Australians take longest shot @ 3078 yards

[Lateo1]

Distasteful but impressive none the less

No Cookies | thetelegraph.com.au

"Two marksmen using Barrett M82A1 50 calibre rifles simultaneously fired. The bullets were six seconds in the air. One killed the Taliban commander. It is not known for certain which sniper fired the fatal shot.

While there have been no triumphant press releases, in the tight global Special Forces sniper community the shot is much discussed, because it seems certain to be a world record.

As the bullet yawed through the thin air on a windless morning, GPS aids measured the distance at 2815m. That amounts to 2 1/2 times the length of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The targeted Taliban would not have heard the gunfire.

The previous world record achieved by British Corporal Craig Harrison occurred also in Helmand in November 2009. Firing from a distance of 2475m, Harrison killed two Taliban. "

 

[LanceS4803]

"Distasteful" how?
I must be missing something here.

 

[Delta4-3]

Its probably about as legit as Craig Harrison's shots...

 

[Lateo1]

"Distasteful" how?
I must be missing something here.

There's pride and satisfaction - but treating sniping as a sporting event demeans both the sniper and target alike.

 

[Lateo1]

Its probably about as legit as Craig Harrison's shots...

How come? I gather it was independently verified?

 

[Graham]

Australians take longest shot @ 3078 yards

A command-fire first round hit by one of two .50 cal bullets shot at that range from a Barrett?

One would think to ask for more details.

treating sniping as a sporting event demeans both the sniper and target alike.

I almost forgot: It's no longer permitted to demean the enemy.

 

[mkollman74]

There's pride and satisfaction - but treating sniping as a sporting event demeans both the sniper and target alike.

Not sure how you arrive at the conclusion that anyone was treating this as a sporting event... Oh, and I think killing your enemy demeans him pretty good...

 

[Delta4-3]

How come? I gather it was independently verified?

His original first hand story was absolutely ridiculous and far fetched, It was rapidly changed to be more realistic. Maybe it really did happen, I'm not one to say id didn't. But, I may his only skeptic.

 

[Unknown]

Maybe comparing longer and longer shots is is beginning to be like comparing Boone and Crockett records. I wonder if that is what Lateo1 is referring to?

 

[Lateo1]

Hadn't heard about that reference to the British shot. Will ask when I see him next

To the rest: you've your own soldiering experiences so I'll leave you to your opinions.

 

[Wintermute]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure that getting hit by a .50 BMG and being turned into an inside out rag doll is pretty demeaning to the enemy... not that it matters to him since he's dead and gone. When did we have to start being polite and respectful of our enemies?

--Wintermute

 

[Graham]

Australians take longest shot @ 3078 yards

When did we have to start being polite and respectful of our enemies?

2007, give or take.

It's now required that you are polite to them before and after you kill them.

 

[Lateo1]

I'd often beak cover to rush over and give them a cuddle

Especially those cheeky mortar teams.

 

[Graham]

Australians take longest shot @ 3078 yards

Especially those cheeky mortar teams.

With thoughts of an impending Christmas:

Here's to putting up tall trees and sending out sniper teams....

Just sayin'.

 

[Lateo1]

Well said

 

[mkollman74]

Maybe comparing longer and longer shots is is beginning to be like comparing Boone and Crockett records. I wonder if that is what Lateo1 is referring to?

I can agree with that...

 

[Victory]

I always find these longest shot things interesting. We took shots with our M107's at normal ranges, and numerous times extreme distances, and in 1 instance further than this shot. If it would have been verified, it would have been the longest confirmed shot. But as we all know, none of you know me or my team that was there that day. The shot landed miraculously in the middle of a group of BG's. 1 grabbed his gut like he was hit, they all took off, him slowly, and that was that. Did he die? No clue. Could we have confirmed it if he dropped right there? Hell no, we would have all died trying to get that far into the valley just to verify it. Confirming and making these ELR shots in Astan is almost impossible.


First and foremost is verifying. I don't know where in Astan you could be to walk that far and verify the hit, unless you shot from one side of Bagram and killed a BG on the other side. It's all mountain ridges, tops, and valleys, at least where I've been, down south not included. 90% of our long shots were taken deeper into the valleys and across them from ridge to ridge. Getting over to those points before the body was taken away, we were hit 3 or 4 more ambushes, ran out of day light, hit IED's, or ran out of water would be slim to none. You could try to have the Kiowa's fly in and do an ID, but that was slim to none on them actually finding anything. Maybe in the southern regions this is possible, but I still find it highly unlikely at these distances.

Second is the issue of actually aiming for these shots. Many times we couldn't take shots on targets in this range because we didn't have a point of aim. Elevation would be maxed, hold overs maxed, and there would be nothing but clouds to use as a aim point. The times we did have a boulder, tree, or something identifiable we would attempt to make corrections off of this, but no target is static once it is getting shot at, and it was extremely tough. This could be countered a couple of ways to increase probabilities of a first round hitting "close" but I won't discuss them here. First round hit on a man, at that distance is from what I have experienced, close to impossible. Sure, guys who go to the same range, with tons of specialized bullets, rifles, programs, weather data, and what ever else they have can make hits on large steel targets. A soldier finding out where he will be a couple of days before being there with a issued rifle, rounds, and equipment isn't making ELR shots on the first trigger pull.

Last little point, NO BG I have ever shot at or been spotting for ever hung out after an API round hit near him. I've seen BG's not realize they were being shot at with 5.56, .308 and 300 win mag before taking cover or running like mad men, but never an API.


Now all of this is just my experience with shots over 1500 to 2935 in Astan. I would need a lot of questions answered before I would believe any of these longest shot taken claims, which for some reason, are never answered.

 

[CthulhuAwakens]

No offense but, IMHO theres nothing wrong with a little friendly competition and if it helps put more tangos in the ground all the better. We score animals by size and I have WAY more respect for them than I do for the scum that were/are killing our people (both civilian and military). Chris Kyle put it best, they are savages.

Besides, those Aussies just did that dickhead a favor. He's now in hell getting buttfucked by 72 virgins.

P.S. I don't advocate taking ELR shots at game animals. The same does not hold true for Taliban…especially Taliban commanders.

 

[eli polite]

sense abu gay.. and the images of solders pissing on the body's of the dead enemy's..There's no honor in that behavior it just fuels the fire I don't think you have to be polite or respectful I think its more along the lines of don't be stupid

Yeah, I'm pretty sure that getting hit by a .50 BMG and being turned into an inside out rag doll is pretty demeaning to the enemy... not that it matters to him since he's dead and gone. When did we have to start being polite and respectful of our enemies?

--Wintermute

 

[kraigWY]

Wonder how many lives were saved by killing the Taliban commander.

I don't recall ever being called for "un-necessary roughness" in SE Asia.

 

[Papa Zero Three]

Now all of this is just my experience with shots over 1500 to 2935 in Astan. I would need a lot of questions answered before I would believe any of these longest shot taken claims, which for some reason, are never answered.

I have to agree with this. I've spent my fair share of time in that AO behind a long gun and am skeptical of ALL the "longest shots" claims that have been made to date. Not saying it didn't happen, just applying common sense,personal experience and wanting more details to substantiate the claims as they all seem to defy what many know to be possible and seem like "Hail Mary", horse shoe shoved up their ass, lucky shots more than repeatable shots.

 

[Lateo1]

Wonder how many lives were saved by killing the Taliban commander.

I don't recall ever being called for "un-necessary roughness" in SE Asia.

Kudos to you Kraig. That was a brutal & infamous conflict by anybodies standard.

I personally feel it's only been in the past 5years (to a decade) where troops have to face 24/7 instant media reporting.

I saw myself on TV in Iraq, only hours after the action had taken place.

However with the advent of YouTube and cell phone technology that time frame is now reduced to minutes - if not instantaneously

The guys fighting today need to be so savvy when it comes to public perception. A royal marine in the UK was recently jailed for killing a mortally injured Taliban - though common feeling is (that while it is clearly against the Geneva Convention) his biggest crime was inadvertently being videoed doing it!

 

[Lateo1]

I have to agree with this. I've spent my fair share of time in that AO behind a long gun and am skeptical of ALL the "longest shots" claims that have been made to date. Not saying it didn't happen, just applying common sense,personal experience and wanting more details to substantiate the claims as they all seem to defy what many know to be possible and seem like "Hail Mary", horse shoe shoved up their ass, lucky shots more than repeatable shots.

Agreed. The Media Ops teams want good news stories.... And it doesn't take much to create them.

 

[EddieNFL]

With thoughts of an impending Christmas:

Here's to putting up tall trees and sending out sniper teams....

Just sayin'.

Discussing Christmas is offensive to our esteemed opponents. If is were A&E you would be suspended.

 

[awiner]

These shots are amazing when you calculate all the variables.

 

[fdkay]

2007, give or take.

It's now required that you are polite to them before and after you kill them.

Actually, it got really bad in the first gulf war.
I remember how upset the libtards got when the airdales wrote "Happy Ramadan" and other typical slogans on the bombs they were putting on the jets before killing folks with them.

 

[MilDot1960]

The guys fighting today need to be so savvy when it comes to public perception. A royal marine in the UK was recently jailed for killing a mortally injured Taliban - though common feeling is (that while it is clearly against the Geneva Convention) his biggest crime was inadvertently being videoed doing it!

I know this burns my ass too,

What happens if they are 1600yds away and you leave them there to die,, According to these rule makers Thats OK,,,Shooting them thats OK Too,, But you cant end it if someone is fatally wounded But you can shoot them and Kill them as part of the first action,,,

I would like to send these law makers out on Patrol in the BadLands and see how they feel afterwards,
I think itys stupid that you have to shoot someone and then nurse them back to health at a cost to the Tax Payer,,

Maybe its better not to shoot any of them unless the government will supply you with am Umpire to blow a Whistle and stop the War for a minate while a judgement is made,, whats next only being allowed to shoot people between the ages of 21 and 33.

Stupid Is As Stupid Does,,

John

 

[Kilmore]

"He's not gonna make it".