c.n75thinf
Alpha
Reference the Tom Laelein article: the M1C and M1D Sniper Rifles.
It seems that many students of military precision shooting are well aware of the USMC sniping operations during the Viet-Nam War, circa 1958 to 1975, I don't know how military historians come up with that particular time period for the War in Viet-Nam. I say this, in as much as Major Anderson, who was a OSS Detachment 101 Operater was KIA in September 1945 on the northern outskirts of Saigon by the Minh-Viet (a targeted assassination), and Captain Craemer, a 77th Special Forces Group officer was KIA in 1956 in Viet-Nam (also a targeted assassination, also by the Minh-Viet). Long after May 1975 U.S. Army Special Forces continued to operate in Viet-Nam. As it used to be said "Special Forces is there ten years before everyone else and is still there ten years after everyone else has left". This statement being confirmation of why the U.S. has Army Special Forces, no other branch of the Armed Forces is possessed of such great depth. More to the point, the 9th Infantry Division established and hosted the 9th ID Sniper School in June 1968, and the 25th Infantry Division established and hosted the 25th ID Sniper School in December 1968/January 1969, and remained in operation through early 1971. I 'am unaware of any other U.S. Army division (1st Cav. Div., 1st ID, 4th ID, 23rd (Americal) ID, 101st Abn. Div.), or of a Separate Brigade or Regiment (the 3rd Mechanized Bde-5th ID, 11th ACR, 11th Inf. Bde., 3rd Bde.-82nd Abn. Dv. 173rd Abn. Bde., 196th LT. Inf. Bde., 198th Lt. Inf. Bde., and the 199th Lt. Inf. Bde.) establishing, hosting, and operating a sniper school. the U.S. Army sniper program in Viet-Nam was built around the Springfield Suppressed XM21/M21, 7.62x51 MM Sniper Rifle. Speaking only in regard to those three units with which I served during three back-to-back tours of duty in Viet-Nam: First Tour-Co. C (Ranger-LRP) 75th Infantry (Airborne), 1st Field Forces, Viet-Nam; Second Tour-Scout Platoon (OH-6A LOH), B Troop, 7th Squadron (Air), 17th Cavalry, 17th Aviation Group (Combat); and, Third Tour-Co. N (Ranger-LRP) 75th Infantry, 173rd Airborne Brigade (Separate), from Sunday, 27 July 1969 to Monday, 02 August 1971. In both Charley Rangers and November Rangers Suppressed XM21/XM21 Sniper Rifles were authorized in our TO&E and TDA. Taking note of the numerous times that I have seen photographs of Marines in Viet-Nam performing training with RVN Forces, to include precision rifle marksmanship and conventional combat operations, ANGLACO (Marines peforming ship-to-shore naval gunfire liaison), and possibly Force Recon operations; I 'am compelled to concede, that yes, more than one Soldier in more than one U.S. Army unit did somehow manage to get away with taking a personally owned camera into the bush on Long Range Patrol missions, and used it to photograph and document LRP missions in which he personally operated so that at some future date he might be inclined to write a book or series of books presenting photographic evidence of his, and other of his team members participation in Long Range Patrols. However, the two 75th Ranger-LRP companies in which I operated were very circumspect about any such thing for any other purpose but to postively ID and confirme terminations of certain parties of high rank (Full Colonel, Brigadier General, Major General, Lieutenant General, or a very senior party member of the Viet-Cong Revolutionary Develop Infrastructure in concert with COMUSMACV J2 CORDS sanctioned operations following May 1969). Whenever, Co. E (Long Range Patrol) 20th Inf. (Abn.), Co. C (Ranger-LRP) 75th Inf. (Abn.), 74th (Longe Range Patrol) Inf. Det (Abn.), and Co. N (Ranger-LRP) 75th Inf. (Abn.) performed any mission specifically targeting individuals it was the nature of the mission that it come down to our units from, and originated with and was directed by the SecDef (?) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff-General Harald K. Johnson, COMUSMACV-General W. C. Westmoreland or General C. W. Abrams, the CINCPAC-Admiral McCain, or the National Command Authority-Henry A. Kissinger in conference with the President, either Lyndon Baines Johnson or Richard M. Nixon. On a LRP mission into Secret Base Area 602, a Ranger-LRP Team Leader is advised that he will shortly receive message traffic from god. The Staff Sergeant picks up the hand set and hears Henry Kissinger at the other end of the transmission. It was a Popa Rangers-LRP Team peforming a wire-tap mission on a line of communication on one of the branches of the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Signing-off for now.
/signed/ Very Respectfully, Jack R. Arnold, SFC, 18B-SF Wpns. Sgt., U.S. Army Special Forces (Ret.)
It seems that many students of military precision shooting are well aware of the USMC sniping operations during the Viet-Nam War, circa 1958 to 1975, I don't know how military historians come up with that particular time period for the War in Viet-Nam. I say this, in as much as Major Anderson, who was a OSS Detachment 101 Operater was KIA in September 1945 on the northern outskirts of Saigon by the Minh-Viet (a targeted assassination), and Captain Craemer, a 77th Special Forces Group officer was KIA in 1956 in Viet-Nam (also a targeted assassination, also by the Minh-Viet). Long after May 1975 U.S. Army Special Forces continued to operate in Viet-Nam. As it used to be said "Special Forces is there ten years before everyone else and is still there ten years after everyone else has left". This statement being confirmation of why the U.S. has Army Special Forces, no other branch of the Armed Forces is possessed of such great depth. More to the point, the 9th Infantry Division established and hosted the 9th ID Sniper School in June 1968, and the 25th Infantry Division established and hosted the 25th ID Sniper School in December 1968/January 1969, and remained in operation through early 1971. I 'am unaware of any other U.S. Army division (1st Cav. Div., 1st ID, 4th ID, 23rd (Americal) ID, 101st Abn. Div.), or of a Separate Brigade or Regiment (the 3rd Mechanized Bde-5th ID, 11th ACR, 11th Inf. Bde., 3rd Bde.-82nd Abn. Dv. 173rd Abn. Bde., 196th LT. Inf. Bde., 198th Lt. Inf. Bde., and the 199th Lt. Inf. Bde.) establishing, hosting, and operating a sniper school. the U.S. Army sniper program in Viet-Nam was built around the Springfield Suppressed XM21/M21, 7.62x51 MM Sniper Rifle. Speaking only in regard to those three units with which I served during three back-to-back tours of duty in Viet-Nam: First Tour-Co. C (Ranger-LRP) 75th Infantry (Airborne), 1st Field Forces, Viet-Nam; Second Tour-Scout Platoon (OH-6A LOH), B Troop, 7th Squadron (Air), 17th Cavalry, 17th Aviation Group (Combat); and, Third Tour-Co. N (Ranger-LRP) 75th Infantry, 173rd Airborne Brigade (Separate), from Sunday, 27 July 1969 to Monday, 02 August 1971. In both Charley Rangers and November Rangers Suppressed XM21/XM21 Sniper Rifles were authorized in our TO&E and TDA. Taking note of the numerous times that I have seen photographs of Marines in Viet-Nam performing training with RVN Forces, to include precision rifle marksmanship and conventional combat operations, ANGLACO (Marines peforming ship-to-shore naval gunfire liaison), and possibly Force Recon operations; I 'am compelled to concede, that yes, more than one Soldier in more than one U.S. Army unit did somehow manage to get away with taking a personally owned camera into the bush on Long Range Patrol missions, and used it to photograph and document LRP missions in which he personally operated so that at some future date he might be inclined to write a book or series of books presenting photographic evidence of his, and other of his team members participation in Long Range Patrols. However, the two 75th Ranger-LRP companies in which I operated were very circumspect about any such thing for any other purpose but to postively ID and confirme terminations of certain parties of high rank (Full Colonel, Brigadier General, Major General, Lieutenant General, or a very senior party member of the Viet-Cong Revolutionary Develop Infrastructure in concert with COMUSMACV J2 CORDS sanctioned operations following May 1969). Whenever, Co. E (Long Range Patrol) 20th Inf. (Abn.), Co. C (Ranger-LRP) 75th Inf. (Abn.), 74th (Longe Range Patrol) Inf. Det (Abn.), and Co. N (Ranger-LRP) 75th Inf. (Abn.) performed any mission specifically targeting individuals it was the nature of the mission that it come down to our units from, and originated with and was directed by the SecDef (?) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff-General Harald K. Johnson, COMUSMACV-General W. C. Westmoreland or General C. W. Abrams, the CINCPAC-Admiral McCain, or the National Command Authority-Henry A. Kissinger in conference with the President, either Lyndon Baines Johnson or Richard M. Nixon. On a LRP mission into Secret Base Area 602, a Ranger-LRP Team Leader is advised that he will shortly receive message traffic from god. The Staff Sergeant picks up the hand set and hears Henry Kissinger at the other end of the transmission. It was a Popa Rangers-LRP Team peforming a wire-tap mission on a line of communication on one of the branches of the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Signing-off for now.
/signed/ Very Respectfully, Jack R. Arnold, SFC, 18B-SF Wpns. Sgt., U.S. Army Special Forces (Ret.)
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