A Canadian flag sits on the shoulder of a member of the Canadian Forces in Trenton, Ont.
(Photo/Caption: Lars Hagberg/The Canadian Press)
A Canadian sniper shot and killed an Islamic State fighter from 2.1 miles (3,781 yds) away last month, setting a world record for the longest recorded sniper kill, according to a report from the Toronto Globe and Mail.
The sniper, a member of an elite Canadian special forces team known as Joint Task Force 2, made the shot from a high-rise building using a .50-caliber McMillan TAC-50 rifle. The projectile took nearly 10 seconds to reach its target, and the sniper team had to account for wind, bullet drop, and even the Earth’s curvature.
“This is an incredible feat. It is a world record that might never be equaled,” a military source told the Globe.
The shot was made as part of Canada’s efforts to aid Iraqi security forces in their campaign against ISIS. While Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau suspended airstrikes against ISIS in 2016, he also announced plans to triple the number of special forces on the ground, as well as increase the number of Canadian Armed Forces members who are tasked with training and assisting local forces.
“The shot in question actually disrupted a Daesh [so-called Islamic State] attack on Iraqi security forces,” a military source told the Globe.
“Instead of dropping a bomb that could potentially kill civilians in the area, it is a very precise application of force and because it was so far away, the bad guys didn’t have a clue what was happening.”
The kill was independently verified by video camera and other data, according to the Globe.
Our neighbors to the North produce some good shooters! (Photo: Toronto Globe and Mail)
“Hard data on this. It isn’t an opinion. It isn’t an approximation. There is a second location with eyes on with all the right equipment to capture exactly what the shot was,” another military source said.
The previous record was held by British sniper, Craig Harrison, who shot and killed a Taliban attacker from 2,475 meters in 2009 using a 338 Lapua Magnum rifle.
“It is at the distance where you have to account not just for the ballistics of the round, which change over time and distance, you have to adjust for wind, and the wind would be swirling,” said a source with expertise in training Canadian special forces.
“You have to adjust for him firing from a higher location downward and as the round drops you have to account for that. And from that distance you actually have to account for the curvature of the Earth.”
For security reasons, the Globe’s sources say they cannot confirm the name of the sniper or the location of the action.
THAT IS INDEED A ‘FANTASTIC’ SHOT…….HOWEVER, SHOTS LIKE THAT ARE MADE IN ‘CHIRAQ’ ALL THE TIME ! THE ONLY DIFFERENCE IS THAT THE ‘SHOOTERS’ AREN’T AIMING AT WHAT THEY HIT ! ! !
Good grief. These comments are more than four years old.
But for what it’s worth, to the naysayers on the Coriolis Effect,
did you ever try to play catch on a merry-go-round?
It’s the same thing, but on a bit larger scale.
The good folks in Canada raise some great sniper teams. This is a phenomenal record that I seriously doubt will ever be bested with current firearms technology.
Screw “collateral damage”, use a 155mm HE round and totally “disrupt” a planned attack!
May have meant earth’s rotaion on axis not curvature.
The world don’t move and is flat so no
Precisely. The Coriolis Effect. The curvature of the earth is irrelevant.
What a truly great feat, that by the way was observed by a drone. These men had been taking longer and longer shots and were trained to do so. They observed that this target was remaining still long enough to make the distant shot. Other observance showed the shooter had very little mirage effect in his scope that day and very little wind. With today’s science behind then in terms of ballistic calculators and all the other instrumentation they made the shot. The firearm was a customized McMillan in order to gain the mil elevation needed to reach a target at such great distances by attaching special rails to the weapon. The cartridge was also a specialized version of the 50 cal variety. Shots like this have much to do about the science and math involved and one helluva steady man behind the firearm who has had a lot of training and practice to do just his. Kudos to a job well done!
I read that the round used was way over Sami spec to over 13,000 ft.lb of energy and the round was a 750gr.
Hornady. If someone could give me the velocity conversion for 13,000 ft lb. at the muzzle I’d appreciate it.
The spotter should at least be given equal credit for making such a shot. Great shot hope it was against someone important to the insurgents.
The sniper, a member of an elite Canadian special forces team known as Joint Task Force 2, made the shot from a high-rise building using a .50-caliber McMillan TAC-50 rifle. The projectile took nearly 10 seconds to reach its target, and the sniper team had to account for wind, bullet drop, and even the Earth’s curvature, 2.1 miles (3,781 yd) away
Now that you have read this again would you tell me the author of this article ? Is it straight from Walt Disney ?
The curvature accordingly drops 1 mile= 8 inches , 20 miles= 266 feet. Now according to the article he made the shot at 2.1 miles which would have a curvature of over 32 inches. This must be the same magic bullet that killed J.F.K. in Dallas !
The story is B/S. There is no curvature. Had the article not said that and the fact it took 10 seconds to reach the target, I might have said “well, that is one hell of a scope that they have”. But for now I will stick to the Roadrunner and the Coyote.
Perhaps I’m dense, but, if the earth’s curvature, which is constant, is 8″ in a mile, how can it equal 266 FT in 20 miles? 8″ X 20 miles = 160 inches = 13.3333 feet…not 266 feet.
2.1 miles x 5280 ft/mile = 11,088 ft
11,088 ft / 3 ft/yard = 3696 yds
Where did the 3781 yds come from?
It comes from direct conversion from meters to yards.
1 meter=1.093613 yards
Therefore
3,540 meters=3,871.391 yards
Pay attention that a distance expressed in miles (2.1 miles) was given for illustration purposes only, and wasn’t exact value.
Interesting thing: One needs to drive for over two minutes at a speed of approx. 60 mph in order to cover such a distance.
Thanks for getting rid of another animal. It doesn’t matter who or how they are taken out as long as they no longer inhabit this earth. Thanks to our brothers in arms from the North! One less vermin to deal with.
Hello from the North! Always a pleasure to hear true words from the south! We stand together against the filth of this earth!
2.1 miles = 11,088 feet
One less dickhead in the world. Thank you, Canada for your fine service.
Absolute hogwash. “10 seconds”? Equally as inaccurate and silly. IF it would be possible, about 4 seconds would do it. (FPS of a 50 cal.) An embarrassing tall tale. What’s next? A 3 mile shot? 4 mile?
Wrong. At two miles, the speed of a .50 drops (from air resistance) to the point where 10 seconds is a plausible delay. And as far as “if it was possible”, reports of combat kills at over one mile have been out there with lighter rounds like ,338 Lapua. I was just surprised someone did it with a .50.
As far as “tall tale” is concerned, the article used as a source here appeared in the Toronto Globe and Mail, not the Washington Post, New York Times or National Enquirer, so the fact-checking was probably pretty good.
As a competition shoter with over 20 years experience, I can assure you it is possible and a little under 10 sec is entirely feasible. For the couch potatoe experts, the muzzle velocity it not the speed the bullet keeps going because of this little thing called air and friction it causes. If you would like to act like you know everything, then also look up the ballistic chart for the .50 BMG that shows the reduction in speed over distance but to accurately know that you will the to also know the ballistic coefficient of the specific bullet they used.
it may have take’n 10 seconds for someone on the bad guy side to hear it after impact of the round. This reminds me of a long record shot a few years ago that set the record by a Canadian but that one was uphill and he was low on 2 shots and 1 of our guys gave him 1 of our rounds which was hotter that made the kill. I may be think’n about the Brit. sniper with the .338 Lupua though.
Hello there neighbors to the South, I ended up on your site while researching a bit about this amazing kill shot, I wouldn’t know the first thing about ballistics so I was really eager to hear about what those who really know their stuff had to say. Looks like I ended up in the right spot because you guys sound like you know your S#%T!! and reading through the comments was great. After all is said and done though, although I’m proud as a Canadian to say it was one of our boys, it really doesn’t matter, it’s not about who or where they’re from but about taking an asshole of map who may have chopped a kids head off the next day…eh!
You’ve got a right to be proud of Canada’s snipers. They’re making kills with .338 Lapua that US snipers use .50 caliber rifles to get. That’s not intended as a criticism of US snipers, just an acknowledgement of how good your guys are.
I enjoy all the nay saying and the left handed compliments; “anyone can do that with that right rifle” or “…in those conditions”, ” good shooting but I could do that with that gun or that training”. Final analysis, damn fine shooting whether it was walked in or not and more to the point, it increased the range at which the bad guys will want to be when they choose to do bad things. If this keeps up, it will stop paying to be a bad guy doing bad things, and that is what this man, as well as his brother and sister soldiers, have for a goal. Thank you to all of you.
Good call/ As far as “anyone can do that with that right rifle”, I agree with you – that’s bullshit. Sniper marksmanship requires (as the article correctly points out) skills and technical support not everyone has. When you actually have to figure the earth’s curvature into a shot, you’re way out of “anyone can do that” territory.
I hope eventually we’ll have something like a sniper version of the XM104 Fire Control System on the XM25 “Punisher” Counter-Defilade Target Engagement System grenade launcher re-programmed and with better optics to remove some of the work of hitting targets at those distances. Even then, sniping will be an art practiced by an elite group of soldiers.
As far as I am concerned all you guys with the negative blast at the shooter need to stand away from him at 2 miles and see if he can hit your smart ass in the head … people who run down military guys who are protecting there very right to run there mouth dont deserve to be protected … just remember a nation that forgets its defenders will itself be forgotten … semper fi … Thank you to all that have served to protect us from people like ISIS… and god bless your families who have lost family members doing it …
I’m with you good job is all that’s needed here. I f you can do better than sign up or shut up god bless
Someone who says “anyone can do that with the right rifle” is speaking from total ignorance. It’s not like going out to the Big Bend and taking varmints – you’re after bigger, more intelligent game aware that at any time they could be killed by someone on the other side, at ranges you never see in sport shooting where windage involves updrafts from baked soil in the TWO MILES between shooter and target.
Agreed, all we need to say about this shot is “Good job”.
McMillan rifles will have another spike in sales after this
I guarantee you they do NOT have to account for the so called coriolis affect. Thats total BS. I can also guarantee you that the sniper did not make this kill on his first attempt. Im sure it took several shots to “walk” it in making elevation and windage adjustments….”adjustment for the curvature of the Earth”..lol I don’t think so.
No one mentioned Coriolis effect. You didn’t get that from the article. They mentioned “the curvature of the Earth” which isn’t even related to Coriolis effect (which involves lateral accelerations of fluids like air and water owing to the motion of the Earth.
Zim has it right below!
From one recon sniper to another. Nice shot. Folks some of you have no idea what it takes to make that shot. You want to bash on the facts. Go right ahead. In 2 miles there are a lot of variables that need to take in consideration. But the fact remains, the round got down range to its target. I could take you thru the steps this guy took, but most of you would not even have a clue.
No matter what, trying shooting another human. It strips the life right out of you. Combat is one thing, that is a fury of survivability. Try taking your time and watching your target. Watch his habits, does he walk left or right. Knowing that you are going to eliminate someone, brings your blood to boil, you feel every breath, every beat of your heart, your eyes blurr, your hand and trigger point ache from holding to shoot until it is time to squeeze. You have one other maybe two, verifing down range, calculating and verifing again. Some of you think this is easy like the stupid online game you play. This is not Hollywood “one shot, on kill”.
This person trained long and hard. He knows his range, his round, his rifle. He is familiar with his theater and his surroundings. 2 miles, a lot of range to cover. Cold spot, wind, and yes curve of the earth you dumb ass, the drop, even visual aspiration from heat distortion.
So you guys who bag and bash, go away. The person who sprayed ammo in the air, you are a joke. The person who thinks this is an online sniper game, stick with your playstation.
Start supporting our military, our allies. Something to think about. Who did he just save from elminating a person of hate?
“I could take you thru the steps this guy took, but most of you would not even have a clue.”
hahahaha. Oh buddy, we get it…..you know everything, you’re the best.
What the hell is visual “aspiration”?
Squeeze off another
Yes wind probably canging direction and value several time,and its always changing when your distance is over a 1000m muck less 3500m.the curve of the earth,its rotation,changing bc’s as the bullet goes from 3000fps,2500,2000,1500,1000,the altitude ,angle, humidity,temp or the enviroment,ammo and chamber. If all these things arent challenging enough the rifle must by made stable, perfectly vertical,and right when the objective presents itself the shooter must still break the shot perfectlyand on the same exact manner that its been done on all the other shots. Eye in the same location,stock in the same place with the same exact amount of preasure,and trigger finger in the same place on the trigger with the same amount of force sqeezing strait back.and you must break the shot instantly at the moment its presented and between your own heat beats. When all that is done right you can possibly make that shot if the other guy doesnt fart
Ray: Nice comment! Being an avid long-range shooter, I know of what you speak, even though my shots are far shorter than two miles and my skill levels far lower than that of the Canadian sniper. A pat on the back also for the spotter…and for the target for staying still long enough for the shot to reach him. Kudos also to Barrett and to the boys who produce the cartridges. Bravo!
The article said he used a Mcmillan Tac 50, Not a Barrett
Here is my opinion, don’t invade Canada. Their boys can shoot. We need to get our kids outside and away from shooting video games, they will be able to be number 1. That’s how they did it in WW1 &2, I bet this boy grew up hunting.
I sure dont want to take anything away from fighting men, But BULL SHIT. luck shot, do it again!
when I said a bullshit luck shot I realey meant all the press and hype not the shooter he is a hell of a guy who is out there, we are not, give him some slack. Remember when all our govt wanted was body counts.
You have to have a lot of balls to say that it was a lucky shot while behind a keyboard. I have never been a dedicated marksman but I have been trained in long range precision shooting. It was rough just getting into that school. And even there we usually worked from 500-800yds. Very little out to a thousand. When we did shoot at a thousand yards, we were on a dedicated range surrounded by trees to help control the wind. Any of you who have been to Quantico know what I’m talking abou, almost pristine conditions, maybe they’ll build one underground. Even there, thousand yard kill shots were very difficult. Now imagine you’re high up in an apartment building that has been completely trashed if you’re lucky you have a table or board to Lie on if not, just concrete chunks. It’s probably well over 100° outside and you’re not dressed for the beach. Sweat is rolling profusely down your face and among several other difficulties you have what is called mirage If you’ve ever look down the road are a very hot day you can see the heat and the Moisture evaporating off of the black asphalt. You’re nervous because as someone else on the site said previously you’re not shooting wildly into a crowd you can see in the man’s eyes and you know that you’re going to take his life and that’s not an easy thing to do no matter who you are. You say that that Canadian soldiers shot was lucky at that range there is some luck involved but nowhere near the amount of incredible skill and training that comes in on top of that. The lucky ones are us because we have men like this to help protect us and our families and fight terrorism around the world. You should be thanking Batman not criticizing him.
Voice recognition got away from me. I apologize for the poor grammar and syntax.
You just DID take something away from the fighting man who made that shot. At two miles, if he didn’t have the sort of skills that take years to learn, he wouldn’t have made the shot. No luck involved, it was the result of a concerted technical effort.
Stupid comment Goose… you march out there for him to “do it again.” Bet you trust his skill enough to say no to that challenge.
Without walking it in! I still say bull shit.!!
Damn! Glad he’s on our side. Good work soldier!
And now PM Trudeau is apologizing. He “loves” the muslims and was trying to figure out a way to NOT kill them without seeming to be a terrorist lover.
Regardless of the rifle used, the ammo chosen, the scope technology available, or other aids to accuracy, at the end of the day some guy has to hold the rifle steady enough, and squeeze the trigger delicately enough, while pointed at the right spot. That is the skill. Everything else simply provides the means to that end.
anybody can hold a rifle steady while its resting on a backpack or some other rest, and anyone can squeeze off a round by gently squeezing the trigger when you have zero stress being so far away knowing the enemy has no clue you’re even there.
The real skill actually comes from calculating bullet drop and the hardest of all calculating wind deflection at that distance.
Knowing the ballistic coefficient of the bullet according to the muzzle velocity and being spot on on the wind calculation is the real skill. Anyone can pull the trigger after all those calculations and dope adjustments have been made
Well, that’s not a bad shot but I think I’ve got it beat. One April afternoon in Alaska I was practicing defensive handgun drills in my backyard. I had just emptied my Colt Commander .45 ACP at a 25 yard gong target. Re-holstered and observed a flight of 4 Canada geese coming my way across the Palmer Hay Flats about 500 yards out. Suddenly a devilish thought occurred and I pulled my Beretta M21A “back-up” gun out of my pocket and sent 8 rounds of CCI .22LR Mini-mags out of the 2″ barrel towards the geese. Suddenly the right wing on the second one from the right folded to 90 degrees and it augured in for a hard landing. That is EXACTLY what I was aiming at! (Yah sure.) Oh boy, did I catch hell from the spousal unit for that one!
That guy is a soldier and a credit to his unit and country.
As for shooting the goose, that is slob shooting. Good way to injure an animal that deserves better. I am a hunter and always will be. Also using a handgun or rifle is illegal in most states for areial shooting at game animals
Shut up. It was funny. Don’t be such a stiff.
WOW
Did I ruffle some goose feathers???? Seems like the first amendment gives us that right. Or are you a big LEFT where we have no rights at all unless YOU decided we can have them.
you really are a piece of shit… you brag of your cruelty in wounding and leaving to die a beautiful wild creature. The same should be done to you, sending your soul to the darkest of all eternity…
Hunting isn’t plinking. Nor is sniping. Hitting a goose at (given the maximum range of .22 LR and subtracting some for the normal force of gravity on a shot at an aerial target) much less than two miles doesn’t out-do a trained sniper who reached out and touched someone from two miles away.
Unless you and your backyard were the legally prescribed distance from a thoroughfare or other folks’s homes, you were also breaking the law against unlawful discharge of firearms, and your “spousal unit” would have been within her rights to dime you out to your local law enforcement agency. She cut you some major slack by just giving you Hell.
Done the calculation on a free web site and at 4000 yds. the .50 BMG round gets to the target in 8.9 seconds and arrives going 880 fps. and still has 1284 energy. Plenty enough to take someone down. Depending on sight in at any distance you would have to figure for drop and windage. If true it was one hell of a shot.
It was verified. Definitely parted someone\’s hair rather nicely. Canada\’s JTF2 is the best in the world, but Canadian politics against them in the past is ironically JTF2\’s greatest enemy. Look up how Furlong and his JTF2\’s brothers were treated.
Furlong and Perry, the two who broke Hathcocks record back in 2002, were both 3 PPCLI not JTF2. 3 PPCLI was specifically selected by USSOCOM to conduct SF direct action support mission in Afghanistan in 2001.
880 FPS is well below the transonic threshold here a bullet becomes unstable and completely unpredictable.
Even with all the skill involved, there was a lot of luck involved on this shot
A 725 gr bullet at 3000 fps at the muzzle would only need 57 mils of elevation, a 30 min rail and the right optic with a good grid system and the shot becomes very doable.
at 2 miles that 725gr bullet has become unstable being it is not supersonic anymore.
Saying a 2 mile shot is very doable is ridiculous.
The slightest miscalculation in wind..even just 1mph off, will cause that bullet to be several yards off target at 2 miles.
Adjusting for gravity is the “easy” part as thats always a constant if you know the correct BC’s, but at 2 miles you have to be absolutely spot on on the wind calculation which is almost impossible. This shot had to be done on a very calm day. Probably had no wind at all.
So, is the goat now ceremonially beheaded as an instrument of “The Great Satan” or does the dirt bag still get the 72 virgins?
I would hate to be playing pool with that sniper. No matter how “good” you are, you just can’t beat luck. (But, WOW! What a great shot. Wish I had done it!)
There’s no way the target heard his apology from that distance…gonna keep a Canadian up at night.
So Soory Eh?
Your point is? If you’re in ISIS/IS/Daesh, you have no apologies coming to you – just incoming mail from the good guys.
All this publicity is not a good thing. The person who made the shot and the group that trained for this type of action gets their satisfaction out of a job well done not all of this horn tooting. Seems to me there are bullseyes getting painted on our heros needlessly
You are so right!
I’d say the propaganda value of a successful kill on an ISIS fighter from two miles away with a single round outweighs the danger posed by this properly sanitized press release. Everyone knows JTF2 goes to places like that, so neither the unit in general or the particular sniper who took the shot were in any significant added danger.
Snipers are, in general, at higher risk of being killed by enemy snipers for the same reason RTOs and officers are. This article didn’t change anything.
What a shot! Time for an American rifleman to step up and take the record back! Wow, I thought I was doing good hitting an 18 inch steel plate at 1,00 yards?
I certainly admire those people that can pull off those shots, but I still think that the shot that was pulled off at the second battle of Adobe Walls in Texas is more amazing because the man, whose name I can never remember, used a Sharps .50 cal. rifle with iron sights and the rifle was not even his rifle. That one shot ended that battle.
His name was Billy Dixon, Shot with a Black Powder Cartridge Sharps. (I think it was a 50/90) 50 cal solid lead bullet around 500 over 90 grains by volume of black powder.
Curious how many shots this sniper made to get on. Still a fantastic feat, congrats to our Canadian neighbors
It took 2 shots if you read the article.
A good scope is capable of seeing a person at that distance and further. My only question is: “he had to account for wind, bullet drop, and even the Earth’s curvature”. Earth’s curvature bull shit. Watch a boat and so many miles out you can see it no more, why ? Is it because of curvature, NO it is because yours eyes have a limitation. Use a scope and you will see your so call disappearing boat. Stop believing all that bullshit that they are telling us, RESEARCH !!!
You should do your research! It’s called the Coriolies effect, you take into account or equate earths spin curvature of the earth along with wind, distance, elevation and temperature. All are needed shooting out past 800 yards!
Lee, you have no idea what you are talking about. Yes, naked human eye can see about 2 miles out on a flat plain. With equipment, a 6 foot tall man standing at at sea level can see out 6 miles, which is considered the horizon. But he has to look at the horizon. If he looked straight ahead, his line of site will be 10s of get above the water surface. If a shot is taken in a straight line, the target will be missed by those 10s of feet. Now there are other variables: which direction is his sight. If he is looking east, he as to take into account that the earth is rotating at 1000 miles per hour. His target will not be at the same point after the trigger is pulled. Same distance on earth; yes. Same point in space; no. If aiming north, his aim has to be to the east of the target and visa versa if aiming south. And this is only the beginning of calculations. So, go plink your plates from a couple hundred yards in the woods. When I see your name at the top of the record list, I will give credit to anything you say. Do your research before you flap your gums, I did mine. I may not be a sniper, but I am a Geospatial Engineer, which in Laymen’s terms, I deal with locations(points) on every square inch of the earths surface.
Sounds like you are flapping your gums with your long comment ! I never said that the distance that a person lose sight. My point was that there isn’t no curvature, but that’s another subject. I am not impressed by you being a Geospatial Engineer, Einstein was wrong on some things too !
The only question that I have on his shot is not about his sight picture, it is how did his target manage to not move for 10 seconds.
Watch a boat and so many miles out you can see it no more, why ? Is it because of curvature, NO it is because yours eyes have a limitation. Use a scope and you will see your so call disappearing boat.
Wow, your ignorance knows no bounds! So, I suppose you think the Earth is flat? Yes, a ship on the horizon does disappear due to the curvature of the Earth, scope or no scope. I don’t know about your eyes having limitations, but your brain sure does!
Oaf, Lee is 100% correct. When you think a ship has gone over the horizon because of the curve of the earth, then why is it possible to bring the entire ship back into view by using a high powered scope? If the ship went over the curve, then it wouldn’t mater how powerful a telescope you had, it would be impossible to see it.
The Coriolis effect is another total BS concept and shooters NEVER have to account for it. When a long range shooter misses a target I guarantee you he doesn’t think Oh I need to adjust for the Coriolis Effect, but its one of many other variables that cause the bullet to miss. wind being the biggest one.
Well you must be one of those liberal Democraps ! You can’t have a discussion without resorting to name calling. You calling people stupid, but I see that your mama gave you the proper name, OAF ! (look up the meaning) If your not a Democrap, than you must be one of those Kanucks up there.
Curvature isn’t a factor? Those pre-Columbus flat earth people would make you a hero. Ancient Greeks calculated earths diameter within 800 miles; with no real data than that collected from observation. Diameter denotes curvature, no?
Obvious, someone needs a boat trip to observe two effects; height of eye, height of target.
Oblivious to fact and research isn’t an excuse.
I bet you are a believer of the magic bullet !
First, Drew, Coriolis effect has nothing to do with this. It’s why water circles the drain instead of falling straight down into the drain. It’s also a powerful force in the formation of tropical storms and other weather.
Second, Lee, curvature of the Earth has nothing to do with seeing the target at two miles. It has to do with the distance the bullet is from the ground at every point on its path from rifle to target, which does make a difference in local windage and other dynamic variables during the bullet’s two-mile flight path. We say something “isn’t rocket science” but the math and practical knowledge involved in making a kill from two miles away is, actually, the part of rocket science called “ballistics”.
I have one question, How did the sniper get the target to remain still for around 10 seconds so the shot would be effective?
Great question ! I was wondering that myself.
He was sleeping…
The A-hole was standing still while bloviating \’Allahu Snackbar\’ over and over.
Sniping at these distances isn’t about getting the target to stand still, but observing him for anywhere from minutes to hours. The article says two shots were needed to make the kill, so I’m guessing the target DID move after the sniper fired the first shot.
Aiming @ pt on mountain and shootng into group, maybe. Called shot, BS.
Not enough scope or rail depression on mil spec to get there.
LUCK
There’s a list of 18 called shots at 1,250 meters/1,367 yards or greater. Most of them are US snipers, (including the Confederate sniper who got a kill from Fort Sumter to Morris Island, 1,390 yd away, with a .451 Whitworth), then Canadians, then British snipers. They’re all luck, right?
Found it! I does use a .50 Browning MG round. Here is McMillan’s description of the new TAC-50 A1.
“McMillan introduces a product update to the TAC®-50 50 BMG tactical rifle. Named the TAC®-50 A1™, the new rifle includes several product enhancements over the original TAC-50 rifle that has been deployed by military forces around the world.
—
As with the original TAC-50, the TAC-50 A1 features a 29” premium selected, hand-lapped match grade free-floating barrel, threaded muzzle brake, detachable 5-round box magazine, tuned 3.5 lb. trigger, and extra-long bolt handle to clear large optics. “
A lot of talk over 1 bullet and 1 kill, let me know when they are all dead from 1 large bomb.
Amen! Brother
I find no commenters who know anything about modern military sniper scopes. Take this comment, for instance, “—and the sniper team had to account for wind, bullet drop, and even the Earth’s curvature.” No, they wouldn’t! The scope’s mini-copmputer and the satellite link would take care of that. Wind, range, humidity, elevation, earth’s curvature, all of it! Even with all of that, it is still an amazing shot. What I know nothing about is the McMillan .50 round. Is it machined? Does it use the .50 Browning MG round!
Ok, tell us about that “magic bullet” at the J.F.K. assassination. Keep believing all that government B/S !
McMillan doesn’t make any ammo as far as I know. They make precision rifles which was used for this shot.
And what scope does all those calculations on its own that you mentioned??
Ken, since you had to look up what ammunition a McMillan TAC-50 rifle fires, you’re not in a great position to lecture the rest of us on what we know about modern military sniper rifles (as you do in your first sentence). You confirm that you’re as ignorant as the rest of us right after that by saying these rifles have minicomputers that can measure wind down range at 2 miles.
The Accurate Shooter blog has a very informative article on just how hard that is to do in real life The Israelis and the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Administration are still working on getting that in real-world scopes, using LIDAR technology. To quote the article:
Was anyone present when Ronnie Barrett got word of this fantastic shot? I’d like to know his statement. The person that made this shot must have the steadiest hands there are. BRAVO
Well I don’t think he’d say anything as it wasn’t one of his rifles. The rifle used was made by McMillan
I am absolutely amazed at so many experts that know so much about some thing that have never ever ever even come close to duplicating this amazing feat. most of the comments being made are from parrots simply put repeating thing they have heard yet never accomplished
Yes, These are a LOT of armchair umpires and keyboard commanders that know all about this high-end patriot shit!
I would like like to know:
the initial velocity,
the highest elevation of the projectile in respect to the muzzle
The total drop to the target
The velocity at impact. (I think the projectile stayed super sonic since it travelled 3500 meters in less than 10 secs.
How long would it take for that round to slow down to sub sonic given average temperature and humidity?
Velocity every 100m?
Well? You could always stand down range with a radar detector and all the high-end equipment available on the market and we will lob a round at you so you can find out?
Sensing to gather information like that is just now becoming feasible. A recent article by Joseph Calamia in Discover magazine describes the “One Shot System” the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Administration (DARPA) is developing to calculate the average crosswinds blowing through the path from rifle to target. This takes a lot of guesswork out of estimating windage over two miles.
The rest of the information you want is probably in a book that doesn’t get a lot of circulation outside the NATO sniper community (The US, Canada, Britain and Norway are the holders of the long-range distance records for sniper kills). Muzzle velocity depends on the barrel length and rifling twist of the rifle, along with powder charge (and composition) and bullet weight.
At least a rough estimate of highest point in the ballistic path, total drop to the target, and terminal velocity can be derived from existing formulae in the shooting community.
Measurements of velocity along the path at 100-meter intervals seem unrealistic, but the same LIDAR hardware and software DARPA is developing that could give you average crosswinds to the target could also track the bullet along its path and give you the actual (not computed) ballistic path, velocity at any arbitrary point you name, et cetera.
No one wants this true more than me. However, I’ve seen 3,540 yds, 3,781, 2.1 mile, 2,2 miles, 3.6km, etc. That said, I hope we got a 2.5 miler soon.
Outstanding. Keep it up.
Love reading these stories from the battlefield!
That is the best of the best way to go . Now jest do it again and again and again and so on That is a very good job
Do a ballistics calculation and find the energy of a 338LM at 2 miles. It may be possible but certainly not optimal. That said, everyone should keep trying and keep posting high scores!
Fake news? Probably. The comment that it took about 10 seconds for the bullet to reach its target indicates to me that if this isn’t fake news, it’s at least inaccurately reported. With that caliber, the bullet would arrive in about half that time at that distance, unless shooting into a ferocious head wind, on a very humid day. Hmmm…
Maybe not. It starts at about 3000 ft/sec. and at 10560 ft it is moving much slower, maybe 600 ft/sec. or less. Average that over the time and it is well over 1/2 sec. They were accurate in stating it took less than 10 sec.
I meant to say over 5 sec.
Okay, so if you consider the muzzle velocity of the McMillan at 2641 f/s (that’s FEET per second, not meters), you would then calculate the range at 11614 feet 2 inches. Divide that by 2641 and you get 4.39 seconds. But, oh wait, that’s only if the muzzle velocity is maintained at 2641f/s (or 805m/s). Now let’s calculate the drop in velocity of a 750gr round. At 1750 meters (~half the distance), the velocity is ~1512f/s. At target, the velocity is ~935f/s. Given those numbers, what do you think that would do to the time of arrival in the round? Still 5 seconds? Please take your fake news claims somewhere else and let the big boys talk. This may not be true, but it’s certainly plausible, given the data. Given the location (on top of a large building), this would allow line of sight and still allow shooter compensation for bullet drop without having to lob it in.
These calculations are based on a 50 BMG 750gr Hornady A-Max accounting for mean elevation, humidity (average 60% that time of year), and temperature in Syria. No wind calculations, since that would be tough to do, but that would reduce the velocity even more. Zeroed at 1000yards, the bullet drop would be about 649 feet.
Is the Amax allowed? I know no ballistic tip, soft point or hollow points are allowed in the military for the dumbest reasons ever devised. Only FMJ or open tip match bullets like the SMK are allowed. The 750 Amax is one heck of a bullet though
Greg,
Not sure how you came up with your number but i ran this through my ballistics program and it actually did take over 10 seconds for the bullet to arrive. Plus, to make the shot even more incredible, if the rifle was zeroed to hit dead on at 1000 yards, at 3781 yards the bullet would have dropped almost 1250 feet! Plus, given just a 5 mph cross wind, at that distance the bullet would drift almost 50 feet!. That was truly an amazing shot but I’m certain even the sniper would agree, there was a lot of luck involved too!
sounds like a guy who pissed a Canadian holds the record,oddly enough,,Canadian Snipers made 3 of the 4 longest kill shots out there,so dont dismiss it because it wasn\’t an American shot,those Canadian snipers can shoot more than you think,they also are given pretty much anything they want to get the job done,
Incredible shot. Technology has come a long way since the famous 1 mile shot on hill 51 (Hathcock)
The Fifty BMG is an awesome round. The energy it delivers on impact is devastating. Like a little bomb,
with shrapnel going everywhere. Most 50 kills don’t have to hit the intended target. It only has to be close
Yeah, no.
What do think happens to 50 when it hits something hard. brick, concrete, ammo can……
The famous 1 mile kill from the 50 with Unertl scope never actually hit the boy on the bike.
It hit the handle bar in front of him . So now you know
Incredible shot! One of our best of the best from our neighbors from the north! I Would love to have a shot at one of those duty bastards!
I’d like to know how he calculated that shot when it’s impossible even to see a human size target 2.5 miles out. Fake News!!
Idiot.
Did he hit the person he aimed at or was he shooting at a crowd, Don’t care it was a great job just curious.
Regardless, when your buddy drops with a huge hole in him and you have no idea where it came from and probably didn’t hear the shot, you drop and crawl.
Have you ever heard of a scope?
Yes I have heard of scopes. I own 2 5.5X22 night force scopes. At 2000 yards I cannot see a person but I am 70 years old. At over 3000 yards the drop of the round would place the round out of line of sight I would like to know the scope he used the round he used the rifle he used and the special equipment used to verify the kill. Still a great shot but can the shot be duplicated on a daily or even a weekly basis?
Putting a 2 5.5X22 night force on a TAC 50A1 would be like using your Granddaddy’s 22 caliber rifle scope on this rifle.
Frank is a moron,who really doesn\’t have a clue.just pissed off because a CANADIAN holds the record,
A good scope is capable of seeing a person at that distance and further. My only question is: “he had to account for wind, bullet drop, and even the Earth’s curvature”. Earth’s curvature bull shit. Watch a boat at so many miles out you can see it no more, why ? Is it because of curvature, NO it is because yours eyes have a limitation. Use a scope and you will see your so call disappearing boat. Stop believing all that bullshit that they are telling us, RESEARCH !!!
By the way how in the hell can you account for curvature ? Oh, maybe he had a magic bullet like the J.F.K.assassination !
The reference to the “curvature of the earth” is a journalistic error. It should have read “the earth’s rotation” ; which any LOOOOOONG distance sniper is familiar with.
Coriolis Effect is bunk! No sniper has to account for it. I guarantee you that if a long range shooter misses his target by a few yards, its not because he didn’t adjust for the Coriolis Effect, but was because he was slightly off on his wind or elevation calculations or both
Team work and a computer assisted program. The whole kit can be purchased for around $20000/-.
Incredible..Sounds impossible..In this day and age I would have to see it to believe it..Sounds too much like a made up war story..Who is the corroborator…I just hope this doesn’t come back later as a fairytale..Good for him if it’s true and he can remain anonymous..
You can run but U Cain’t hide
ya and if you stand perfectly still for at least 10 seconds in the open, you may get dropped
Minor correction. It isn’t the earth’s curvature that has to be accounted for, it’s the earth’s rotation – it’s called the Coriolis effect. The amount of compensation for Coriolis changes based on azimuth, latitude, and distance to target. Coriolis is greatest when firing due east or west and at the equator. Coriolis has no effect when firing due N or S, no matter the latitude. The trajectory of all bullets is affected by it, no matter the range to target, but the effect is insignificant inside about 1000 yards.
His spotter had a ballistics calculator to come up with the firing solution (it can be done by hand, but you’d have to know Sin values of all angles from 1º to 89º, plus a few other things), but that doesn’t diminish the shooter’s skill in the least.
“…Coriolis is greatest when firing due east or west and at the equator. Coriolis has no effect when firing due N or S, no matter the latitude. ..”
That is incorrect.
The Coriolis effect cones into play on north/ south shots. It will either cause the shot to go left or right depending on direction of the shot fired..
Shooting east/ west will cause the shot to go high/ low, depending on the direction of the shot, due to the earth’s rotation; the name of the effect escapes me at this writing, but it isn’t the Coriolis effect.
As both effects are constant for a given location, they don’t come into play at one’s home range.
You’re correct, Ed. I’m trained as a meteorologist (USAF) and the coriolis effect does affect objects traveling North/South only. As for the East-West effect, I don’t think there is one in this case. The coriolis effect is due to a change in angular momentum; i.e., when an object moves N/S over the surface of the earth, it is either getting closer or farther away from the Earth’s axis of rotation. For an E/W moving object, that’s not the case. And since the earth and its atmosphere are rotating at a constant rate, and you’re firing at an object that’s on the same earth rotating at the same rate, whether you’re firing into or away from the earth’s rotation shouldn’t make a difference. An exception to that would be when the object moves up or down significantly; again, closer/farther from the axis of rotation. But a change of only a few meters or even a few tens of meters won’t make any difference. The scale is too small. Having said all this, I’m not a sniper, so maybe there’s something I’ve overlooked.
Apparently my earlier comment was disappeared when it didn\’t past moderation. So I\’ll be brief:
Do a search on the term : Eötvös Effect
On E-W/ W-E shots it impacts vertical to a similar magnitude as does the Coriolis Effect does N-S/ S-N shots, but for different reasons
Regards,
ED
This is absolute BS. If this was true, then why do planes not have to account for it?
The Coriolis Effect is total hogwash
I’d say that while we can see Coriolis effect every day (depending on how often you shave, brush your teeth, or shower), its effects on fluids like air and water are stronger than on dense metal objects, like bullets. That said, a bullet’s a lot lighter than an aircraft, and doesn’t have a pilot on board to correct its path, or engines to keep it on path every second of its flight.
THAT is why Coriolis effect can be neglected in aviation – its impact on the path of a powered aircraft is microscopic compared to all the other forces acting on the aircraft. A bullet, on the other hand, is kept on path by its forward momentum. Every other force acting on it pulls it out of the imaginary straight line from the shooter’s eye to the target – Coriolis effect included. But I’m still skeptical that Coriolis effect on the bullet figures that much. The aggregate Coriolis effect on the air around the bullet (the wind) is much greater.
Fantastic!!! Let’s see the video!
Did the sheep get hurt?
No! It was relieved…. 🙂
It was a happy day for all the livestock, melons, women and kids in the neighborhood.
Truly an impossible feat. What an amazing shot that will stand in the record books for a very long time. Congratulations to the elite shooter. He just made his country proud. It talks about the armor he had but what scope was he using? That’s the key. A scope that will allow you to see that far has to be a good one. My top choice has always been Nightforce but I have never touched a top tier nightforce. I’ve only read about them. I hope they will identify what he was using.
good, kill those MF’s
That is totally mind boggling, yet beautiful !!
I wonder what the velocity was when it hit?
Look it up on Hornady’s ballistic calculator.
Freaking incredible shot
keep up the good work
The scope was a Schmidt & Bender 5-25X56.
Can you say where that info was found?
ausome
another dirt bag gone
Awesome!!
That is a fabulous long distance shot .
We at UA/Arms have designed a new shoulder fired 50 BMG prototype that weighs approx 20 lbs and with a guided box drawn laser that is capable of a 3 mile kill shot . It is still in testing and will be available for commercial distribution in late 2017.
Are you guys working with DARPA on the “One Shot System”? I’ve seen their Broad Agency Announcement for proposals to do work on their average crosswind measurement device, which would give a shooter a great deal of uncertainty about windage to long-distance targets. Or is your guided box drawn laser designed to do something else? Sounds like a subject for an whole article here.
Meant to say “which would SAVE a shooter a great deal of uncertainty about windage to long-distance targets”
Need… more…. coffee.
Has there been any information as to the glass he was using for this shot?
Generally military long range precision rifles are using Schmidt & Bender. The best German glass money can buy
I remember when another Canadian, Rob Furlong, shattered the record in Afghanistan! We all thought that was amazing! This is incredible! Cav, Hooah!
That is amazing! I’m sure this guy is so in tune with his body he can totally dictate his breathing. Along with probably shooting in between heart beats. Truly truly amazing!
Atta baby.
This guy is a total bad ass.