SniperInstructor

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Welcome to Sniper School, we'll start from the bottom and build up the skill set. This isn't to think you're stupid and don't know what you're doing. We just want to teach people our way of doing things, in our own theory and implementation.

We're not perfect, and we will miss things and fail on other things, so it's important that if you have feedback you write it down and give it to us in the end, so we can make changes as necessary. Just understand that even though you might have input, doesn't always mean we'll change it, somethings are just necessary.

Expectations from you: I just want you to listen and work with me to do your best. If you don't want to be here, let me know now and we'll end it here, no harm no foul. If you have questions ask them, there will be times where I won't be able to answer your questions because I'm looking for how you respond or react without answers. Do your best and there will be no problems. Go outside of what we want and we'll discuss the issues and why we have problems.

Expectations from me: I am dedicated to training and making people more proficient in any way possible. I will be harsh at times, but I will always be fair, its the nature of expectations from this role. I will make some things suck, but again that's necessary to make value of the training and the role. If I make you quit because it's not for you, than I have succeeded in making sure we have selected the right people. If you have succeeded and passed, I have also succeeded in helping improve Charlie-Mike and you. I will have failed Charlie-Mike, myself and others if you slip by at average and don't care and I don't notice.

Phase One

Role Expectation:

- In this Sniper Role, I want you to keep this in your mind while going through this whole process. "I will observe first, shoot last". What I want from Snipers in Charlie-Mike is someone who will be not seen, not heard, and support the Main body conducting their mission. We want someone who will quietly find their way to support the Main Force. Then utilize their skill set to support the Main Force as a "Force Multiplier".

- When I mention "not heard" it is meant to be not heard by the enemy. This means I want you to communicate to the Main Force, but I want you like a ghost in the field. I don't want our Force to see you, and I don't want the enemy to see you either.

- I need you to take the time to consider all things in the mission. The geography, the terrain, the time of day, the weather, civilians, enemy. I need you to think of a 3d Battlefield.

- I want you acting independent without much instruction. If you can go a whole Operation with firing a shot, but you have allowed our forces to mitigate casualties, win the fight, and are Mission Successful. You have done your job as a Sniper.

- Should you select this role as a sniper, we never want to hear "I was bored the entire time". That means you were not meant for this role.

Gear Setup:

- Gear selection is important. Think Mobility, but sneaky. Think Recon, but more stationary. We need light gear, less protection, but more dangerous tools. All of this is mission dependent. So one loadout will be completely different then another. Example; If we needed you to employ yourself high on a mountain and observe a town occupied by the enemy, versus you moving into a forested region to get established for recon and a possible engagement.

Rifle Considerations:

DMR's (Designated Marksman Rifle) - Mk14, Rahim, Cyrus, M AR-10, MK1 EMR, M110 SASS, MK 11 mod 0, - Effective Ranges of 500 - 800

Good for: Patrol Overwatch, Urban Overwatch, Quick Engagements. Light weight, Semi Auto, Easier Ammo, Good for mobility.

Bad for: Less punch at range, Often subsonic past 800, meaning it becomes unstable and reliable past that range.

Standard Sniper Rifles

- Rifles - M2000, GM6 Lynx, CMR-76, ASP-1 KIR, M2010 ESR, M24 SWS.

Each one of these have a pros and cons, we'll summarize on some of these.

Bolt Actions:

 M2000 Intervention  - 408 - Bolt action, High velocity, excellent accuracy to 1800m. Issues: Bolt Action, Loud and unsuppressed, Heavy including ammo.

 M2010 ESR  -  300 win mag - Bolt Action, 1000m - 1200m, better wind resistance then 7.62 Issues - Bolt Action, Louder, Ammo heavier.
 
 M24 SWS    - 762 x 51 - 800m - 1000m, low weight, accurate, Good concealment. Issues - Obsolete, Suffers due to ammo type

Semi-Auto:

 Gm6 Lynx - 12.7mm/50 Cal - Semi Auto, Anti-Materiel, heavy recoil, can disable Light Vehicles. Issues: Very loud, High recoil, Extremely heavy.

 M107 Barrett - 50 cal      -  1200m - 1800m, Anti-Materiel, Semi Auto. Issues: Very loud, very heavy, recoil, cannot be suppressed.

 Cyrus    - 9.3mm         - Semi Auto, Good stopping power, DMR feel with higher penetration Issues: Limited Stopping power beyond 900m. Not sniper grade for beyond 1000m, not ideal for vehicle interdiction.

 MK11/M14                 - Accurate 600-900, Lighter, Sniper-DMR hybrids

Unique Platform:

 ASP-1 KIR  - 12.7x54mm Subsonic - Quiet, unique, anti-personnel, integrated Suppressor, Poor Range, very quiet. Issues: Short range (600 max), Challenging ballistics, Ammo is rare and heavy.

Mission Profiles:

 Stealth overwatch                - MK 11/ASP-1                 - Quiet Suppressed, decent optics.

 Long Range Elimination           - M2000/M2010 ESR              - Supreme Accuracy, Bolt action

 Vehicle Neutralization           - GM6 Lynx/M107                - Anti-Materiel Power

 Urban Overwatch/Patrol Overwatch - M14/Cyrus//Mk11              - Mobility, semi-auto

 Recon Overwatch                  - M24 SWS or Mk11 (suppressed) - Light Quiet, Bolt action precision.

 Night Ops/Suppressed Sniper      - Mk 11                    - Compatible with NVG Scopes

Gear to Bring other than Rifles

Sniper

1. Primary Weapon system (Dependent on Mission Profile)

a. Suppressor
b. 8-12 mags of Primary Weapon System
c. Backup optic

2. Side arm

a. Glock, or pistol of choosing, or even MP5PDW
b. Suppressor for sidearm
c. 2-4 mags

3. Uniform

a. Microdagr gps - Grid info, Navigation etc.
b. Range card    - needs to be in uniform to relate to weapon system.
c. Map tools/Protractor
d. Medical

4. LBV/Backpack

a. Binos
b. Notebook

Spotter

1. Primary Weapon System: Carbine or Short Range Rifle

a. suppressor
b. 6-12 mags
c. extra mags for Sniper Weapon System

2. Spotter Items Needed:

a. Vector 21/Laser Designator
b. Bipod
c. Kestrel 4500 
d. Microdagr GPS
e. Map Tools/Protractor
f. Notebook
g. Medical - including saline & PAK's
h. LR Radio
i. Smoke Grenades
j. Entrenching tool
k. Extra batteries
l. IR Strobes/Chem lights

Other Mission Specific Items: - Claymore/Mines/Tripwire - For Self Defense and protection of area.

- UAV - Intel gathering

Phase Two

Role, Fieldcraft, Firing Position, & Movement

Core Mission Tasking

 1. ISR - Intel/Surveillance/Recon     - Observe the Enemy, Report Strength, movement, and patterns.

 2. Precision Engagement               - Identify and terminate High Value Target(s), with minimal footprint. 

 3. Main Body Support/Force Multiplier - In Support of other elements, provide guidance, overwatch, laser marking, target identification.

Team Composition

• Sniper - Focused on Shooting and observation.

• Spotter - Range calls, Wind, enemy movement, nav, security.

 Communication will be extremely important. The Spotter is typically the senior/leader of the team.

Concealment vs Cover

• We know that Concealment masks us, but does not cover us from bullets, or explosions.

• Cover protects you from bullets and explosions

• A Sniper must try and blend both, but situationally dependent.

• Always avoid silhouetting, don't break skylines, ridgelines, or isolated terrain.

Ghillie & Camo

• Ghillies are powerful when static, but hinder mobility.

• Use vegetation and the environment to mask your position, and movement.

• face masks, gloves, helmet netting will help mask unnatural features.

Movement Techniques

• Low Crawl - When attempting to be unseen. Utilize this when getting close to your Firing/Observation Position.

• Crouch move - Faster but more visible

• Walk & Freeze - When moving through brush, move for 100 meters, stop - crouch. Listen and observe around you.

• Stalking - Move only when unseen, pause often, use optics to scan ahead.

 When we move we want deliberate, slow movement. Frequently make stops, to look, listen. Force yourself to slow down, consider walking. Make sure you're employing noise and light discipline. If you don't need to talk, then don't. Don't run around the battlefield with your binoculars out. Only talk in whisper mode, and when at stops. Pay attention when moving. Remember you're a very small team, or even solo, you can die extremely easy, and even more likely you'll miss something.

Terrain Features & Movement

• Ridgeline - Stay off the top of the ridge. Move below the crest, and avoid being exposed.

• Mountains - Stay out of Skyline, stay low at the base. Find alternatives to viewing Objectives.

• Valley - If covered, suitable for movement, be concerned about high angles and other view points.

• Forests - Good for movement, masks both you and the enemy well.

• Open areas - Stay out of them, skirt around them.

• Rivers/Streams - Loud movement, will make it difficult for you to hear, no above cover.

 Other than Skylining and avoiding the obvious features, there's not hard and fast rule for finding the best route to your objective. Utilize speed, cover, concealment, and patience move. Don't move so fast that you're missing stuff.

Firing Position Essentials

1. Shape - Use natural terrain, avoid unnatural lines.

2. Shine - No reflective scopes, or skin.

3. Silhouette - Never skyline, avoid hard angles.

4. Shadow - Use Deep shadows or shaded ground.

5. Spacing - Don't bunch up with your spotter, stagger slightly.

6. Routes - Plan entry and exit ahead of time.

• Look for places so you may have wide field of fire, but narrow field of detection.

• 1-2 fallback spots pre-selected.

• Partial view is better than full exposure. You only need LOS to your kill zone.

Phase Three =

Rangefinding, Estimation & Windage

1. There's multiple ways to get a range of an item.

a. Range finder
b. Scope and Mil dots
c. Map and tools

2. Ranger finder you will need batteries to operate, an extremely easy tool to use.

3. Scope and Mildots to determine range.

a. a man is 1.8 meters tall
b. Using the scope with mildots measure the man (in this case 3 dots)
c. (1.8 x 1000)/3 = 600 meters in distance.

  You can adjust your scope in game (if compatible)  Ctrl + Pg up Adjusts increments by .1 left Ctrl+Pg dwn adjusts increments by .1 right. 
 SHFT + Pg up Adjusts by 1 left
 SHFT + Pg Dwn Adjusts by 1 right
 PG-UP & PG DWN Will make adjustments .1 down and up.
 SHFT+PgUP & SHFT+PgDwn Will make adjustmetns by 1 up and down.

• We'll Begin by Ranging 3 targets using our tools.

1. Range out three things with your Laser finder and communicate them.

2. I will identify three items in visual range. Without using your Rangefinding tools, use your Map to identify the range.

3. Finally using your scope with mildots in it. Identify the range of three more targets.

Phase Four =

Core Drills

1. Known Distance Engagement

• First Iteration; Target Ranges will be done with zero wind and at known distance. Target Ranges 300, 600, 900, 1200, & 1500

• Second Iteration will be with same targets with minor wind at known distance 300, 600, 900, 1200 & 1500

• Third iteration will be same targets with high winds at known distances 300, 600, 900, 1200 & 1500

2. Unknown Distance Engagement

• In a new location, we will commit to new targets at unknown distance.

• Second iteration will introduce wind

• Third iteration will introduce high wind

Phase Five =

Foundation Drills

  We'll conduct four iterations. A lot of this we covered, but some stuff we didn't. Sometimes failure is the best learning tool and therefore we will incorporate things for you to learn on the job. I could discuss every facet and thing, but doing versus listening are very different. These foundation drills will not disqualify you in any way. We want to see you fumble, struggle and work hard to make the outcome the best possible one you can obtain.

 * Communication
 * Pace
 * Patience
 * Decision making
 * Fore thought and pre planning.
 

1. First Iteration.

a. You'll be given a target area & mission
b. You'll decide where you want to setup
c. You'll then be given targets to identify and kill in a small window of time.

2. Second Iteration.

a. This will be at night.
b. Mission is to provide overwatch for friendly forces.
c. There is an enemy sniper in the area.
d. You will have little time to find the sniper and eliminate him before he causes casualties to your friendlies.

3. Third Iteration

a. Mission is elimination of HVT without being noticed or spotted.
b. Mission will occur in two phases. Phase one will be ingress at night time. Phase two will be elimination when the HVT arrives.
c. You will then egress out of AO without being spotted.
d. we'll also be looking for reports of enemy composition.

4. Fourth Iteration

a. Timed
b. Get into the AO.
c. Locate the HVT
d. Eliminate the target.
e. we'll have them be sure they're prepping defenses and egress plans (small patrol finds them)