Spray and pray

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The neutrality of this article is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page.

Spray and pray is a derisive term for firing an automatic firearm towards an enemy in long bursts, without aiming. This may be done especially when quick reaction is needed to achieve a form of suppressive fire, either when aiming proves too difficult (for example due to a moving shooting platform) or when the location of an opponent is not exactly known. This term does not apply to appropriately focused fully automatic fire, as possible for a well-trained user.

However, random automatic gunfire is likely to hit no target, and any form of uncontrolled fire should be used sparingly, due to its possibility of turning into friendly fire.

[edit] Alternatives

The preferred method for achieving effective fire is to use either single shots or controlled, aimed bursts after locating the opposing force. Many armed forces employ selective fire assault rifles such as the M16 Rifle and other small arms with a burst mode instead of, or in addition to, a fully automatic mode, to encourage soldiers to use effective fire techniques.

[edit] Other uses

• The term has been applied in video games featuring automatic weapons, usually first-person shooters, in which players fire blindly with the hope of hitting a target. The term is synonymous with spamming. Best example of this is in Counter-Strike.

• This term has also been used by defense department strategist Thomas Nichols to describe early submarine launched ballistic missiles in that they were impossible to target properly as the position of the submarine was impossible to fix precisely.

• 'Spray and pray' is also similarly applicable to a certain method of photography. It is usually a derogatory term, used to describe a photographic technique of taking a large number of pictures in the hope that at least one will be acceptable, as opposed to the technique of carefully composing each individual shot for optimum lighting, posture, and other techniques. However, in some photographic areas, notably in photography of sports or some forms of photojournalism, where posing individual photographs is not practical, spray and pray is the best method for obtaining the maximum number of acceptable images, so long as careful control of exposure and focus are maintained.

• This term may also be used to describe an approach to communication, where mass broadcasts are dispersed in hopes that everyone in the intended audience has received the message.