You are watching American History tv 48 hours of programming on American History every weekend on cspan3. Follow us on twitter at cspan history. Get a schedule of our upcoming programs and keep up with the latest history news. Each week, American Historys tv real america brings you stories that tell the story of American History. Up next is a training film that outlines the history of snipers and the American Military and shows hows my first should be deployed and used in a variety of combat situations. Some of these techniques may have been used by the late u. S. Navy seal chris kyle, whose memoir of four tors in the middle east was the basis for the film american sniper. The military sniper dates from the time of the revolutionary war. Since then snipers have been employed in every war and conflict. During our civil war, general hiram burden affected techniques snipers use. World war i saw german soldiers use highpowered rifles with telescopic sights. During world war ii, the u. S. Armed rifles to conduct sniper operations. World war ii taught us that a sniper is a weapon of opportunity and a typical rifleman cannot be assigned a sniper mission. Every marksman is not a sniper but every sniper is a marksman. During the korean conflict, army and marine corps commanders failed to appreciate the capabilities of snipers. As a result, a Sniper School was founded by the United StatesArmy Infantry school. They must be experts with specialized weapons and combat skill. Also, their commanders education is vital. Sniper program was shortlived but vietnam revived the need for trained snipers because of enemy forces in vietnam demonstrating the effectiveness of sniper employment techniques under varying tactical conditions. Additionally, United States snipers use 3. 1 rounds per kill versus thousands of rounds per kill by various units. The army conducted Sniper Training courses and educated commanders at all levels of sniper employment. During the 1983 grenada operation, army snipers were successful to mortar positions at ranges up to 800 meters. In it just cause in panama, the longest confirmed killed documented was 925 meters. Snipers in panama accounted for at least 10 of all casualties and were instrumental in intelligence gathering and security especially. The role of the modern sniper team is to enhance and augment the means of eliminating the enemy. The sniper team is unique in that its the sole means by which a unit can gauge point targets be on the effective range of a Standard Service rifle. Although sniper employment has evolved from one conflict to another, certain factors remain constant. The sniper delivers longrange precision at key targets as well as collecting and reporting battlefield information. They can disrupt movement, operation and infiltration and influence enemy actions and cause fear, confusion and low morale. Sniper teams should be employed directly under the commander or a sniper employment office. They must know his intent, maneuver and fire support. The sniper team must able to choose their own position to choose clear fields of fire. Sniper missions cannot be tied to rigid timetables or employed so close as to draw enemy fire. But close enough to deliver fire on enemy targets. The number of teams employed in an operation would depend on their availability. Snipers must be employed head of any anticipated movement so as to upload avoid detection by enemy forces. They should also move with a security element to allow them to reach their position in less time. Plus the security element provides a Reaction Force if the team is compromised. Sniper teams are affected by other factors as other units are. Snipers play a major role to destroy the enemys abilities to fight and eliminating the ability of success at omission. Snipers are employed to engage enemy snipers. And fire upon any target that threaten movements. They place a precision fire on enemy weapons, enemy leaders and fire to expose apertures and enemy bunkers. They also place fire on bypassed forces targets threatening a target attack or fleeing personnel. They also provide protective fire for exposed flanks and dominate key terrain. Snipers in a movement to contact me move with a lead element. What should be kept to deploy effectively, they should never move with the point element. Also, snipers should be employed 24 to 48 hours prior to all offensive operations. This allows them time to do their job more effectively and gather information and gather information to prevent surprise attacks. The snipers role is limited to the mountain attack that when the unit dismounts, the sniper team can be employed to support the assault. During a raid, sniper teams can be employed with the security or support element or use them both elements to cover avenues of approach and escape into and out of the objective. They also cover routes of friendly withdrawal. When they are employed defensively, snipers will shoot defensive targets. Such as covering minefields, obstacles and demolitions. They can eliminate enemy reconnaissance elements, engage vehicle commands and o ps. Snipers can also place precision fire on enemy crew served weapons and followup units. In a reverse slope defense snipers can provide effective longrange fire from positions forward of a topographic crest with security elements and the request of the rear hill to provide intelligence and support with longrange fire. Sniper teams also play a key role during retrograde employment will stop during delays and withdraws, snipers can cause enemy forces to withdraw prematurely by a flick inflicting casualties with longrange fire. It presents difficulties not encountered on the battlefield. Streets and highways do not necessarily make good observation points or fields of fire. Structures and their surrounding trainer more significant. Sniper teams need not be deployed in the city to accomplish their objective that from a Vantage Point from a hilltop outside of town. The snipers target Detection Capabilities combined with precision fire give them a major role in this type of combat. Building interiors and underground passages are the best route of Movement Since movement to the street is quickly detected. Any urban environment, snipers should the position in the most inconspicuous inconspicuous settings. Main concern should remain each positions anonymity and the protection it provides. Another can sit other consideration of the other setting is a field of observation available. The longrange field of fire and all around observation is desirable. As fields of fire are often obvious to the enemy, sniper teams should muffle fire and conceal the muzzle flash of the rifle. Shots should be aligned openings and adjacent loadings or funnel shaped holes in the wall. Engagement ranges are shortened by street to street in building to building fire but its not snipers in offensive and defensive operations will engage the same targets as those in the field. Another function is counter sniper operations. These operations must be thoroughly planned as this is basically between two highly trained sniper elements. The first task is to determine if there is indeed a sniper threat. Had enemy soldiers been spotted building camouflage uniforms and carrying long barrel weapons bold action receivers, or are they carrying weapons and weapon cases . Another indicator of enemy sniper activity is the unit may have had shot casualty of key personnel. Also, there are marked decreases in enemy patrolling activities during these single shot reductions and used for snell used personnel to take advantage of light optical lenses. Positions would he from intelligence or recon patrols through visual sightings or tracking. Finding single expended cartridge casings like those used by enemy snipers would he another indicator. Went to has been determined and enemy sniper is operating in the area the sniper team will determine the best method to use and eliminating the enemy sniper. The team will determine any patterns that might have an established and conduct map recons the aerial photos to determine travel patterns. The sniper must ask himself how what i accomplish this mission if i were he . Once a pattern has been established, the sniper will determine the best location in time to engage the sniper. He should also request the following actions coordination of routes and fires of the unit in the area, Additional Fire support additional sniper teams for mutual supporting fire and some of the likely engagement areas to receive the enemy sniper. One example is the use of a mannequin in a gillie suit laced in an open area to entice the enemy into engaging it. This will give the sniper the opportunity to detect the emmys location. All of these elements should be in place no later than 12 hours prior to the expected engagement time. Always keep in mind during a counter operation, the sniper must ignore the larger battle going on around him. His only concern must be to concentrate on his want of checked in to destroy the enemy sniper. When an enemy sniper is operating in a units area, they must employ passive measures to defend against sniper fire. These are 1 breakup routines dont follow a set pattern. Two, conduct all meetings undercover. Three, cover or conceal all equipment. Four remove Rank Insignia from helmets and collars. Five, increase observation. Six, do most activity during limited visibility. Seven. Dont let the enemy know you are aware of them. And 8 brief patrols to look for single expended rounds and different camouflage materials. A strong point to remember in counter sniper operations is not to overlook women. An estimated 50 of snipers in many third world countries are women will stop patrols should not be misled. If they see a woman with a scope rifle, shes a deadly opponent. Due to the fact that Sniper Skills are very perishable, they must be practiced as often as possible. One way is through the utilization of a sniper sustainment program. This program will provide individual snipers or the team an opportunity to sustain skills in marksmanship and field craft on a regular basis. Units should try to develop basis statement program that would require sniper teams to requalify with their sniper weapons on a quarterly basis in conjunction with the marksmanship training. This training would be approximately one week long and units should plan a Readiness Exercise we should between a four hours long. The deployment should require that sniper to engage targets with the sniper weapon on the field, participate in a concealed movement exercise, a negotiated course and an example of a fiveday course would consist of the following schedules. On day one observation and target detection. Range eggs sentinel select sniper team employment, forward observer target citing, identify threat uniforms and whitman, basic land elevation range card , long book and field sketch will stop training on day two should consist of effects of weather, basic marksmanship aiming and siding with iron sights and auto ranging and engaging moving targets. Ironside and field fire. Keep and memory gains. The third day of the Training Program should consist of memory gains, one half of class field fire with move and snap, life fire, field craft, range estimations, target detection and concealment and concealed movement exercises. They four should consist of a switch of classes. Field fire ghost field craft and field craft to feel fire. Day five consists of the following a rotation of the teams from a. M. 2 p. M. During training activities. One half of the crash is with movers and the other half goes to field craft. Range estimation, target detection and concealed movement this will complete the fiveday sniper sustainment program. Sniper teams should be afforded every opportunity to thoroughly practice their skills. What you have seen in this presentation is only a guideline to follow. Her mother to take advantage of any occasion that would lend itself to further training. The sniper