Shooting on the move or moving while shooting?

To be or not to be, that is the question…or for us, it’s should I shoot on the move?

As a law enforcement trainer, I am routinely asked to incorporate shooting drills that have the officers moving.  In class, there are always students who push for that type of training especially in anything considered Advanced.  But what is shooting on the move?

Hear me out.  On a purely observational level, I see people attempt to shoot while moving (usually forward or backward due to range restriction) and the same thing happens.  Once they engage the target, their movement drops to a crawl.  Why?  So they can hit the target.  But is hitting the target more important than moving?  In any real world scenario, moving that slowly out in the open will..get you shot..repeatedly.

Again, I ask why shoot on the move?  Or is it better to move..fast, and then shoot from a stationary position behind cover.  I’ve taken plenty of courses from guys who are BTDT dudes (see my profile) and everyone of them said the same thing when I asked them this question.  “Did you ever shoot on the move?”  Their reply:  You need to move from cover to cover to get a better position across the street.  While a partner provides cover fire, you run like a bat out of hell to get across the street to the new cover.  At no time did they attempt to move slowly and try to hit targets (bad guys, tangos, you pick).

Move then shoot.

But why is shooting on the move in high demand.  I’ve taught the “moving..MOVE!” method of linear assault on steel in my classes but the average LEO will only do this once a year.  Rarely are they able to practice this in live fire.  So I tell them if they really want to get good at shooting on the move, sign up for action shooting sports (USPSA, IDPA, 3 GUN) where shooting accurate and fast on the move gets you a better time.  This is a skill you must get good at if you want to get through the stage and have a competitive time.  Yes…another benefit of competition (but it will get you killed….)  I’ll go out on a limb and say this method is far better than the standard shoot moving forward, shoot moving backward, shoot left, etc.

But, I’m back where we started with the question, should we shoot on the move?  The only place I see this as a good technique would be on an room entry where you already have forward momentum and the targets are pretty close.  Dominate the room.  You’re not going to stop.

Are there other applications that have a benefit?  Thoughts?