Posted on 11/30/2004 2:32:35 AM PST by iso
FALLUJAH, Iraq (Nov. 27, 2004) -- A U.S. Marine sniper waited patiently inside a one-story house deep within the city. Lying in the prone position for several hours, he scanned the area through his scope before he finally found the three insurgents responsible for two previous mortar attacks.
Sgt. Memo M. Sandoval, a platoon sergeant with Scout Sniper Platoon, Headquarters and Service Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, needed to positively identify the insurgents before he could take his shot.
Sandoval, 26, saw that one of the men was about to place a mortar in a mortar tube. He knew he had to make a well-aimed shot before the insurgent gunner launched the deadly round. Sandoval cleared his thoughts and slowed his breathing as he gently squeezed the trigger of his M-40A3 sniper rifle. The 7.62 mm round covered the 950 yards in a flash, slamming into the chest of the first insurgent.
"The battalion (executive officer) ordered me to 'make the mortars stop,'" said Sandoval, a native of El Paso, Texas. "I took it personally and went out specifically to stop the insurgents."
With two more insurgents still alive and ready to continue the mortar attack, Sandoval composed himself for the next shot at the assistant gunner. The last two shots took out the driver of the vehicle that carried the weapon.
"When I finally spotted them along a tree line, I realized how far they were but it was surprising how easy it was," said Sandoval.
Those four shots were the longest in Sandoval has taken since he became a scout sniper.
"It was very impressive of Sandoval to shoot from so far away and be on target with all four shots," said 1st Lt. Samuel Rosales, a platoon commander with Scout Sniper Platoon, H&S Co., 3/5.
"When you are being mortared you never know where they will land, to be able to stop them from shooting anymore felt good," said Sandoval.
He joined the Marine Corps straight out of high school in 1997 and has been with 3/5 since April. His leadership ability has reflected on the Marines around him and allowed Sandoval to accomplish his mission.
"(Sandoval) is filling a staff noncommissioned officer's billet, He is a great Marine to work with," said Rosales, 32, a native of San Clemente, Calif.
After recently reenlisting for four more years, Sandoval, who has been in Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom since September, hopes to represent the United States in the Olympics in competition shooting.
Sandoval says a fellow Marine, Staff Sgt. Jared M. Casanova, with 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, helped him improve his skills with the rifle, which has become a valuable commodity in Iraq.
"We have always been in competitions against each other, one day he would win and the next day I would win," said Sandoval. "Out here in Iraq it is a two way rifle range, with insurgents shooting at you. You have to make well aimed shots."
"When I finally spotted them along a tree line, I realized how far they were but it was surprising how easy it was," said Sandoval.
Easy?
At that range there are a lot of factors to consider – not only bullet drop, but probably at least two different wind patterns, temperature differentials, heck – maybe even the Earth’s rotation! By my calculations (SWAG), the target would have moved a considerable distance just due to rotation – something artillery tables have long accounted for – and he did it in his head
Even then the french were pond scum boot lickin slugs.
Self ping for later comment.
ping
great post.
i love reading about our sniper accomplishments.
Do not
Trifle
With Marine
With rifle
FALLUJAH SHAVE
Leni
The greatest sniper in modern warfare was a Finnish farmer named Simo Häyhä who fought in the three month Winter War and recorded 505 kills.
On November 30, 1939, the Russian communist dictator Stalin ordered a massive invasion of Finland with 1,500,000 troops in what became known by the Finns as The Winter War. The Russians lost 1,000,000 men, while the Finns lost 25,000 men. Their fighting skill and excellent marksmanship decimated their enemy, as the Finnish soldier killed 40 Russians for every Finn who died on the battlefield.
A Russian general was quoted as saying, “We gained 22,000 miles of new territory. Just enough to bury our dead.”
Included in this telling of the tough Finnish fighters is Häyhä who was a member of the “suojeluskunta,” the Finnish equivalent of the National Guard or Militia, established for the country’s protection after Finland had gained independence from Russia on Dec. 6th, 1917.
After the Russians invaded, Häyhä signed on as a sniper.
Working in temperatures between -20 to -40 Celsius, and dressed completely in a white camouflage suit, Häyhä killed at least 505 Red Army soldiers by sniping them one by one.
Häyhä plied his deadly trade and marksmanship with iron sights, at ranges in excess of 600 yards.
Häyhä used a Mosin-Nagant M28 rifle because it suited his small frame (5 ft). He preferred to use iron sights rather than telescopic sights to present less of a target (sun reflecting from lenses gave the position away, and the sniper must raise their head higher with telescopic sights).
Häyhä's equipment for a day in the field was his warm winter uniform, white snowsuit, large mitts, 50 to 60 rounds of ammo, rifle, knife, a few hand-grenades, and some dry food and sugar cubes.
Besides his sniper kills, Häyhä is known to have made well over two hundred kills with a machine gun, a weapon he was very fond of. All Häyhä's kills were accomplished within three months, prior to his injuries caused by an enemy bullet.
Häyhä, at age 93 in 1999, when asked how he had become such a good shot, gave a short answer: “Practice.”
You switched to the M-14 from the M-1 in 1963? Was this in a military application? I'm too young to have first hand knowledge of this, so I'm just curious. I thought all of the M-1's were replaced in the mid-50's, but that was just a hunch.
Why not being shipped to the CMP for sales to qualified civilians?
"Qualified" being a relative term, mind you.
"Texas proud" of this Marine.
Hey, that's my line!!!
So nice when a man enjoys his work. He saved many troops that day, and I'm sure they'd love to buy him a beer, if they knew what he did for them.
Running Man?
Indeed it is!
Someone tell me if I'm wrong, but it looks like the Dragunov that soldier's carrying doesn't have a front sight on it. What's up with that?
What, no headshots?
These are great stories. 950 yds. "I was surprised at how easy it was." OOOf'nrah!
Modern day Sgt. York.
The right way to handle terrorists.
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