The story behind the most lethal sniper of all-time

[DeltaLover]

White death The story behind the most lethal sniper of all-time

Wow an increadible story. And the fact he used Iron sights!!!



Huckberry | White Death

 

[Fullmag]

I thought this was gonna be about Carlos Hitchcock, so I learned something new today, thanks.

 

[Kirk Freeman]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5CaQ37VYvw[/ame]

For historical reference:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwQmwbQttkY&NR=1&feature=endscreen[/ame]

 

[jayhawk]

I thought this was gonna be about Carlos Hitchcock, so I learned something new today, thanks.

It's Carlos Hathcock, and while he is a legend, he doesn't approach being the most lethal.

 

[FrankTank83]

Interesting read, thanks! Any idea what they meant by "the sniper took an exploding bullet to the jaw". Did the Soviet Union have such a thing or do you think they meant "expanding" instead of "exploding"?

 

[HoughMade]

Can't be the most lethal- no tacticool acessories at all.

 

[Kirk Freeman]

Any idea what they meant by "the sniper took an exploding bullet to the jaw". Did the Soviet Union have such a thing or do you think they meant "expanding" instead of "exploding"?

Movie puffery, Frank.

The bullet entered the hinge of the jaw (his zyogmatic bone was destroyed I believe IIRC) and the temp cavity acted as if an "explosion" ruptured his face.

What got Simo was likely your standard .31 caliber 148 grain lead core or the Heavy D .31 caliber 182 grain bullet.

Here is Hayha pre-injury (he was a shorter male):



Here he is post-injury:




He lived this way well into his 90s. He was rock hard prior to his service and continued to live a vigorous life after the Wars of Continuation.

Remember this when people speak of "killing power". .31 caliber to the face and he lived.

 

[SIGnature45]

Wow. Bad-a$$.

Thanks for the post!

 

[FrankTank83]

Movie puffery, Frank.

The bullet entered the hinge of the jaw (his zyogmatic bone was destroyed I believe IIRC) and the temp cavity acted as if an "explosion" ruptured his face.

What got Simo was likely your standard .31 caliber 148 grain lead core or the Heavy D .31 caliber 182 grain bullet.

Here is Hayha pre-injury (he was a shorter male):



Here he is post-injury:




He lived this way well into his 90s. He was rock hard prior to his service and continued to live a vigorous life after the Wars of Continuation.

Remember this when people speak of "killing power". .31 caliber to the face and he lived.

Thanks for the clarification, what an amazing story!

 

[6mm]

-100f? I can't imagine laying in the snow in those temps!

 

[GunSlinger]

And he did it all with a Mosin-Nagant...an amazing accomplishment.

 

[Prometheus]

It's Carlos Hathcock, and while he is a legend, he doesn't approach being the most lethal.

Each man and each way they operated and the targets they had can't be compared.

For example trying to compare The Finn and the most 'lethal' or longest shot of Afghanistan is night and day. Not just in terms of optics vs iron sights but conditions in which they operated. I don't recall the exact scenario but the Canadian sniper team claiming the longest kill from a rooftop perch on some random jihadist, while a technical feat, doesn't hold a candle to what that Finn was doing. Likewise, it doesn't hold a candle to one of Carlos' famous jungle shots on a high ranking target either.

You really can't lay an solid parameters for determining who was more lethal or best. Raw numbers on people killed mean little when they are plucking grunts/terrorists off a dime a dozen across open terrain with little chance of reprisal from them when compared to guys who have to lay still or move 100 yards over the span of a couple of hours to take one single shot.

The word sniper can sometimes be used like assault-weapon.

Not to lessen the feats of any particular person, just pointing out that a simple body count or longest shot means little when you are talking about the entire craft.

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

Each man and each way they operated and the targets they had can't be compared.

For example trying to compare The Finn and the most 'lethal' or longest shot of Afghanistan is night and day. Not just in terms of optics vs iron sights but conditions in which they operated. I don't recall the exact scenario but the Canadian sniper team claiming the longest kill from a rooftop perch on some random jihadist, while a technical feat, doesn't hold a candle to what that Finn was doing. Likewise, it doesn't hold a candle to one of Carlos' famous jungle shots on a high ranking target either.

You really can't lay an solid parameters for determining who was more lethal or best. Raw numbers on people killed mean little when they are plucking grunts/terrorists off a dime a dozen across open terrain with little chance of reprisal from them when compared to guys who have to lay still or move 100 yards over the span of a couple of hours to take one single shot.

The word sniper can sometimes be used like assault-weapon.

Not to lessen the feats of any particular person, just pointing out that a simple body count or longest shot means little when you are talking about the entire craft.

Exactly. It's like a "caliber war" or "which gun is best"...

Well...it depends!

Depends on the mission, the parameters, the outcome, etc etc etc.

Mountainous, snowy, extremely cold climates, defending your homeland vs. the hot, damp, stinky jungles of Vietnam fighting people defending THEIR homeland vs. basically wide-open terrain target-rich environments with the full might of the most technically advanced armed forces all around you (not at all saying not dangerous. If the enemy is in range, YOU are also in range of them)

Hathcock was the Godfather of "modern sniping" as far as the US Armed services is concerned. After WWII - most Powers that Be didn't care to continue the craft. Hathcock's work, basically on his own, changed "their" minds - eventually.

I think, though, that the Russians and Fins really started the trend of using sharpshooters as asymmetric offensive weapons.

Fascinating history of the art (and I believe it truly is an art). Colorful players in a terrible game.

-J-

 

[boozoo]

And he did it all with a Mosin-Nagant...an amazing accomplishment.

Finn'd Mosins like he had are a bit better breed, although a 91/30 *can* be tweaked up really well (I have an old Russian article buried somewhere in my archives).

I forget, but weren't a large number of his kills also credited to non-sniper action with a Suomi? He was just a bad bad man.... I remember reading once when asked how he got to be so accurate, he had a rather lengthy response....

"Practice"

 

[cosermann]

Pretty amazingly accomplished sniper. Here's a thread from 2010:

https://www.indianagunowners.com/fo...f_all_time_used_a_mosin_with_iron_sights.html

And one from 2009:

https://www.indianagunowners.com/fo..._make_rambo_look_like_a_b_tch.html#post244733

 

[indiucky]

And he did it all with a Mosin-Nagant...an amazing accomplishment.

A Finnish M27 I believe...I helped johntheplinker find one...They are a step above the standard mosin but the guts are the same..

 

[boozoo]

I could have sworn it was the M28 or 28/30 that he used.

Not a whole lot of difference between those models, but compared to a Russian m91 or m91/30, they did have new heavier barrels, stocks and better sights. Plus they made tweaks to the action over the years. M39's had two stage triggers and magazine tweaks, for instance.

My last M39 shot just about as well as my Swiss K31, and I suspect the difference was ammo quality since I was using whatever surplus I had on hand.

And yet no matter how good the rifle, I suspect I will never ever shoot as well as Hayha.

 

[indiucky]

I could have sworn it was the M28 or 28/30 that he used.

I think you maybe right...I am 90% sure I stand corrected...

 

[Kirk Freeman]

Simo, as a shorter male (5'3"), used an iron-sighted M28 which he found handier for a man his size.

Remember at the time this happened:

Simo grew up outdoors in the sisu culture of Finland. Skiing and hiking made him tough. Simo was a shooter before he joined the service. He was a great patriot and the Soviets had attacked his country. The Finns understood extreme cold weather conditions, especially the importance of high carb and protein hot food (oatmeal and black sausage).

No greater weapon than a man with the will and the skill; couple it with a culture that expects one to have "guts" and you have an ideal soldier.