Wiechlice Airbase Shooting Range – Exclusive presentation of the facility and match report from the IPSC Level III Matches 2023 sponsored by Walther and Hera Arms

The Airbase Shooting Range is located in Wiechlice in Poland – but where is it actually? The small town of Wiechlice, with a population of around 2,000, is located just 130 kilometers from Bautzen, just over the German border. A short drive across a former aircraft taxiway quickly brings us to the range. The outdoor shooting range includes over 40 firing lines from 25 m to 300 m, two 360-degree firing platforms and over 16 long range shooting lanes up to 1,200 m. 

Thanks to the variety of different training possibilities and an additional bunker system, the area also offers ideal conditions for LE/military users. The facility itself currently has mobile sanitary facilities (fixed ones are to come in the course of this year), a barbecue area, as well as enough open spaces where you can pitch your tent or camp with your mobile home, so that short distances are guaranteed for events lasting several days. And if camping isn't for you – don't worry: there are also plenty of hotels and restaurants in the immediate vicinity. The really extensive shooting range is divided into different areas, some of which are color-coded, for better orientation. 

Site plan: the Wiechlice airbase shooting range, Poland, is divided into four areas

In total there are four areas: (1) "Long Range" area, (2) "Sand" area, (3) "Green" area and (4) "Blue" area. In the context of this year's IPSC competition, we were mainly in the "Blue" area and although the match offered a whopping 16 stages, there was also the opportunity to take advantage of various unused shooting ranges for training. An opportunity we did not miss of course and so we used the whole Saturday for a private training on one of the rear ranges. What could be better than starting such a match well warmed up?, so to speak. In addition, the prices for renting a shooting area on site are very reasonable. For example, a 30 m x 40 m shooting stand costs only 196.50 euros per day. And enthusiasts of the currently booming long-range shooting may be pleased about daily prices of 184.50 euro per person.

But now we come to this year's Airbase Open Handgun and PCC matches: Emilia Kabatek as the driving force behind the overall project as well as match director at this event delivered a brilliant performance here, together with her Rangemasters Markus Pack and Göksel Böttcher, Quartermaster Alexander Fleischer and Stats Director Michal Koronkiewicz Kicia. There is no other way to sum it up. The match was a complete success, which is proven by the countless enthusiastic shooters' faces into which the organization team as well as the other helpers were able to look in the early Sunday evening. Before we go into the results, here is some information about the sponsors and the match itself.

The main sponsors of the Airbase Open Wiechlice 2023 were Hera Arms at the PCC Match and Walther at the Handgun Match.

Hera Arms is a manufacturer of sporting and hunting rifles and accessories based in Lower Franconia, Germany. The core products of the innovative firearms manufacturer include AR15 and AR10-based rifles for the civilian market. More than 80% of the production takes place directly in the company's own plant in Triefenstein, Bavaria. Handguards, pistol stocks, rail systems, upper and lower receivers are manufactured there. The company's own polymer products are manufactured on over 36 active injection molds. Just earlier this year, the company introduced the new Hera H6, which we were also able to examine on site in Wiechlice. Also at Wiechlice, Hera Arms did not miss the opportunity to bring its off-road vehicle. Some of the participants – including us – were lucky enough to take the off-roader for a ride. Hera Arms had not only great guns in their luggage, but also products from Vortex and ERATAC. As a generous sponsor, Hera Arms of course also contributed fantastic prizes to the raffle every day, such as rifle or pistol accessories.

As the main sponsor of the pistol match, Ulm-based Carl Walther once again promoted the IPSC sport. The gun manufacturer is known for its high-quality sporting and law enforcement/military weapons. Over the weekend, all participants were able to see the current product range for themselves. On a test shooting range, each gun model could be test fired. This also included, for example, the Walther PDP F-Series pistols recently described here at all4shooters. This made one or the other lady's heart beat faster and contributed to one or the other purchase decision. Walther also generously put a pistol up for raffle every day and was able to look at happy raffle winners.

In addition to the main sponsors, other exhibitors were also on site. MAK, for example. At the Airbase Match in Poland, the participants and visitors could be impressed with the advantages of the brand-new MAKtrigger DRS, a drop-in trigger for AR models. Of course, one of the prizes in the daily raffle was a product donated by MAK. Riflecx, a manufacturer of gun care products, offered a free cleaning service every day. Dirty guns were thus a thing of the past.

You can find out in the following lines what the match was all about. In view of such events, it is fair to say that the outdoor season has gradually picked up full speed and as great as competitions on open-air facilities are anyway, they are simply even more fun when the weather is nice. Unfortunately, the weather gods were not kind to the organizers for the entire match weekend. Those who competed on Friday could still wear shorts. For the participants at the weekend, however, rubber boots and rain jackets were more in demand. But well... as I said, that's just part and parcel of outdoor events. In addition, the organizers did not skimp on the supplies on the shooting range and thus ensured a good mood for the participants despite the mixed weather. In addition to fresh fruit, dounuts and cakes, tea and coffee were offered at moderate prices on all event days – lunch was even included in the entry fee. 

As mentioned above, the match consisted of a handgun section and a PCC section, with over 200 competitors from Germany, Poland, Austria, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the Czech Republic competing for the coveted President's Medal (for the top placing individuals in a Level III match). A further 93 competitors from Germany, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Poland and even Ukraine took up their Pistol Caliber Carbine that weekend. In total, over 90,800 rounds were fired into the bullet traps. During the match, absolutely all IPSC skills were demanded from the shooters. International IPSC elements were also used here in Poland. For example, shooters had to pay attention to changed safety angles, which were indicated by corresponding flags, or they had to start sitting in a car. Tricky stage setups also demanded a good memory from the participants. Shooters have time to memorize the routes during the so-called walkthrough. Nevertheless, the one or other complex sequence can sometimes lead to a position being forgotten or approached incorrectly. Well... "after the beep everything is different". A special highlight for the participants was certainly the famous 360-degree stage, where – as the name suggests – targets had to be hit in every conceivable direction. Such a stage places particularly high demands on the range officers deployed, and once again the father and son team of Max and Oliver Huber led all the participants through this highly demanding exercise with aplomb and, above all, safely.

Before we look at the results of the Pistol Carbine Match, let's first take a look at the results of the Handgun part: in the Production Optics Division, a total of 59 shooters went hunting for medals. The Pole Piotr Sienkiewicz prevailed. He was closely followed by our all4shooters teammate Marijan Loch. The podium was completed by Marcin Galazka from Poland. 

A total of 55 shooters competed in the Production Division. Alexander Fleischer was able to achieve first place there despite the double burden as Quartermaster and RO. Hats off for this balancing act. Second place went to the Czech Michael Stryc, and Maciej Wisniewski from Poland followed in third place.

51 participants took up the Standard guns. Martin Krejci from the Czech Republic won the popular President's Medal. Poland's Bartosz Szczesny took second place and Germany's Vitalij Melehov completed the podium. 

In the Open Division, only 30 shooters competed in total. Marcin Tausiewicz from Poland scored the first place, followed by Marek Neumann from Czech Republic and Marcin Wojcieszek from Poland.

In the PCC match, Vitaly Yakutik prevailed, securing first place. Thomas Winter followed him on the 2nd place of the podium and Piotr Niewiadomski scored the third place.

All other results can be found in the tables attached below or as usual in the match calendar on ipscmatch.com.

+++ By the way: the date for the Airbase Open in Wiechlice 2024 has already been set, so if you also want to enjoy this competition in IPSC pure culture including a spectacular 360-degree stage, you should make a note of the weekend from May 31 to June 2, 2024 +++

Airbase Open Wiechlice 2023: all top 5 placings 

Here's more info on the Wiechlice Air Base Shooting Range in Poland.