Which role is tasked with ensuring that the range exercise follows all safety protocols and regulations?

The role tasked with ensuring that the range exercise follows all safety protocols and regulations is the Range Safety Officer (RSO). The RSO is responsible for maintaining a safe firing environment, overseeing all safety measures on the range, and ensuring that all participants adhere to established guidelines and procedures. This includes conducting safety briefings, monitoring the range during firing exercises, and intervening when unsafe behavior is observed. The RSO’s primary focus is to prevent accidents and ensure that all safety equipment and protocols are utilized properly.

While other roles, such as the RCO (Range Control Officer) and Commanding Officer, may have responsibilities that include overall management and operational oversight, the specific duty of enforcing safety measures and protocols during live-fire exercises falls directly under the RSO’s purview. This specialized focus on safety makes the RSO a critical component of range operations.