Author: Sniper Ghost

Carlos Hathcock Vietnam Sniper

Sniper Ghost Posts

This Marine Was The ‘American Sniper’ Of The Vietnam War

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Carlos Hathcock taking aim in Vietnam. (Photo: USMC archives)

Long before Chris Kyle penned “American Sniper,” Carlos Hathcock was already a legend.

He taught himself to shoot as a boy, just like Alvin York and Audie Murphy before him. He had dreamed of being a U.S. Marine his whole life and enlisted in 1959 at just 17 years old. Hathcock was an excellent sharpshooter by then, winning the Wimbledon Cup shooting championship in 1965, the year before he would deploy to Vietnam and change the face of American warfare forever.

He deployed in 1966 as a military policeman, but immediately volunteered for combat and was soon transferred to the 1st Marine Division Sniper Platoon, stationed at Hill 55, South of Da Nang. This is where Hathcock would earn the nickname “White Feather” — because he always wore a white feather on his bush hat, daring the North Vietnamese to spot him — and where he would achieve his status as the Vietnam War’s deadliest sniper in missions that sound like they were pulled from the pages of Marvel comics. Continue reading →

AC-130 Gunship Combat Operations

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It’s incredible to see a slow cargo aircraft become a devastation raining ground-attack aircraft.

There are various models outfitted with anything from gatling guns, howitzer cannons, and even missiles and bombs.

The gunship’s weaponry is mounted on the left side of the aircraft, and it performs a wide circular “pylon” turn around the target and can stay on station for an extended period of time.

Most people hate riding in a C-130 so much that they jump out of it, but that beats getting shot at by one any day.