Sniper tells of long-shot success(1/2 mile shot in the chest)

http://www.timesonline.co.uk ^ | 4-06-03 | OXENinFLA

[OXENinFLA]

Sniper tells of long-shot success From Nick Parker with the Royal Marines in southern Iraq

A BRITISH sniper told yesterday how he killed an Iraqi gunman from more than half a mile. Corporal Matt Hughes, 28, a Royal Marines marksman, was ordered to “take out” an Iraqi holding back a vital advance during a fierce gale. He pulled off an incredible feat of marksmanship by gauging perfectly the wind speed to bend the bullet to its target. The 7.62 calibre round from his L96 sniper rifle curved 56ft in the air before striking its target in the chest, killing him instantly.

Next to him, another Royal Marines sniper killed a second Iraqi at exactly the same moment.

Corporal Hughes, of the Marines’ spearhead brigade patrol troop, said yesterday: “It was a bit like David Beckham taking a free kick. I knew I only had one shot and had to get the angle exactly right. It was hot and the wind was blowing strongly from left to right as we crept up to a vantage point about 860 metres from the target.

“I saw I had a clear shot at my man — he was in what he thought was a secure position, but his head and chest were exposed. He was still wearing his green Iraqi uniform and was holding the rifle he’d been using to shoot at Marines.

“My training then took over and I got myself quickly, but calmly, into the perfect sniping position. We follow a set pattern, placing parts of our bodies in the optimum position, starting with the left hand followed by the elbow, legs, right hand and cheek.”

His sniping partner fixed a separate sight on the target, then the pair calculated the bullet’s trajectory by studying the movement of heat haze and dust across the arid desert landscape.

“I was concentrating so hard that I didn’t have time to think about him as a person or the fact that I was about to kill him. He was just a distant shape magnified ten times in a telescopic lens. He was a target — the enemy.”

[PhilDragoo]

[PhilDragoo]

Suppressed.

[TexasRepublic]

Billy Dixon (Adobe Walls) bump!

[PhilDragoo]

L96A1 Sniper Rifle

Manufactured by Accuracy International in Portsmouth, the L96A1 is the British forces' standard 7.62mm sniper rifle, used by snipers of the Royal Marines, infantry units, and special forces.

A bolt-action single-shot weapon, it is normally fitted with a 6x or 10x telescopic sight, and in the hands of a trained sniper can kill at ranges in excess of 1,000m.

The weapon's stock is made from high-impact plastic, fitted to an aluminium frame to which the barrel is fixed. This does away with traditional methods of fixing and bedding the action into the stock, and makes maintenance a good deal easier than with earlier, wood-stocked rifles.

The L96A1 Weights 6.5kg and measures 1.15m long. The barrel is 655mm, and is fed by a 1-round box magazine. Muzzle velocity is 840m/sec with special grade 7.62mm NATO ammunition.

[Beck_isright]

"that is incredible"

No. It's called being a professional. Knowing your weapon. We are killing Iraqis at 1000 yards plus everyday now in Northern Iraq with .50 cal rifles. The Iraqi dictatorship is over. Now, like in 1945, the clean up begins. Bless and pray for our boys and those of our allies, especially the Brits. They are our blood brothers. It you don't understand what that means, ask a British vet. GSTQ & SF

V

[spodefly]

Here is what I come up with, making certain assumptions ... maybe 56' isn't too far off the mark (so to speak) assuming 40mph 90 degree crosswind:

Sight in Distance, yds: 200 Shooting Angle, °: 0
Cross Wind Velocity, mph: 40 Cross Wind Angle, °: 90
Site Height, in: 1.5 Temperature, °C: 75
Barometer, mm Hg: 29.55 Elevation Above Sea Level, ft: 300
Point Blank Diameter, in: 10 Point Blank Range, yds: 266
Muzzle Velocity, ft/s: 2800 Ballistics Coefficient: .315
Bullet Weight, grains: 150
Distance, Time, Velocity Energy, Drop, Dist From Line Drift,
yards sec ft/s ft-lb in of Sight, in in

---

====== ====== ====== =====

---

=====
000 0.0000 2800 2611 0.00 -1.50 0.00
025 0.0271 2730 2483 -0.14 -0.18 0.24
050 0.0549 2662 2360 -0.57 0.85 0.97
075 0.0835 2595 2242 -1.31 1.57 2.20
100 0.1128 2529 2129 -2.37 1.97 3.95
125 0.1428 2464 2021 -3.76 2.04 6.22
150 0.1736 2399 1917 -5.51 1.74 9.08
175 0.2053 2336 1816 -7.64 1.07 12.53
200 0.2379 2273 1721 -10.17 0.00 16.59
225 0.2713 2212 1629 -13.12 -1.49 21.28
250 0.3057 2151 1541 -16.51 -3.42 26.63
275 0.3410 2092 1457 -20.37 -5.82 32.67
300 0.3774 2033 1377 -24.72 -8.72 39.41
325 0.4148 1976 1300 -29.60 -12.14 46.90
350 0.4533 1920 1227 -35.03 -16.11 55.15
375 0.4930 1864 1157 -41.06 -20.67 64.21
400 0.5338 1810 1091 -47.70 -25.86 74.10
425 0.5759 1756 1027 -55.01 -31.71 84.86
450 0.6193 1704 0966 -63.02 -38.26 96.53
475 0.6640 1652 0909 -71.77 -45.55 109.15
500 0.7101 1603 0855 -81.32 -53.65 122.74
525 0.7576 1555 0805 -91.72 -62.59 137.33
550 0.8066 1508 0757 -103.02 -72.42 152.96
575 0.8571 1463 0713 -115.27 -83.22 169.66
600 0.9091 1419 0671 -128.54 -95.03 187.45
625 0.9627 1377 0631 -142.86 -107.89 206.31
650 1.0180 1336 0595 -158.35 -121.92 226.39
675 1.0749 1298 0561 -175.06 -137.17 247.62
700 1.1335 1262 0531 -193.07 -153.73 270.00
725 1.1938 1228 0503 -212.46 -171.65 293.55
750 1.2556 1196 0476 -233.29 -191.02 318.25
775 1.3192 1166 0453 -255.65 -211.92 344.11
800 1.3842 1139 0432 -279.63 -234.45 371.08

[RANGERAIRBORNE]

I went back and did a little vector diagram on an envelope, and it is possible after all (the wind would have to be around 50-60 mph, and there would have to be a lot of correction for bullet shape and initial velocity, which I assumed to be about 3200 fps). I would like to try this shot myself!

I am chastened.

[PhilDragoo]

Read this 1991 British book and found this review:

Shadow Over Babylon

David Mason

I was first attracted to this book because of two reasons: first, the plot, and second, the "star" weapon. Both were of great interest to me - the story is about a plan to assassinate everybody's favorite bad guy, Saddam Hussein, and the rifle selected is the Super Magnum from Accuracy International, chambered in .338 Lapua Magnum, a cartridge intended to fill the gap between .30-caliber and .50-caliber sniper ammunition. The .338 Lapua Magnum is currently the preferred round for snipers in the Finnish military, as a point of information.

A nice bonus, I thought, was that Mason included the ballistic tables for .338 Lapua Magnum ammunition (using 250-grain bullets) at the end of the book. Maybe such things bore you but, if you're a fan of Sniper Country, I just have to believe that you probably have more than just a passing interest in ballistics. Personally, I enjoy reading ballistic tables, though I realize such material doesn't fascinate other readers in the same way it does me.

Just for your information, Mason is pretty well qualified to write this book. His military career includes service with the Welsh Guards as well as the Sultan of Oman's Army in southern Arabia. While with the latter, he was twice awarded the Sultan's Bravery Medal for his actions in two separate incidents. He was trained to be a sniper and is quite capable with both rifles and handguns. He is also well-versed in Arabic, French, and German.

[T'wit]

Did we get the sniper's name? I'll bet it was Quigley :-)

[punster]

Sniping has one really big advantage: It is very selective.

It does seem far more humane to selectively kill the leadership of a group of enemy soldiers than to just kill the whole bunch in wholesale slaughter.

[Happy2BMe]

"White Feather" would be proud.

[Happy2BMe]

Do these guys have a range calculator they plug windage and other factors into viewable inside their scopes?

[Happy2BMe]

" We are killing Iraqis at 1000 yards plus everyday now in Northern Iraq with .50 cal rifles."

Isn't this referred to as "misting?"

I recall it being common during Desert Storm (using the .50 cal at long rang).

[ItisaReligionofPeace]

you better check out post #20.

[RANGERAIRBORNE]

Thanks for the info- I do practically nothing but pistol shooting these days, and never in crosswinds of 40 knots or better (it blows the targets away...)
If I had thought about it for a little longer before posting, I would have remembered that the early testing of long-range rifles in the 1880's involved HUGE targets at extreme ranges, so as to register hits despite lateral drift and vertical drops of many feet.
Again, I was thinking pistol, 50 yards or less, negligible horizontal wind forces.
At least I learned something on this thread!!

[ItisaReligionofPeace]

Whoops, I see you already saw it.

[green team 1999]

got to be inches.

[mel]

Well, it is pretty incredible to me considering I am not that good a shot. And i doubt that I could ever attain that type of precision.

[Robert Drobot]

Thanks for this thread. Thanks to our British brethren for training their men well.

[spodefly]

The more I have looked into this the more impressed I am. I am a pretty handy shot in the 200 to 300 yard range with my 7mm Rem Mag, zeroed in for 200 yards. No deer shall escape ... ever. In fact, I can consistently hit within a couple of inches at 300 yards, even on windy days, doing the minor calcs necessary at that range. Even the 500 yard range w/ a .223 didn't seem too difficult for me, and that was without a scope.

But it is a whole new ball game when you get out in the 800+ yard ranges ... figuring a bullet drop of several feet, and lateral movement beyond a few feet is something I have no experience with. Becoming more impressed as I dig into the ballsitics of this shot.

Good shot! (Ya limey bastage ... ;)