When dealing with this subject we need to clarify at the outset that we are not simply referring to the distance any bullet may have traveled; the qualification is that the bullet hit its target and resulted in a kill.
Records regarding the longest sniper shot only started to be kept from 1967.
They contain information regarding the shooting distance and the identity of the sniper. Snipers in modern warfare have only been successful due to the development of long distance weaponry.
As weapons, ammunition, and aids to determine ballistic solutions improved, so, too, did the distance from which a kill could be targeted.
To become a good sniper requires intense training and practice. A sniper must be able to accurately estimate the various factors that influence a bullet’s trajectory and point of impact.
These include:
- Range to the target
- Wind direction
- Wind velocity
- Air density
- Elevation
- The rotation of the earth
Mistakes in estimation can cause a shot to only injure, or to miss completely. Furthermore, as any given combination of firearm and ammunition have a margin of error, where a perfectly-aimed shot lands will be dictated partially by chance.
In the modern battle arena, devices such as laser rangefinders, hand-held meteorological measuring equipment, hand-held computers, and ballistic-prediction software can contribute to increased accuracy.
The development of long-range sniping was accelerated by the Vietnam War. It was during that war that US Marine Carlos Hancock recorded a sniper shot kill of 2,500 yards (2,286 meters). It was a record he held from 1967 until 2002. During his tour of duty he was credited with a total of 93 kills.
His record was beaten by Canadian Master Corporal Arron Perry of Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry in March 2002 with a distance of 2,526 yards (2,319 meters).
But only a few days later, another man in his unit, Corporal Rob Furlong, beat Perry’s distance with a shot of 2,657 yards (2,430 meters).
The current confirmed record for the longest sniper shot is held by a Briton, Corporal of Horse, Craig Harrison.
In November 2009, in the War in Afghanistan, he shot and killed two machine gunners consecutively from a distance of 2,707 yards (2,475 meters)
However, in October 2012, The Daily Telegraph quoted an unnamed source who claimed that an unknown Australian soldier from Delta Company, 2nd Commando Regiment, had made a shot of 3,079 yards (2,815 meters) using a.50 cal Barrett M82 rifle, also in Afghanistan.
The claim has however not been confirmed by the Australian military or the Australian government and The Daily Telegraph remains the only source of the event.
So, until it is confirmed, the record for the longest sniper shot still belongs to Corporal Craig Harrison from Great Britain.
Which means he achieved his kills from a distance of over one 1.5 miles!
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