At first, I was laughing. Then, I thought, maybe you have a citation, a report or some essay where someone did duplicate the shot. Where is that source? I would like to read it. I did a quick search and nothing concrete showed up.
- Thread starter 7.62willdo
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Did you try snopes?
Awesome, thanks. I just wanted to see it done.
No, I did not.
I am going to deep dive this a little more. What were the conditions of Hathcock's original shot. What kind of optic did the enemy have?
Was the one used in this demonstration a reasonable facsimile of it? Or an historically accurate duplicate? This does look like a modern LPVO with only two glasses in it.
The original distance. And what distance was this test shot fired?
Are those conditions repeatable?
I had watched an interview with a canadian sniper who had made the longest kill shot at the time. And he had to walk it in. Even so, that shot had some luck and luck is not always repeatable.
But we did… Not many, but a few in special units; usually attached to Raven teams. One of the teams in my sister squadron when I was in Europe …from the 86th SFS (86th CRG) … placed top 10 (I think) in one of the Army‘s invitational competitions back in the mid-90s. Can’t recall the exact year, but will see if I can dig it up.
After a few searches, I found this possible source of scopes for rifles used by the NVA. If I read it correctly, these were similar in design to Zeiss scopes.
So far, even "official" histories are general in what rifles were used by the NVA. Pretty much what they could get their hands on, including optics. So, these are different than the fixed short optic used in tests. And I have seen one other test of this shot using a scope similar to the one used by Reichert. And on this test, it did go through the eye location but it also blew apart the scope.
Which is not a direct replication of the scopes most likely used.
One source said that this shot was made at 500 yards. Hathcock caught a glint of sunlight off the enemy's objective lens and targeted that.
So, 500 yards with 7.62X51 NATO M-80 ball ammo at no more than 1 inch front to back. That is amazing.
So far, even "official" histories are general in what rifles were used by the NVA. Pretty much what they could get their hands on, including optics. So, these are different than the fixed short optic used in tests. And I have seen one other test of this shot using a scope similar to the one used by Reichert. And on this test, it did go through the eye location but it also blew apart the scope.
Which is not a direct replication of the scopes most likely used.
One source said that this shot was made at 500 yards. Hathcock caught a glint of sunlight off the enemy's objective lens and targeted that.
So, 500 yards with 7.62X51 NATO M-80 ball ammo at no more than 1 inch front to back. That is amazing.
Was/is it a seperate AFSC or a shredout?
Just regular Sky Cop AFSCs as far as I know, but certain units send selected Airmen to accredited Army or other Services schools for additional training. For example, the unit I was ~10% Airborne qualified (I got my jump wings at the AF Academy so I personally didn’t have to go to Benning), and at any given time 1 or 2 of them were also selected for Ranger School with the Army…real deal full course, after passing the pre-qual course, of course!
My sister squadron (86SFS) was closer to 50% Airborne qualified, with at least 4 or 5 Ranger-Qualified Airmen at any given time; many of those guys also went on to become Combat Controllers, or outright went straight to AFSOC/SOCOM after an assignment with us and passing whatever unit they were joining’s selection process. Several fully qualified medics too…back then, after they graduated as Medics, we still sent them to goat school too (in a former Eastern Bloc country), don’t know if they still allow that now though; doubt it, based on what I see in the press.
They always had at least one fully trained two person sniper team in house, and usually two teams with one or two spares. We were all on 24/7 alert to deploy within 24-hours, and spent a craptaculous amount of taxpayer money on training!
4,500? It’s not so hard….just need to use the right ammo
these guys.....i am so tired of these twats. i dont even engage this shit anymore. i just walk away from ALL these twats wanting to spew their shit. thing is, the ones who saw the heaviest shit won't talk about it with anyone but their peers. so these shit stains running around running their sucks.....fuck 'em. they aint fooling anyone.
Spent a number of years at AFSOC. Was stationed at Hurlburt when the MAJCOM stood up (1990?). Rubbed elbows with the CCTs and PJs. Other than CATM, not must association with what was then SPs. So, what did you do?
Most of my career flying (tankers and cargo jets), spent 10 years in the CRGs though…stateside and in Europe. Basically the AF’s roadies… we’d go in to open bare bases, and shut them down.
An outgrowth of the old TALCE teams… more focused on bare base deployments though. We ran a lot of the emergency airfields all over Indonesia after the tsunami in ‘04 for example.
I wasn’t one of the people who jumped in, but our advance teams were the ones who parachuted into Kirkuk with the 173d Airborne Brigade (I think it was them as I recall anyway) “seizure” forces…SOF dudes were already there on the ground waiting for them though, LoL. I GAC’d up from Kuwait with the main body
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