- Staff Sergeant Philip Cho is a sniper with the Army’s 11th Airborne Division in Alaska.
- Cho said that while the film mainly focuses on precision shooting, there is more to sniping than that.
- Movies often don’t show the true value of fieldcraft or concealment.
This told essay is based on a conversation with Sgt. Philip Cho, a U.S. Army sniper with the Alaska-based 11th Airborne Division. Edited for length and clarity.
Sniper training focuses on range estimation, target detection, precision shooting, etc., but the final shot is the aspect most heavily depicted in Hollywood movies.
But in reality, the most difficult part of being a sniper is putting all these things together. This is because even people who are good at distance estimation may have trouble detecting targets, especially in wooded areas or urban environments.
For me, the easiest part is probably the shooting. Because I was already good at shooting before I became a sniper.
And I realized that it’s just a part for work. Being a sniper requires a lot of things, from hiding from patrols and trained observers to finding targets and calling in shooting missions, artillery fire and more.
adult hide and seek
One thing I often say is the importance of training. If you train hard enough and can do your job well under pressure during training, you can do it in real life too.
Suppose you are calculating the distance to a target during training. Then you’ll be able to do it in the field because you’ve already shown that you can do it in the field.
Of course, in real life, there are times when equipment failures cannot be predicted, but when an emergency occurs, you should have experienced all the types of failures and obstacles that you would experience in the field through training.
When we train for target detection, one of the biggest games we play is to hide objects outside and have people sitting in the same position find them. It’s like hide and seek for adults.
I think if you train hard, you’ll be able to get into the zone when it comes time to work, regardless of how nervous you are.
But being sensitive is also a good thing. One of the leaders of my first scouting party said to me: “If you’ve been in a job for as long as you’re comfortable with, you should probably quit, because it’s going to kill people.” Complacency is never an option. , you must always remain calm.
I love the .300 Win Mag
Our section of Alaska currently has several rifles in stock. An M110 loaded with .308, an M2010 loaded with .300 Winchester Magnum, a brand new MK22, only .308 for now, and an M107. , this is our anti-material rifle.
The MK22 is a great shooting system and an easy to use weapon, but I have personally never used it in a field environment.
I will always be an M2010 fan. I love the .300 Win Mag. It’s a typical sniper rifle, but from what I’ve seen the MK22 is a better weapon system and one that’s more comfortable to use.
As snipers, we have to carry not only a rifle but also a large amount of additional equipment.
In the summer, our gear weighs approximately 60 to 80 pounds, including observation and communication equipment, spare batteries, and actual weapons and ammunition.
Winter requires bunny boots, various layers to keep you warm, and a variety of cold-weather gear to add to that. Snipers typically carry between 90 and 120 pounds of extra weight in the cold.
Disappearing into the depths and shadows
The movie touches on cover-up, but never shows the true value of what makes cover-up effective.
Camouflaging with surrounding elements makes something like a ghillie suit effective. It also allows snipers to remain undetected in operational environments even when not wearing a ghillie suit.
I’d rather have someone I can hide from without having to babysit than someone who can keep a perfect distance. Because we can work on it. It’s about mastering depth and how shadows disappear in your environment.
And that’s what we have to master as snipers that differentiates us.
