On Mon, 15 Dec 2003 14:43:10 GMT, Don Bruder wrote:

I've long since forgotten what the exact number for "terminal velocity"
is (120-ish MPH, isn't it?)

That's for people with their arms out. Over 200mph for people with
their arms folded back.

Bullets are aerodynamic, but only when pointed forwards. They're also
only barely stable (excess stability requires drag), so they're
unlikely to re-orient themselves correctly after first starting to
tumble. Some figures claim around 400mph for an oriented rifle
bullet, but a mere 150mph for one that's tumbling.

It is possible to go supersonic in free-fall - the WW2 Grand Slam bomb
was designed to do just that (and caused a lot of aerodynamic
headaches for trying to).

As casualties have already been reported from the celebratory firing,
the question is a little academic.