Carlos Hathcock

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Carlos Norman Hathcock II
May 20, 1942(1942-05-20) – February 23, 1999 (aged 56)

Carlos Hathcock in 1996
Nickname Tra'ng (white feather)
Place of birth Little Rock, Arkansas
Place of death Virginia Beach, Virginia
Allegiance United States of America
Service/branch United States Marine Corps
Years of service 1959-1979
Rank Gunnery Sergeant
Battles/wars Vietnam War
Awards Silver Star
Purple Heart

Gunnery Sergeant Carlos Norman Hathcock II (May 20, 1942 – February 23, 1999) was a United States Marine Corps sniper with a service record of 93 confirmed kills and more than 300 probable kills during the Vietnam War.[verification needed] Hathcock's record and the extraordinary details of the missions he undertook made him a legend in the Marine Corps. His fame as a sniper and his dedication to long distance shooting led him to become a major developer of the United States Marine Corps Sniper training program. He has, in recent years, also had the honor of having a rifle named after him, a variant of the M21 dubbed the Springfield Armory M25 White Feather.[1]

Contents

[edit] Early life

Carlos Norman Hathcock, II, was born in Geyer Springs, Arkansas on May 20, 1942. He grew up in rural Arkansas, living with his grandmother after his parents separated. He took to shooting and hunting at a young age, partly out of necessity to help feed his poor family. He took to going into the woods with his dog and pretending to be an Army Ranger and hunting fake Nazis in his own little Germany. He would "hunt" at the young age with a rifle that his father had brought back from Europe during World War Two. Hathcock dreamed of being a Marine throughout his childhood,[2] and on May 20, 1959, at the age of 17, he enlisted in the Marine Corps.

Hathcock married Jo Winstead on November 20, 1962. Jo gave birth to a son, Carlos Norman Hathcock, III. Carlos Hathcock III would later join the Marines.

[edit] Marine Corps career

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Before deploying to Vietnam, Hathcock had won many shooting championships.[3] In 1966, Hathcock started his deployment in Vietnam as an MP and later became a sniper after Captain E.J. Land pushed the Marines into raising snipers in every platoon. Land later recruited Marines who had set their own records in sharpshooting; he quickly found Hathcock, who had won the Wimbledon Cup, the most prestigious prize for long-range shooting, at Camp Perry in 1965.[3]

During the Vietnam War, Hathcock was confirmed for killing 93 North Vietnamese Army and Viet-Cong personnel.[4][3] His actual total is believed to be well over 400, with at least an additional 300 being unconfirmed, which the official count does not reflect (during the Vietnam War, kills had to be confirmed by an acting third party; this was feasible on a battlefield, but snipers usually worked in pairs (shooter and spotter) and often did not have an acting third party present, which made confirmation difficult). He is third only to U.S. Marine Corps sniper Chuck Mawhinney and U.S. Army sniper Adelbert Waldron on the list of most confirmed kills for an American sniper

The North Vietnamese Army even put a bounty of $30,000 on his life for killing so many of their men. Rewards put on U.S. snipers by the N.V.A. typically amounted to only $8.[5][3] The Viet Cong and N.V.A. called Hathcock Lông Trắng, translated as "White Feather", because of the white feather he kept in a band on his bush hat. ("Marine Sniper" by Charles Henderson) After a platoon of trained Vietnamese snipers were sent to hunt down "White Feather", many Marines in the same area donned white feathers in their covers to deceive the enemy. These Marines were aware of the impact Hathcock's death would have, and took it upon themselves to make themselves targets in order to preserve the life of the true "White Feather".[citation needed]

One of Hathcock's most famous accomplishments was shooting an enemy sniper through his scope, hitting him in the eye and killing him.[6] Hathcock and John Burke, his spotter, were stalking the enemy sniper in the jungle near Hill 55, the firebase where Hathcock was operating from. The sniper had already killed several Marines, and was believed to have been sent specifically to kill Hathcock. When Hathcock saw a flash of light (light reflecting off the enemy sniper's scope) in the bushes,[7] he fired at it, shooting through the scope and killing the sniper.[3] Surveying the situation, Hathcock concluded that the only feasible way he could have put the bullet straight down the enemy's scope and through his eye would have been if both snipers were zeroing in on each other at the same time, and Hathcock fired first, which gave him only a few seconds to act. Given the flight time of rounds at long ranges, both snipers could easily have killed one another. The enemy rifle was recovered and the incident is documented by a photograph.[dubious – discuss]

Hathcock only once removed the white feather from his bush hat while deployed in Vietnam. During a volunteer mission on his first deployment, he crawled over a thousand meters of field to shoot a commanding NVA general. He wasn't informed of the details of the mission until he was en route to his insertion point aboard a helicopter. This effort took four days and three nights, without sleep, of constant inch-by-inch crawling. In Carlos's words, one enemy soldier (or "hamburger" as Carlos called them), "shortly after sunset", almost stepped on him as he lay camouflaged with grass and vegetation in a meadow ,[8]. At one point he was nearly bitten by a bamboo viper but had the presence of mind to not move and give up his position.[9] As the general was stretching in the morning, Carlos fired a single shot which struck him in the chest and killed him. He had to crawl back instead of run when soldiers started searching.[10][dubious – discuss]

After the arduous mission of killing the general, Hathcock returned to the United States in 1967. However, he missed being away from the Marine Corps and returned to Vietnam in 1969, where he took command of a platoon of snipers.[citation needed]

Hathcock generally used the standard sniper rifle: The Winchester Model 70 .30-06 caliber rifle with the standard Unertl scope. On some occasions, however, he used a different weapon: the .50-caliber M2 Browning Machine Gun, on which he mounted the Unertl scope, using a bracket of his own design.[verification needed] This weapon was accurate to 2500 yards when fired one round at a time. At one point, he took careful aim at a courier carrying a load of assault rifles and ammunition on a bicycle. He had second thoughts when he saw a 12-year-old boy in his sights, but after considering the intended use of those weapons, he fired, hitting the bicycle frame. The boy tumbled over the handlebars and grabbed a gun, so Hathcock killed him. (Source Marine Sniper, Chapter 1.)

Hathcock's career as a sniper came to a sudden end outside Khe Sanh in 1969, when an amphibious amtrack he was riding on struck an anti-tank mine.[3] Hathcock pulled seven Marines off the flame-engulfed vehicle before jumping to safety. He was told he would be recommended for the Silver Star, but he stated that he had only done what anyone there would have if they were awake, so he rejected any commendation for his bravery. Nearly 30 years later, he was awarded the Silver Star, the third most prestigious award in U.S. military.[citation needed]

Hathcock said in a book written about his career as a sniper: "I like shooting, and I love hunting. But I never did enjoy killing anybody. It's my job. If I don't get those bastards, then they're gonna kill a lot of these kids we got dressed up like Marines. That's just the way I see it."[citation needed]

[edit] After Vietnam

After returning from active duty, Hathcock helped establish a scout and sniper school at the Marine base in Quantico, Virginia. Due to his extreme injuries suffered in Vietnam, he was in nearly constant pain, but he continued to dedicate himself to teaching snipers. In 1975, Hathcock's health began to deteriorate and he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis — an incurable, degenerative nerve disorder. He stayed in the Corps but his health continued to decline and was forced to retire just 55 days short of the 20 years that would have made him eligible for full retirement pay. Being medically retired, he received 100% disability. He fell into a state of depression when he was forced out of the Marines because he felt as if the service kicked him out, which he later realized wasn't true. During this depression his wife Jo almost left him, but she finally decided to stay. Hathcock eventually picked up the hobby of shark fishing with the locals, which is accredited to helping his depression.[11] Hathcock often paid visits to the sniper training facility at Quantico, where he was welcomed by students and instructors alike as being "bigger than life" due to his status in shooting circles.

Hathcock once said that he survived in his work because of an ability to "get in the bubble," to put himself into a state of "utter, complete, absolute concentration," first with his equipment, then his environment, in which every breeze and every leaf meant something, and finally on his quarry.[12]

After the war, a friend showed Hathcock a passage written by Ernest Hemingway: "Certainly there is no hunting like the hunting of man, and those who have hunted armed men long enough and like it, never really care for anything else thereafter." He copied Hemingway's words on a piece of paper. "He got that right," Hathcock said. "It was the hunt, not the killing."[citation needed]

Hathcock died on February 23, 1999, in Virginia Beach, Virginia, after a long struggle with multiple sclerosis.[3]

[edit] Decorations

[edit] Legacy

Hathcock remains a legend within the U.S. Marines. The Gunnery Sergeant Carlos Hathcock Award is presented annually to the Marine who does the most to promote marksmanship training.[13] A sniper range is also named for Hathcock at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.

In 1967, Hathcock set the record for the 20th century's longest combat kill with a Browning M2 .50 BMG machine gun mounting a telescopic sight. The distance was 2,286 meters or 1.42 miles. Hathcock was one of several individuals to utilize the Browning M2 machine gun in the sniping role. This success led to the adoption of the .50 BMG cartridge as a viable anti-personnel and anti-equipment sniper round. Sniper rifles have since been designed around and chambered in this caliber.

The record stood until the 21st century, when in 2002 it was broken during Operation Anaconda in Afganistan by a Canadian three-man sniper team led by Master Corporal Graham Ragsdale from the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI). The record itself was set by Corporal Rob Furlong with a shot of 2,430 meters from a McMillan TAC-50 Long-Range Sniper Weapon on a Taliban fighter.

On March 9, 2007, the rifle and pistol complex at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar was officially renamed the Carlos Hathcock Range Complex.[14]

Hathcock was the subject of four books:

  • One Shot, One Kill by Charles W. Sasser and Craig Roberts tells the stories of several snipers, including Hathcock.
  • White Feather: Carlos Hathcock, USMC Scout Sniper--an Authorized Biographical Memoir by Roy F. and Norman A. Chandler.
  • Silent Warrior by Charles W. Henderson.
  • Marine Sniper: 93 Confirmed Kills by Charles W. Henderson

[edit] MythBusters

In an episode of the fourth season of the television show MythBusters (29 November 2006, Episode 67), hosts Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman attempted to test the feasibility of shooting through the scope of another rifle, citing the confirmed Hathcock incident of shooting a North Vietnamese sniper through his victim's scope. They were unable to replicate the results in the story using the modern equipment they had on hand, so they declared the myth "busted." However, they did not replicate the exact conditions of Hathcock's combat incident. The MythBusters did not take into consideration powder loads, bullet weight, muzzle velocity, angle, or variations in air pressure and density. On the show, they conceded that they were not shooting at the same scope that Hathcock shot at and stated that under the exactly ideal conditions and with extreme luck, the shot may have been possible. In the episode aired on March 21, 2007, the MythBusters revisited this myth and confirmed that it was possible, however had to use armor-piercing rounds to fully penetrate the scope. They used a vintage scope this time, which was smaller than modern scopes, and Jamie successfully fired a bullet through the scope. The bullet penetrated the ballistic gel dummy's face to a depth of two inches, which would be lethal to a human. However, it should be noted that on the March 21, 2007 episode, that Jamie used an M1 Garand chambered in .30-06 Springfield, whereas Hathcock used a Winchester Model 70 chambered in .30-06 Springfield. Additionally, Jamie was only able to complete the shot successfully when he fired an armor-piercing round, while Hathcock stated in interviews that he would normally use only standard military ball ammunition. Because of these caveats, and the lack of solid evidence either way on this specific incident, they declared that the retest showed the myth to only be "plausible" rather than "confirmed."

[edit] In fictional works

  • There is a nod to Hathcock in the movie, Saving Private Ryan. Steven Spielberg stated, "the idea of a sniper putting a bullet through another sniper's scope came from the true story of Carlos Hathcock, who killed a Vietcong sniper who was stalking him by putting a bullet through the sniper's scope". Similarly, Pvt. Jackson shot a German sniper in the eye through the German's scope.
  • James S. Thayer, a popular action/adventure novelist, wrote a novel titled White Star, about an ex-Marine sniper named Owen Gray, nicknamed White Star by the Vietnamese, whose exploits closely match those of Hathcock. His nemesis in the book is a fictional son of the equivalent of Vassily Zaitsev.
  • There is a reference to Hathcock in the television show NCIS during the episode "One Shot One Kill", when a small white feather is found at the crime scenes of a sniper's victims.
  • The movie Sniper (1993) [15] features actor Tom Berenger shooting the enemy sniper through his own scope. This is probably based on Hathcock's story as well (Berenger's character was loosely based on Hathcock).
  • The character of Vassili Zaitsev in the 2001 movie Enemy at the Gates comes across a dead sniper that has been shot in the head through the scope.
  • In the First Person Shooter game Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, there is a bonus awarded to a sniper who shoots another sniper through the scope. Also, a mission in single player is titled "One Shot, One Kill".
  • The movie RoboCop 2 contains a segment where the camera is from the point of view of the sniper scope. The sniper is looking at RoboCop, who turns around and shoots the enemy, the bullet going through the sniper scope.
  • In John Ringo's book, Unto the Breach (of the Paladin of Shadows series), it is stated about the sniper Lasko "He was going to beat Hathcock's record, probably within the next fifteen minutes. And that was the killer app in the sniper world."
  • In The 'Nam #52: The Punisher Invades The 'Nam #1,[16] Frank Castle is using an M2 Browning Machine-gun mounted with a scope during a shooting contest out to 2500 yards and hits the dummy. Later he is called out to kill an enemy sniper called "The Monkey." He is dropped off in the brush and crawls "one inch at a time" for 1000 yards to approach the camp to avoid detection by the enemy N.V.A. he calls "hamburgers." On his way he encounters an N.V.A. patrol which he eliminates and a "bamboo viper" which almost bites him before slithering away. He then kills a soldier whom he presumes is the Monkey but is caught on the way out by the real Monkey. In the end of The 'Nam #53: The Punisher Invades The 'Nam #2, it is only Castle versus The Monkey and one more N.V.A soldier. The soldier is sent out to force Castle into firing so the Monkey will know his position. Castle kills the soldier but tricks the Monkey into firing at the lenses of Castle's binoculars which threw off the muzzle flash. Using the flash from the Monkey's shot, Castle then shoots the Monkey through the scope of his rifle.[17]

[edit] See also

United States Marine Corps Portal

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.impactguns.com/store/706397035020.html
  2. ^ Charles Henderson. Marine Sniper, New York: Berkley Books, 1986. p.29. (ISBN 0-425-18165-0)
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Sgt. Grit (2006). Marine Corps Sniper Carlos N. Hathcock II. Retrieved on 2008-03-24.
  4. ^ Kennedy, Harold (March 2003). Marine Corps Sets Sights On More Precise Shooting. National Defense Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-03-30. “Founded in 1977, the school’s first staff NCOIC was the famed sniper, Gunnery Sgt. Carlos Hathcock II, who was credited with 93 confirmed kills in Vietnam.”
  5. ^ Sniper Rifles. GlobalSecurity. Retrieved on 2008-03-24. “During the Vietnam War, the North Vietnamese Army placed bounties from $8 to $2,000 on the heads of Marine snipers. Gunnery Sgt. Carlos Hathcock, with 93 confirmed kills, actually held the record bounty of $30,000 and killed every Vietnamese marksman who sought it.”
  6. ^ Charles Henderson. Marine Sniper, New York: Berkley Books, 1986. p.29. (ISBN 0-425-18165-0)
  7. ^ Charles Henderson. Marine Sniper, New York: Berkley Books, 1986. p.29. (ISBN 0-425-18165-0)
  8. ^ Charles Henderson. Marine Sniper, New York: Berkley Books, 1986. p.29. (ISBN 0-425-18165-0)
  9. ^ Sasser, Charles and Craig Roberts (1990). One Shot, One Kill. New York: Pocket Books, 208. ISBN 0-671-68219-9. 
  10. ^ Charles Henderson. Marine Sniper, New York: Berkley Books, 1986. p.29. (ISBN 0-425-18165-0)
  11. ^ Charles Henderson. Marine Sniper, New York: Berkley Books, 1986. p.306. (ISBN 0-425-18165-0)
  12. ^ Lantz, Gary. White Feather. America's 1st Freedom. National Rifle Association. Retrieved on 2007-04-17.
  13. ^ MARADMIN 148/06 - 2006 CAPITAL MARINE USMC AND USN ENLISTED AWARDS, United States Marine Corps, 3/28/2006.
  14. ^ Range complex named after famous Vietnam sniper. Marine Corps News. United States Marine Corps. Retrieved on 2008-03-24.
  15. ^ Sniper at the Internet Movie Database
  16. ^ [Salick, Roger (w), Harris, Mike (p), Palmiotti, James (i).] "The Long Sticks: Part One." The 'Nam v1 #52: The Punisher Invades The 'Nam #1 (January 1991), Marvel Comics.
  17. ^ [Salick, Roger (w), Harris, Mike (p), Palmiotti, James (i).] "The Long Sticks: Part Two." The 'Nam v1 #53: The Punisher Invades The 'Nam #2 (February 1991), Marvel Comics.

[edit] Sources

  • Henderson, Charles W. Marine Sniper, Stein and Day Publishers, 1986. (ISBN 0-425-10355-2)
  • Henderson, Charles W. Silent Warrior, Berkley, 2003. (ISBN 0-425-18864-7)
  • Chandler, Roy F. Carlos Hathcock "Whitefeather", Iron Brigade Armory Publishing, 1997. (ISBN 1-885633-09-2)

[edit] External links

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United States Marine Corps
Portal:United States Marine Corps
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Vietnam War Snipers
United States
Carlos Hathcock  · Chuck Mawhinney  · Adelbert Waldron
See also
Persondata
NAME Carlos Hathcock
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION United States Marine Corps Sniper
DATE OF BIRTH May 20, 1942
PLACE OF BIRTH Little Rock, Arkansas
DATE OF DEATH February 23, 1999
PLACE OF DEATH Virginia Beach, Virginia