of a bullet hose designed to mow down whatever is in my way.

            Fully automatic weapons have zero purpose other than to kill another person.

            1. jake Silver badge

              @Trevor_Pott

              "Fully automatic weapons have zero purpose other than to kill another person."

              Oh, I dunno ... My legally acquired & licensed Thompson M1928A1 serves nicely to remind the local government that THEY serve ME, and not the other way around ...

              I wouldn't use it in your "revolution", mind ... waste of ammo.

              1. Trevor_Pott Gold badge

                @jake

                Seems to me you don't need a fully auto weapon to remind your government that the people hold the power. At least two of my guns pretty much exist only for that purpose (useless for hunting) but again: semi-auto. One shot at one target, shoot to wound first, kill if only absolutely necessary. By the gods I hope I never have cause to use them for their intended purpose (removing an illegal government.)

                The only legitimate reasons (other than people who collect guns simply because they admire the craftsmanship) that I can see for owning a gun are a) hunting b) removal of illegal government/the revolution/zombie apocalypse. One is a sport, the other is an event that we all should be hoping never, ever occurs.

                A full auto weapon is pretty much the antithesis of a hunting weapon. Too much bullet in your meat, and fills the hide full of holes. Deposing an illegal government/the revolution would seem like an activity that one would want to engage in with the minimal possible causalities, as you would be fighting your own countrymen in that war.

                As for the zombie apocalypse, well...I would prefer a single shot with a GREAT scope. Take them out from a distance and keep moving. I wouldn’t want to be wasting ammo, because I never know how many zombies are between me and the next place where there are appropriately sized bullets.

                1. jake Silver badge

                  @Trevor_Pott

                  I have several full-auto rifles. All legal. Most aren't fired more than once or twice a year (and then only when my brothers or old college friends stay up late, handloading ammo). Like all obsolete equipment, they are museum pieces, curiosities, training aids, and educational tools ... when used properly, of course. Usually, when my brothers & friends are about it's more testosterone & stupidity, but my range is a safe place for such high jinx.

                  I let the local cops know a couple days in advance when we are going to go full-auto. Most of the time, the flunky on the phone tells me "that's illegal". My neighbor, the Chief of Police, usually hauls the flunky out to empty a few clips/drums/belts & receive an education on the reality of the law when it comes to full-auto weapons here in the US.

                  No, I don't hunt with full-auto. In fact, I don't hunt at all anymore. No real point. But I know how, and will, if I need to feed me & mine. Probably using my bolt action Remington 30-06 and/or Browning 12 gauge pump. (My deep-freeze is full of miscellaneous bits of turkey & venison & wild boar road-kill ... why hunt, when there are suicidal critters about?)

                  Shooting to wound isn't an option. That's just cruel. Shoot to kill, or don't shoot. Predators don't wound on a whim or for sport (except cats, and that's a whole 'nuther stable of worms), they kill to eat. Humans are predators, and top of the food chain. If you shoot at it, expect to kill it and eat it. To do otherwise is to mock tens of millions of years of mammalian history.

                  Humans are a slightly different issue, having (hopefully!) the concept of rational thought. If you present yourself to me & mine in such a way that I feel a need to pull a gun, you will die. Not because I take delight in it, but rather because if the option is you or me, it'll be me. Fortunately, this has only happened twice in my 50ish years ... and both times, the other party has backed off and waited quietly until the cops arrived. Hopefully I'll never need to kill a human ... It's really, really, really low on my list of priorities.

                  Overthrowing the government is even lower ... With any luck, that particular card will never need to be played here in the lower 48 ... at least not during my lifetime.

                  There is no such thing as zombies. Bringing them up in a conversation such as this pollutes your argument, to the point of giving one cause to wonder why one should listen to you on this subject.

                  1. Trevor_Pott Gold badge
                    Unhappy

                    @Jake

                    You shoot to wound during the revolution or when it is necessary to remove an illegal government. This is because the /human being/ on the other end would probably like the chance to recover from their wounds and continue living, if given the chance. I hope never to have to use my weapons in this manner, but that's part of the reason I'd own them.

                    When hunting you shoot to kill, but generally I do that with a long gun anyways. There's still much point up here. A single Moose is nearly a year's worth of meat for a family. (Yay deep freezers.)

                    You keep saying "it's legal to have a full auto weapon." I never questioned the legality of it. (Though it is illegal here.) I talked about the POINT of the weapon. Other than "the gun as a toy" (which is plain stupid) the only use for a full auto gun is death. Something you haven't spoken to by saying that it is legal. Just because it is legal doesn’t mean it serves a purpose other than death.

                    As for "there's no such thing as Zombies," grow a sense of humour man! It was a funny reference to insert into a heavily laden conversation that has becomes far drawn out than the original statement and subject matter required.

                    That said, I’m going back to work on rocket powered chainsaw JUST IN CASE. (Never can be too careful about zombies.)

                    1. jake Silver badge

                      @Trevor_Pott

                      I grew up partially in the backwoods of Northern California. Guns were tools that we used to get food, and to protect the crops. Later on, I was a competitive shooter for many years (various variations of skeet & trap, long distance & handgun). To me, guns are always a serious subject.

                      You don't shoot to wound in war so the "enemy" eventually recovers ... you shoot to wound in war so the enemy has to use manpower and other resources to deal with the wounded. And again, I hope I am never in that situation.

                      We'll have to agree to disagree about educational uses for full auto stuff.

                      Yes, I have a sense of humor. Speaking of jet engined powered things, have you ever heard of the jet engine powered beer cooler? See:

                      http://www.asciimation.co.nz/beer/

                      1. Trevor_Pott Gold badge
                        Grenade

                        @jake

                        When fighting to remove an illegal government, I wouldn't call it a "war." At least, I would hope it wouldn't become a full-on war. Civil wars are nasty; personally, were I fighting to reclaim my country, I’d be very mindful that the folks I am fighting are my own countrymen.

                        I draw a real distinction between that sort of combat and all-out war. To me, war is an aggressive battle: one country invading another. It is fought by governments against other governments. When the people rise up against a government (or against eachother) it is a different game altogether. Largely because there is little to no support behind the regular citizens if they are not fighting on behalf of their government, so their cause is all the more precariously affected by things like public perception. If the guy you are fighting beside mows down a few dozen of your countrymen defending the legislature with a full-auto weapon you might ask a few questions about whose side you really should be on.

                        Conversely, if you fight alongside people who take the time and care to disable is possible, kill only as a last resort, well...those are the kinds of people I personally would prefer to be fighting alongside.

                        I agree there could be educational uses for full auto stuff, but I disagree entirely with personal ownership. If a gun club has some for educational purposes, or a trained military has them for the purposes of war that’s one thing. Personal ownership, well…aside from being one of those folks who collect weapons because they really dig the craftsmanship, I just can’t get behind it.

                        Mind you, I’ve been told more than once I’m far too much of a peacenik to live in the southern US. I’ll stick to my redneck province here in the frozen north, thanks. And yes, I’ve seen that one. Good fun, but I am still working on trying to realise this grand notion:

                        http://www.everydaynodaysoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Rocket-Propelled-Chainsaw-RPC.jpg

                        The zombies…are coming…

      2. Astarte

        Recoil

        Not an AK47 but interesting. At least was in a training booth.

        http://davestopher.com/images/Videos/irak2.asf

  13. hitmouse
    FAIL

    I do not think it means, what you think it means

    If it "is commonplace as a celebration in parts of Turkey and has on many occasions led to deaths and injuries" then it's hardly a "freak tragedy bloodbath firearms discharge mishap"

  14. Anonymous Cowherd 3

    Noone has asked the obvious question yet

    How big is his inheritance?

  15. Martin.Hale
    Coat

    Just for the conspiracy minded...

    ...was it really an accident, or perhaps something a bit more sinister?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Gates Horns

      You might be on to something

      Triple inheritance as a wedding present to self?

    2. George Nacht
      Go

      Exactly my thoughts

      I guess a photo of the bride would shed some light on it.

  16. Anonymous Coward
    FAIL

    Full-Auto

    That's why you should *never* fire such a weapon in "full auto" mode for this kind of jackassery show. If you're already decided on doing something stupid like this, you should at least set the thing in "semi-auto" (3-round bursts) or single shot. That way, if your AK-47 loses control, it will be less likely for you to hit someone.

    1. Nightkiller
      Happy

      Thanks for the tip.

      At least you're not a party pooper.

      1. Vladimir Plouzhnikov

        Not so simple

        There is no semi-auto on AK-47 - it's safe, single shot or full auto. To fire 2-3 round bursts you need to learn how to press the trigger briefly while on the fully automatic setting. It is not difficult but hardly suitable for a Near- to Middle-Eastern wedding display.

        1. Vladimir Plouzhnikov

          Correction

          I meant there is no short-burst setting on AK-47. Semi-auto and single-shot obviously mean one thing...

        2. Charles Manning

          Not so complicated

          semi-auto = single shot.

          Three round burst s are something else. While I'm sure the AK engineers were up to designing 3 round bursts if they so wished this would go completely against the grain of the AK philosophy: cheap, simple, reliable and "troop proof".

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            AK Engineers?

            I love that. AK engineers.

            The AK47 was designed by one man Mikhail Kalashnikov who was a tank commander. He was assigned a team of engineers to refine the design, but it was essentially his design. He started the design in 1944 while on recuperation leave. You speak of AK as if they were a company, in fact AK stands for Avtomat Kalashnikova and the 47 for the year it was introduced. It is in fact a startlingly simple and elegant bit of engineering which makes it effective, reliable, cheap to manufacture and easy to repair. All of which is what has made it so successful over the last sixty odd years.

            Adding something like three shot burst probably never crossed Kalashnikov's mind and would only have made the weapon more complex, less reliable and more costly to manufacture and repair. I'm not sure anything else around at the time had such a feature anyway.

            It is an essential product of the way it works that the safety has single shot at one end, automatic at the other and safe in the middle. Some consider this to be a design flaw since the catch is so noisy that switching from full auto to single shot or vice versa would give away your position, however to make it work any other way would have made the mechanism more complex. To add another mode would have made it much, much more complicated.

            OK I'll shut up with the gun nerd talk now. But if you want to see engineering simplicity at it's best take an AK apart or at least take a look at some exploded diagrams. You'll be amazed how simple it is in there.

    2. David Eddleman
      FAIL

      Wrong!

      "you should at least set the thing in "semi-auto" (3-round bursts) or single shot"

      Semiautomatic is NOT burst-fire. Burst fire is fully automatic, but with a reset after a certain number of shots have been fired. Semiautomatic is one cartridge expended per trigger pull. Single shot would likely encompass any weapon that requires manual reloading between shots, like a pump/lever/bolt action firearm or a single-shot firearm (like a breech-loaded shotgun).

    3. TimeMaster T

      Correction

      Semi-auto is single fire.

      The AK-47 only has two modes, safe or Full-auto (semi-auto on the civilian version).

      Only a few assault rifles have the three round "burst" option.

  17. Anonymous Coward
    FAIL

    more funnier than a Greek Tragedy...

    and after emptying the entire clip....

    he still missed the mother in law!!! :/

    the only winner was the wife, she's now got less inlaws to deal with.

    FAIL! it says it all...

    1. Anonymous Coward
      WTF?

      Funny?

      I fail to see the humour in this gross loss of life.

  18. Anonymous Coward
    Flame

    what's wrong with.....

    traditional Chinese fire crackers, just as noisy, showy and a lot less lethal!

  19. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Trying to ban this stuff?

    Sounds as likely to happen as banning lethally bad driving here in India, but hey, at least Turkey is *trying*

  20. Ian 31
    Coat

    Still, 11 hits from a what, 30 round magazine?

    That's pretty good shooting with an automatic.

    Sorry, coat, thanks, the one with 'tasteless bastard' written on the back.

    1. Christopher W
      Grenade

      It's all in the wrist

      You just have to do very tight circles as you fire. Have you never played CS:S?

      Either that or he was singleshot headshotting but didn't take into account the updated hitboxes...

      Now some remote trig C4 on the main doors as the remaining guests ran out? That'd be a classy finish.

      This guy is my hot tip for the Decade's Finest round of the Darwin Awards.

  21. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Dangerous?

    @ The practice is a dangerous one even where celebratory shooters succeed in getting their weapons' muzzles above head height before opening fire. Bullets - to say nothing of rocket-grenades - fired into the sky have to come down somewhere, and will still generally hit with lethal force when they do.

    Did myth busters not "bust the myth" of landing bullets killing people? Rocket propelled grenades however, kabooom...

  22. frank ly
    Boffin

    A Special Form Of Darwin Award?

    This may sound cruel, cold and callous, but, since he killed his close relatives; is this a case of THEIR genes coming back to bite them?

  23. jake Silver badge

    That's the trouble with AK47s ...

    No accuracy at all. He was probably aiming at his new MIL ...

    (Yes, I have fired an AK47. Can't hit squat with one, even in single shot mode. As a rifle, they are mostly a "make lots of noise and scare the enemy" weapon. At 75 yards, I'm more accurate with my Kimber .45 than I am with an AK47 ... and .45s aren't supposed to be accurate at 75 yards!)

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      No need to be crude

      Even if you are an american or at least resident over there.

    2. Svantevid

      Really?

      "I have fired an AK47. Can't hit squat with one, even in single shot mode"

      --------

      No offense, but either I'm one of greatest shots ever or you're a crappy shooter. Alternatively, nobody set your AK's sights.

      I know I've managed to hit head-and-chest targets at 100 metres (110 yards) with no problem. 150 metres was a bit tricky, but I've managed to get all seven designated rounds in target. I'm talking about the first and second time I've used Kalash, not as an experienced shooter.

      And, for the guy who suggested three bullets mode... AK-47 doesn't have it. It has locked/burst/single shot selector.

    3. tim 4
      Pirate

      says who?!

      they certainly are! says the man who gunsmithed for sig sauer for several years , specifically fitting slides and frames for accuracy....

      also , whilst bored , and using a spotter , we fired an hk.45 at a target at 100 yards, at a standard target and hit it in the scored areas 7 out of 10. three times around the bullseye, and once in. none of us were snipers. if three guys messing about can do it with a stock firearm , an accurized one can do better. the .45 is still underappreciated i guess...

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Simple Question

        The AK is probably the most copied weapon in the world. And some of the copies are made to the most apalling standards.

        So was the innaccurate AK you fired the genuine article or one of the many, many copies out there?

  24. Disco-Legend-Zeke

    Las Vegas...

    ...apparently gets a little friendly fire also, usually at New Years.

  25. Seamless
    Dead Vulture

    Might knock you dead or worse

    Re: tom 24 (" '...and will still generally hit with lethal force when they do.' Really? I've heard that bullets falling at terminal velocity might knock you unconscious, but that's about it. Assuming, of course, you fire them upwards in the first place")--

    But that's not about it. A bullet falling to earth can strike with force sufficient to put a hole in body plates of automobiles, so it probably can do worse to soft human bodies. Somebody dim enough to shoot up is probably not smart enough (nor skilled enough) to calculate and fire with the least-dangerous reentry angle and velocity.

    My Acura roof was penetrated by a bullet (fired skyward on US Independence Day), creating a hole in the roof surrounded by a blistered crater. It sounded like a bowling ball had dropped from a great height as I waited for the light to change at an intersection. Arkasha (above) reported a similar personal experience in Mexico.

  26. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    11 from 30

    Any chance that some rounds took out more than one person? Suspect said chap will be hanging from some tree shortly.

  27. asiaseen

    Movie re-make

    Four Funerals and a Wedding, abridged version.

  28. This post has been deleted by its author

  29. Anonymous Coward
    Pint

    sensless tragedy...

    But, have the following questions:

    1) What idiot takes an AK (SKS, Uzi or M-16) to a wedding?

    2) RPG's fired into the air, in celebration? Excuse me, but when munitions go up they tend to come back down, courtesy of that harsh mistress, gravity. Bullets are one thing but rocket propelled shaped charges?

    3) How much you want to bet he SO didn't get any on the 'honeymoon'/body ID/wake/funeral?

    4) How long is his wife going to hold this little stunt over his head?

    5) I thought the tradition was rice at the wedding; not small arms fire?

    Comments:

    Once again, not to make lite of such a senseless tragedy and as an American who happens to own an AK, they're nice weapons, about as accurate as the standard issue M-16, but hardly advisable for celebratory events like: WEDDINGS, birthday parties, baby showers, Bris's, national holidays, a pilgrimage of any kind, religious holidays (regardless of deity worshiped), practical jokes or after consuming any amount of alcohol.

    Since reading of this on el Reg, I thought the following quote should be shared : "A computer lets you make more mistakes faster than any other human invention in history... ...with the possible exception of handguns and tequila"

    -Mitch Ratcliffe

  30. Mips
    Jobs Horns

    Editor! Editor!

    Adjectives gone mad: "freak tragedy bloodbath firearms discharge mishap". Since when did you start working for the Sun?

  31. jake Silver badge

    @Svantevid

    Re-read what I wrote.

    With the AK at 75 yards, if you aim at center of mass and squeeze off 4 shots they'll probably hit somewhere within an 6 or 7 inch circle. With my Kimber, it's more like right nipple, left nipple, solar plexus, bellybutton.

    I've owned AK47s, even full auto versions (mostly to irritate the government ... yes, I had (have) all the required licenses & permits), but I sold 'em. Not accurate enough for my needs. The Kimber is a much modified variation, she was my competition handgun for many years.

  32. Adrian Esdaile
    Grenade

    The only thing I'm uncertain about...

    ...is who gets the Darwin Award? Well-earned in this case!

  33. Ernesto

    RPG

    RPG detonates itself after being in flight for about 700 meters. Shooting RPG in the air creates nice orange fireball in the sky.

    1. David Eddleman

      And...

      Even if it doesn't, it's designed to kill tanks, not people. Shaped-charge + copper disc means a precise hit. Despite what you see in movies and video games, the standard AT warhead on an RPG-7 has a very limited blast range. Now, the OG-7V warhead, which is a long tube designed to fragment and spray shrapnel on the other hand...

  34. Sorry that handle is already taken. Silver badge

    RPGs fired up

    The classic RPG-7, the one that everyone thinks of when someone says "RPG", typically has a timed fuze on it to ensure it goes off even if it misses its target. Therefore, it's not coming back to earth, at least not in one large piece.

  35. Cody

    Health and Safety in the EU

    This is one of many cultural and religious practices that the EU Health and Safety organizations, not to mention the Human Rights organizations, might have a little trouble with. Do we all get to shoot automatic weapons into the air at our small celebrations? Or do none of us? Do we all get to carry weapons? Or none of us? And what about the question of honour? Do we all get to kill our female relatives if they engage in unseemly and immodest behaviour? Or do none of us? Shall we see stoning for adultery in English town squares on a Saturday afternoon? Or is the practice going to be banned throughout Turkey?

    The curious are looking forward eagerly to Turkey's entrance into the EU, because we really want to see how its going to go.

  36. RichardB

    What a coincidence...

    Just this morning reading Wellington - Pillar of State, on the way to Waterloo, I came across the following: (describing events on the march to France following the battle for which the station was named)

    "One Netherlands colonel ordered a feu de joie. The shots astonished even Wellington who foresaw trouble rather than joy on the march and thought his army had fallen into an ambush"

  37. Anonymous Coward
    Paris Hilton

    Idiots, keep them out of the EU

    The fact that they still pratice such stupid traditions goes to show how backwards these people are.

  38. Anonymous Coward
    Alert

    @ Mips

    Only one of those words is an adjective..!

  39. Graham Bartlett

    "Freak tragedy"

    Not sure it's a "freak tragedy" in the sense of "happens rarely and unexpectedly". The same article says it happens reasonably often.

    Perhaps a "freak tragedy" in the sense of "happened to a freak". Given the mental abilities of those who spray bullets into the air as a way of celebrating, this is probably a lot closer to the target. Unlike the groom. (Sorry.)

  40. Boggy Bumblebee
    FAIL

    I can't believe...

    That no-one has made the obligatory "shotgun-wedding" comment.

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