The deadliest Sniper in US history

[Girl from Celebes 588]

Wow...I am speechless!

Chris Kyle hesitated the first time he killed a person at long range with a rifle. It was a woman who was about to attack a group of US Marines with a hand grenade.

The US Navy SEAL was overlooking an Iraqi town from a shabby building as US forces were still invading the country, before Saddam Hussein had been ousted. The Marines didn't see the woman coming.

'Take a shot,' Mr Kyle's chief told him.

Mr Kyle stammered: 'But...'

'Shoot!' the chief told him again.

Making the shot: Chris Kyle takes aim from on top of an overturned crib during the Second Battle of Fallujah

Four tours: During his time in Iraq, he gained infamy among the insurgents, who nicknamed him 'the Devil of Ramadi' and put a $20,000 price on his head

When Mr Kyle finally pulled the trigger, the woman dropped the grenade. He shot her again as it exploded.

But after four deployments to Iraq, he learned to stop hesitating and start shooting straight.

With 255 kills, 160 of them officially confirmed by the Pentagon, the retired Navy Seal sniper is the deadliest marksman in US military history.

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During the Second Battle of Fallujah alone, when US Marines fought running battles in the streets with several thousand insurgents, he killed 40 people.

His feat blows away the previous American record of 109, set by Army Staff Sgt. Adelbert F. Waldron during the Vietnam war.

Carlos Hathcock, the famed Marine sniper who was the subject of the book 'One Shot, One Kill,' killed 93 people as a long-range sniper in Vietnam.

Telling his story: Mr Kyle (left) has just written a book about his experiences in Iraq called 'American Sniper.' It will hit bookshelves Tuesday

Despite the incredible number, Mr Kyle is still far from being the deadliest marksman in the world. That distinction goes to Simo Häyhä, a Finnish soldier who killed 542 Soviet soldiers during World War II.

Brush up on your sniper lore

Chris Kyle's 255 kills set a record among American marksman and his 2,100-yard shot is unbelievable. But snipers around the world have surpassed him in other ways.

• The most kills: Simo Häyhä, a Finnish sniper, holds the record with 542 Soviet soldiers shot during the Russian invasion of Finland in World War II. Numerous Soviet snipers killed more than 400 soldiers while fighting the Germans.
  
• Longest shot: Corporal of Horse Craig Harrison, a British marksman, killed two Taliban machine gunners in Afghanistan in 2009 from 2,700 yards with a .338 Lapua Magnum rifle.
• Most innovative: Legendary US Marine sniper Carlos Hathcock made a 2,000-yard shot in 1967 during the Vietnam War with a .50-caliber Browning machine gun fitted with a scope mount of Mr Hathcock's own design. It was a record that stood for 35 years.
  
• Previous record: Adelbert F. Waldron, a US Army marksman in the Vietnam War, held the previous American record with 109 kills. Mr Hathcock had 93 kills.

Mr Kyle is a cowboy from Odessa, Texas, who was a professional bronco rodeo rider before he joined the Navy. He grew up hunting deer and pheasant with a rifle and a shotgun his dad bought him.

He never realized he was a good shot until he joined the Navy and got into the prestigious SEAL special operations unit.

For his deadly track record as a marksman during his deployment to Ramadi, the insurgents named him 'Al-Shaitan Ramad' -- the Devil of Rahmadi -- and put a $20,000 bounty on his head.

'I thought to myself, "Oh, hell yeah!" It was an honor,' he told Texas Monthly magazine when Army intelligence told him about his infamy.

But his Navy SEAL companions gave him a different name 'the Legend.'

His most legendary shot came outside Sadr City in 2008 when he spotted an insurgent with a rocket launcher near an Army convoy -- 2,100 yards away.

At that distance, 1.2 miles, he fired a shot from his .338 Lapua Magnum rifle. It struck home, knocking the man over dead.

'God blew that bullet and hit him,' Mr Kyle told the New York Post.

Mr Kyle's preferred weapon, though, was a custom-built bolt action rifle with a powerful scope. It was chambered in .300 Winchester Magnum, a cartridge originally developed for hunting North American big game.

However, Mr Kyle said he has found a new use for it -- making long range, highly accurate shots.

'I could hit a target from 1,800 yards, and it would shoot like a laser,' he told Texas Monthly.

Long shot: Mr Kyle poses here with the rifle, a .338 Lapua Magnum, he used to kill an insurgent from 2,100 yards away outside Sadr City

Mr Kyle, who retired from the Navy after 10 years of service, is telling his remarkable story as a deadly marksman in his new book, 'American Sniper,' which hits shelves Tuesday.

For his valor, he received three Silver Stars and five Bronze Stars with Valor, according to his book publisher, Harper Collins.

Additionally, he was shot twice and was in six separate IED explosions as his unit, Charlie company of SEAL Team Three, saw significant combat across the country.

The action was enough that the members of the unit adopted the white skull of the gun-wielding comic book vigilante The Punisher.

They painted the symbol on their body armor, their vehicles and even their weapons.

Despite the astonishing number of people he has shot, Mr Kyle says he has never second-guessed himself since the first time he had to pull the trigger on the grenade-wielding woman in Iraq.

For him, the enemy is a 'savage,' he told the Post.

'It was my duty to shoot the enemy, and I don't regret it. My regrets are for the people I couldn't save: Marines, soldiers, buddies. I'm not naive, and I don't romanticize war. The worst moments of my life have come as a SEAL. But I can stand before God with a clear conscience about doing my job,' he told Texas Monthly.

He left the service in 2009, deciding not to enlist in order to 'save his marriage' he told his publisher.

Mr Kyle has two children and lives in Dallas.

Since leaving the Navy, he has started his own military contracting firm, Craft International. It provides military and law enforcement sniper training, as well as private security and protection.

Read more: http://www.dailymail...l#ixzz1iPRhtFvD

[luckytxn 2,264]

He is a great American. The best part is he retired to save his marriage.

[ria_s 0]

He is a great American. The best part is he retired to save his marriage.

Maybe so but is that really a record you want to hold?

[Girl from Celebes 588]

He is a great American. The best part is he retired to save his marriage.

That's the best part. But I am still curious though how come he could managed to get range about almost 2 kilometers? - I had to converted into kilometer the 2,100 -yard to understand more since we use metric in Indonesia-.

[kytwell 179]

Nice, I just ordered the book. $15.64 on Amazon, I'll support him and his family.

[Girl from Celebes 588]

Nice, I just ordered the book. $15.64 on Amazon, I'll support him and his family.

Yeah, I wanted the book as well. I'm going to ask my fiance to buy for us since I can't trust Indonesian postal mail to delivered my order if I buy online. I hope he can find at local bookstore.

Edited January 3, 2012 by Girl from Celebes

[slim 1,525]

If any of you are interested in shooting and/or rifle marksmanship, you should check out the Appleseed Project. We instruct folks how to pick up any rack-grade rifle, surplus ball ammunition, and make hits on man-sized targets at 500 yards. Additionally, we tell the story of the events of Apr. 19th, 1775 and the role marksmanship played in the founding of our country.

Check out Appleseed. You will become a better shooter if you go.

how come he could managed to get range about almost 2 kilometers

The big rifles those guys shoot will propel the bullet almost two miles. If they understand the trajectory of the bullet and the effects of things like wind, temperature, humidity - even the spin of the earth - they can compensate for such things and aim in the right place so the bullet hits where they want it to.

At extreme distances there's as much "art" in it as "science." And as any long distance shooter will tell you, "luck" plays a lot into it too. Reading the quote from the shooter himself, "God blew that bullet."

I'm going to ask my fiance to buy for us

As the poster above said, Amazon is the way to go. They'll deliver it right to his house.

[luckytxn 2,264]

If any of you are interested in shooting and/or rifle marksmanship, you should check out the Appleseed Project. We instruct folks how to pick up any rack-grade rifle, surplus ball ammunition, and make hits on man-sized targets at 500 yards. Additionally, we tell the story of the events of Apr. 19th, 1775 and the role marksmanship played in the founding of our country.

Check out Appleseed. You will become a better shooter if you go.

The big rifles those guys shoot will propel the bullet almost two miles. If they understand the trajectory of the bullet and the effects of things like wind, temperature, humidity - even the spin of the earth - they can compensate for such things and aim in the right place so the bullet hits where they want it to.

At extreme distances there's as much "art" in it as "science." And as any long distance shooter will tell you, "luck" plays a lot into it too. Reading the quote from the shooter himself, "God blew that bullet."

As the poster above said, Amazon is the way to go. They'll deliver it right to his house.

It is a lot to do with the scopes.Yes there are of course the trajectories and effects the environment has on the shot but if one can see the target then one should be able to shoot it.

[Girl from Celebes 588]

If any of you are interested in shooting and/or rifle marksmanship, you should check out the Appleseed Project. We instruct folks how to pick up any rack-grade rifle, surplus ball ammunition, and make hits on man-sized targets at 500 yards. Additionally, we tell the story of the events of Apr. 19th, 1775 and the role marksmanship played in the founding of our country.

Check out Appleseed. You will become a better shooter if you go.

The big rifles those guys shoot will propel the bullet almost two miles. If they understand the trajectory of the bullet and the effects of things like wind, temperature, humidity - even the spin of the earth - they can compensate for such things and aim in the right place so the bullet hits where they want it to.

At extreme distances there's as much "art" in it as "science." And as any long distance shooter will tell you, "luck" plays a lot into it too. Reading the quote from the shooter himself, "God blew that bullet."

As the poster above said, Amazon is the way to go. They'll deliver it right to his house.

I don't think can ever managed to shoot anything or just pick up the gun- in my country, people are not allow to carry a gun unless they are in military or after passed the strict regulations which is only a few people did it- I might be change my mind later, though. For now, I am just curious about his philosophy and made him became the deadliest sniper in US history. Thank you for suggestion, I would going to buy the book by online and delivered it to his apartment.

[slim 1,525]

It is a lot to do with the scopes.Yes there are of course the trajectories and effects the environment has on the shot but if one can see the target then one should be able to shoot it.

I wish that were true! The military has so much in the way of optics yet so little in the way of rifle marksmanship at long distances.

A big part of the problem is the misconception that it's "hard" to shoot at long distances. Many of our troops lack the capability (or the confidence) to make hits past 300 yards with their M-4s. They just don't think it's possible. Past 600, even fewer have the capability to do so. Once you cross that distance and get into distances such as those required in Afghanistan (800+) equipment, as much as know-how, starts to come into play.

Our small arms doctrine is rapidly changing from "spray and pray" to precision shots at distance. We're becoming Riflemen once again!

I don't think can ever managed to shoot anything or just pick up the gun- in my country, people are not allow to carry a gun unless they are in military or after passed the strict regulations which is only a few people did it- I might be change my mind later, though.

In the US, you'll be able to do so.

We have folks in this country who do not think we should be able to own arms. However, it's plainly spelled out in our constitution that we have the right to do so. We could lose that right if people stop exercising it but the recent numbers of guns sold in the US (most in history) are beginning to show that people still want their gun rights.

I encourage you to exercise your rights when you get here. As a LPR you'll be able to own firearms and participate in the shooting sports. Do so!

For now, I am just curious about his philosophy and made him became the deadliest sniper in US history.

It seems he was "just trying to do his job." By shooting those people, he was saving his fellow countrymen and the lives of anyone who woudl've been blown up by the bombs the people he shot were attempting to place.

Thank you for suggestion, I would going to buy the book by online and delivered it to his apartment.

Another option would be to check it out of the library once you get here. They'll probably have a copy available.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Buy Ammo.

[Girl from Celebes 588]

Another option would be to check it out of the library once you get here. They'll probably have a copy available.

He'll going to visit me again very soon. So, my guess, I'm just buy the book by online, deliver to his apartment, and bring it to me. I really wanted to read it. Can't hardly wait.

Edited January 3, 2012 by Girl from Celebes

[Obama 2012 1,714]

I could out-snipe him any day.....

in Battlefield 3

[Ban Hammer 13,333]

Buy Ammo.

we'll make a republican outta you yet!

[slim 1,525]

in Battlefield 3

I run into a lot of those guys at the gun show. They're "experts" on the video games but once we get out to the range, they're lost. They end up getting the basic skills and some of them become pretty proficient marksmen. But then we have to take into account these mall ninjas and keyboard commandos have never lifted a 50lb pack or ran a mile in full combat loadout. When I aske them how they're going to carry their rocket launcher AND their minigun, most of them just look at me funny. I say, "Dude, I'd be shocked if you could carry your ammo and water, let alone your weapons, without having a heart attack." They run off at the mouf about how they can do this and that but I just chuckle. "Show me."

I meet a lot of "bad@$$es" but very seldom do I meet someone capable of field ops.