The Longest Sniper Shots in History

The hand of death could sometimes reach people, regardless of how far. Sometimes it could be in the form of long-range snipers that could shoot you from a very far, far distance. Here are some of the longest range sniper kills that history has ever known:

Unnamed South African Sniper

In 2003, The South African Special Forces Brigade was sent to the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to fight against the rebels. One of the South African soldiers shot and killed six M23 rebels in the Battle of Kibati. He also made a record that day for shooting at a distance of 1.32 miles.

Gunnery Sgt. Carlos Hathcock

For a very long time, the record holder for the longest-range kill shot was held by Marine GySgt. Carlos Hathcock, still one of the most respected names among snipers. He set a record of 1.42 miles (a few meters less than that of Sgt. Kremer’s) in 1967 when he shot a Viet Cong soldier using an M2, .50 cal machine gun in single-shot mode. He saw the VC with a bike loaded with weapons, so Sgt. Hathcock aimed at him. The first shot hit the bike and destroyed it. The second one killed the soldier.

Sgt. Bryan Kremer

US Sgt. Bryan Kremer was deployed in Iraq in March 2004, along with the rest of the 2nd Ranger Battalion. He took a shot and killed an Iraqi militant 1.42 miles away.

Cpl. Arron Perry

In March 2004, he set a record of 1.43 miles shot while supporting the US Army during their mission in Afghanistan. He beat a 43-year record for the longest recorded sniper kill, which was set by Carlos Hathcock during the Vietnam War in 1967.

Cpl. Rob Furlong

Also, a Canadian sniper-like Cpl. Arron Perry, Cpl. Rob Furlong was also in Afghanistan in July 2006 when he noticed an insurgent automatic weapons team climbing a ridge from his observation post. His first two shots missed, given the distance of 1.5 miles from his target, but this third one hit the gunner’s torso, causing him to bleed to death on the ground. This shot beat Cpl. Arron Perry’s record-making shot in March 2004.

Corporal of Horse Craig Harrison

Jump to November 2009, Corporal of Horse Craig Harrison in the Blues and Royals, a UK Army Cavalry regiment, was deployed to Afghanistan to provide sniper support when he made his record-breaking shot. A group of Afghan insurgents was pinning everyone down with machine-gun fire,  so Cpl. Harrison immediately went to action. He fired fives times: two were misses, one hit the gunner’s abdomen, the last one hit and destroyed the machine gun. His distance and the current record: 1.53 miles.

Some might attribute shots made at these extreme ranges as a matter of luck. However, the fact that these long-range shots were all made by highly trained snipers ought to tell you that extensive training, innate talent, experience, and the right equipment help these snipers make their own luck on the battlefield.

(Editor’s note: A sharp-eyed reader has pointed out that Sgt Kremer broke Hathcock’s record that stood for 37 years, and then Perry took the Title From Kremer in the same month.)