Sniper I.

This is coolbert:

Sniper, ala Russ.

[my comments in bold].

During the Second World War [WW2], the Russian soldier proved to be a master of the art of sniping. This prowess of the Russian sniper was properly shown in the recent movie "Enemy at the Gates".

And this ability of the Russian WAS feared by the average German soldier. According to Lucas, it was said by German soldiers, "the two worse things about Russia are the lice and snipers!".

The Russian sniper was the result of a well thought out doctrine, plan, and training that existed way before WW2 began.

"Soviet snipers were a part of the military planning and tactics long before the outbreak of the war. The Soviet experience from the first world war highlighted the importance of incorporating sharpshooters or snipers into their battle plans.

However, the shooting skills of the Finns during the Winter War drove home a bloody point that could not be ignored by the Soviet high command. Soviet field commanders feared the presence of Finn sharpshooters and snipers and recognized that these snipers were able to disrupt the communications and flow of battle and served to demoralize front line troops. It was the experience of these commanders that shaped sniper tactics in the Soviet Army.

The tactics of the Soviet Sniper, it is necessary to review the philosophy for using snipers in the first place. Under the Soviet system, snipers were fielded in teams of two with a sniper and an observer. Both team members were qualified snipers and changed roles after each kill. The sniper was to provide both scouting duties as well as point and indirect fire to disrupt enemy activities and communications.

The sniper was a scout, blocking force, psychological operations unit, and deadly marksman all rolled into one."

Soviet troops suffered very badly at the hands of Finnish snipers during the war of 1940 between Finland and the Soviet Union. During the extreme cold conditions, Soviet troops would gather around fires for warmth, and made easy targets for Finnish marksmen.

The feats of Soviet snipers during WW2 are truly amazing. Among the outstanding Soviet snipers of WW2 are:

[A sniper reaching forty kills would receive the "for bravery" and the title of "Nobel Sniper".]

"During the Great Patriotic War many Soviet snipers killed with their accurate fire several hundred Nazi soldiers each. For example, it is recorded in the service record book of the renowned sniper of the 169' rifle regiment of the 86 rifle division belonging to the 2nd Shock Army, staff sergeant N. F. Semyonov, who fought on the approaches to Leningrad from 29 August 1941 to 10 June 1943, that he killed 218 fascists. Furthermore, he taught and trained an additional 94 sniper fighters who, in turn, added a further 580 enemy soldiers and officers."

What this tells me is something similar to the situation that exists with fighter pilot "aces". 10 % of the pilots shoot down 90 % of the aircraft downed in aerial combat. A similar situation probably exists with snipers. 10 % of the snipers account for 90 % of the "kills" To me, this is intuitive.

* "Lieutenant Pavlichenko [Lyudmila, a woman] was cited by the Southern Red Army Council for killing 257 German soldiers. Her total confirmed kills during WWII was 309 enemy. Lyudmila killed 36 enemy snipers. She found the kill logbook of one of the Nazi snipers she killed. He had taken the lives of over 500 Soviet snipers."



Lieutenant Lyudmila toured the U.S. during the war and was personally presented to Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt.

* "Sniper I. Antonov, a naval rating from the Baltic Fleet, in ambush. During the Great Patriotic War this expert marksman killed more than 300 fascists.

* Sniper V. Kozlov, just being decorated for his 30th kill.

* Vassili Zaitsev [the great Zaitsev, whose exploits are portrayed so well in the movie, "Enemy At The Gates"] - 400 kills (149 Kills at the battle of Stalingrad)."

Tragically, Zaitsev stepped on a landmine in the aftermath of Stalingrad and was blinded.

* "The highest scorer only identified as "Zikan" killed 224 Germans by 20 November 1942.

* Sergeant Passar of 21st Army was credited with 103 kills.

* Kucherenko, an Ukrainian, killed 19.

* An Uzbek from 169th Rifle Division killed five Germans in three days.

* Anatoly Chekov killed 17 Germans in two days!

* Corporal Studentov killed 170 Germans.

* "Noble Sniper" Ilin, a commissar from a Guards rifle regiment, was credited
with 185 kills."

Impressive figures!!

It is without doubt that the Russian sniper in WW2 was a master whose exploits far exceeded the the snipers of other combatants. The psychological impact if nothing else had to be profound.

The Russian experience was duly observed by the militaries of other nations, and proper attention paid to this neglected aspect of modern warfare. Such a nation was the U.S. More on this later.

coolbert.