Not surprisingly, the Germans regarded the position as impregnable. The beach was tiny and the cliffs at Point du Hoc were between 24–30m (80–100ft) high and either sheer or overhanging. Anyone contemplating an assault would need their head examined. The area was, however, covered with typical German efficiency by machine-guns and there were also snipers about.
Up the cliffs
Once the Rangers reached the cratered beach, they went straight into action. The Rangers fired rope rockets up the cliffs and began to scramble up. Some of these were cut by the Germans but some Rangers began to make it to the top. After about thirty minutes, about forty Rangers had reached the top of the cliffs. They discovered that the first gun emplacements were empty and that the guns must have been moved around the time of the aerial bombardments. German units in the area began to wake up and the Rangers found themselves under fire. Opposition proved to be particularly stiff near to an anti-aircraft position and, due to the maze of interconnecting tunnels the Germans had built, it was difficult to know where they might spring up next. German snipers were located in a group of ruined farm buildings. From here they had targeted any Rangers that came into their sights but they melted away when a group of Rangers moved towards the buildings. The Rangers at last found the missing guns and promptly destroyed them.
Although their mission had been accomplished, the Rangers were still coming under sniper fire and taking casualties. Their attempts to silence a German machine-gun resulted in further casualties as snipers picked off anyone who raised their heads. Although naval gunfire was successfully used to destroy a machine-gun nest due to some adept forward observation by a spotter team, snipers continued to operate. By this time the Rangers were beginning to tire of the constant presence of the German snipers and they took steps to try to eradicate them. But how do you find a sniper? Not only did the German snipers have the advantage of a maze of tunnels, which they knew as well as a rabbit knows its warren, they also had the advantage of a landscape that was filled with craters made by bombs and naval shells.
It was perfect sniper country and, although the Rangers found them as annoying as insects in a jungle, despite thorough patrolling, they never succeeded in finding them. Well trained as they were, even some of the Rangers fell for German ruses. When the Germans showed a white flag of surrender over a gun emplacement, two Rangers stood up in the open and were instantly killed. As the Rangers withdrew from the area of the anti-aircraft emplacement after a hail of artillery fire, German snipers killed two more of them.
Having suffered another night attack by the Germans in force, the Rangers, having hung on tenaciously for two days, eventually withdrew from the area, having accomplished their mission, though some took a leaf out of the German snipers’ book and remained concealed in the thick bocage, waiting until the Germans were pushed out of the area by advancing friendly forces.
OPERATION “MARKET GARDEN” AND THE BATTLE OF THE SCHELDT
In the heroically fought but ill-fated Operation “Market Garden,” the Allied attempt to use airborne forces to seize key Dutch bridges, there was effective sniping on both sides. British and Polish paratroopers were targeted by snipers, sometimes as they landed or as they moved towards their objectives. On the British side, Anthony Crane of 21st Independent Parachute Pathfinder Company, took up a sniping position at 34 Pieterbergseweg, Oosterbeck, when he began to take a toll of unsuspecting Germans who came into his telescopic sights. On one occasion he shot two Germans simultaneously and, after this loss of innocence, his score began to mount. He scratched his “score” on to the wallpaper of the house, which has been preserved for posterity in the Hartenstein Airborne Museum.
Some battles deservedly retain a prominent place in history, like D-Day or “Market Garden” (popularly known by the title of Cornelius Ryan’s book and the blockbuster movie A Bridge Too Far). Others undeservedly receive little coverage. One such battle was the Battle of the Scheldt (October 1–November 8, 1944). The river Scheldt flows into the sea near the three islands of South Beveland, North Beveland and Walcheren. It is a typical Belgian-Dutch low-lying area characterized by dykes, canals and marshes. It is totally flat and it goes without saying that any soldier or vehicle can be seen from miles away.
British soldiers deploy in the streets of a Dutch town in late 1944 with standard Lee-Enfield rifles. Snipers made the advance through Belgium and Holland a slow business for the Allied armies.
The Allies had taken the vital port of Antwerp in September but their hold on the port remained tenuous so long as German forces continued to hold positions in the Scheldt estuary. The First Canadian Army was given the task of removing the threat.
Among the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry, Company Sergeant-Major R. Morgan of C Company had a narrow escape when his helmet was pierced by a sniper bullet. The bullet failed to penetrate his skull. Company Sergeant-Major K.C. Lingen of D Company was less fortunate, being killed by a sniper near his headquarters. There is no coincidence that both men were the same senior NCO rank. It was the mark of a trained sniper that he would pick off key men in command.
Counter sniper action
When soldiers were tied down by a sniper who had shot one or more of their group, a trained sniper would be brought forward to seek him out and eliminate him. One such was U.S. Army Sergeant William E. Jones who served in I Company, 8th Infantry Regiment, 4th Division. Jones carried a 1903 Springfield sniper rifle with a 10x magnification telescopic sight. This enabled him on occasion to spot enemy snipers who were invisible to the naked eye.
Even so, the enemy snipers were often so well concealed it was difficult to positively identify them and Jones was experienced enough to be aware of the dangers of loosing off a shot at an unconfirmed target and to give away his position. On one occasion, after two men of the company had been shot, Jones came forward and scanned the hedgerows and trees through his sight. There seemed to be nothing obvious until he noticed a slight movement in a tree. He scanned the tree again but all he could see was a large knot. Tree knots do not move. Jones waited rather than take a chance shot. Sure enough, the tree knot moved again. The enemy sniper’s fate was sealed.
THE PACIFIC
The Japanese had many fighting qualities, which included high levels of discipline and obedience, fanatical tenacity supported by a Samurai warrior code, a mastery of ingenious tactics and, last but not least, a natural instinct for jungle warfare and use of camouflage.
The Japanese were masters of infiltration and of envelopment, often getting behind their opponents and catching them unawares. In this style of warfare, the sniper was an essential tool and Japanese snipers would often conceal themselves either in the ground or in the jungle canopy, sometimes firing at their enemy once they had passed through. Adrian Gilbert describes Japanese tactics in Sniper:
A distinctive feature of Japanese sniping was the use of trees as firing platforms. In some cases small tree chairs would be hauled up into the higher branches; in others the sniper would be tied into position, which prevented him from falling out of the tree if shot, thus informing the counter-sniper team that they had scored a hit. As an aid to clambering up and down the trees, the sniper was issued with climbing spikes. To Allied and German snipers the use of trees was discouraged (although observers used them regularly and were often mistaken for snipers) because they became a death trap if the sniper was discovered.
CANADIAN SCOUT SNIPERS
The 1st Battalion, the Royal Winnipeg Rifles also experienced snipers first hand. As they relate in their diary of October 8, 1944:
Prolonged exposure to wet and cold still had to be endured in flooded slit trenches or smashed buildings as unusually bold enemy snipers and machine-gunners were on the lookout continuously and often succeeded in infiltrating between companies and platoons. Few of these lived to tell their story as the Royal Winnipeg Rifles were no less aggressive.
During an attack on the village of Graaf Jan, it was the turn of the Canadian snipers to move in and kill any Ge
rmans who exposed themselves to view. The diary for Friday October 13, once again bears testimony to the continuing ruthless activity of German snipers.
Some of the key scouting and sniper work carried out by the Canadians was performed by the Scout and Sniper Platoon of the Calgary Highlanders. A typical member of this platoon was Sergeant Harold A. Marshall, who was equipped with an Enfield No. 4 Mk 1(r) rifle with telescopic sight. Other equipment carried by Marshall included a machete, binoculars and a Mills grenade for close-quarters protection.
The Canadian scouts wore camouflage veils, which were often tied around their heads when not in use and pulled down over their faces when in a camouflaged firing position. They wore British-issue Denison camouflage smocks, which were also worn by paratroopers.
Canadian snipers deploy through the rubble-strewn streets of Falaise in August 1944. They wear the Denison smock, also issued to British paratroopers, and, characteristic of Canadian snipers of the era, a camouflage face veil worn as a head cover. The Canadian snipers were armed with the Lee-Enfield No.4 Mk 1 (T) rifle.
The Japanese were also masters of concealment on the ground. Their hides were sometimes connected to small trenches and they had the reputation of being able to wait there patiently for long periods.
U.S. Marine snipers
The sniper training in the U.S. armed forces at the start of the Pacific war was indifferent. The best prepared force in this regard was the U.S. Marine Corps, though the training, such as it was, had an emphasis on marksmanship and little on fieldcraft. Due to some enthusiastic campaigning by certain officers who recognized the value of sniping, a revised and more elaborate training program was set up at Camp Lejeune, Camp Pendleton and Green’s Farm in California. The course lasted about five weeks and included fieldcraft, observation, camouflage, wind judgement and range estimation.
The Marines were notable for their long-range shooting and the candidates were taught to shoot up to 923m (1000 yards). However, long-range shooting was not always a requirement in the jungle, where distances were often comparatively short. As the war developed in the Pacific, the Marine Corps created sniper teams comprising three men–the sniper himself, an observer and a team protector who armed with either a rifle or sub-machine gun.
As U.S. Marine Private Daniel Webster Cass Junior discovered as he went in for the attack on Okinawa in 1945, the snipers at least did not have to go in with the first wave on the beaches. They followed behind the initial attack, along with the headquarters company. Despite the fact that the beaches and surrounding area had been plastered with naval shells and aircraft attacks, the Marines knew that the Japanese would still be lurking in wait. The 1st and 6th Marine Division went in along with five divisions of the U.S. Tenth Army. To Cass’s surprise, after all the sound and fury of the softening-up attacks by Allied ships and planes, resistance seemed negligible. By the time Cass had reached the Katchin Peninsula, he was positively relaxed and even put his rifle to bed in its case. He would not have been so relaxed if he had known that this battle would later be known as the “Typhoon of Steel” due to the ferocity of the fighting.
Sure enough, this 1st Division was called into the Shuin Line where the Japanese, always tenacious fighters, were fighting even more tenaciously than ever. After all, this was their home territory. Cass was called in to clear machine-gun nests from a ridge. The cry was “Sniper up!” He and his spotter moved up to a ridge from where they could see the devastation caused by the Japanese machine guns but, at a range of 1097m (1200 yards) through fog and drizzle, they had difficulty spotting the source of the fire.
At last the spotter located a cave where he could see a thin trail of gun smoke. Then they saw the small telltale bursts of muzzle flash. At that range, if sniping were in the Olympics, Cass would be assured of a gold medal if he got a shot on target. There was no option. Marines were dying in the valley below and there was no way of getting closer without revealing their position. Cass slowly placed the crosshairs of the telescope against what he could see of a patch of uniform as the Japanese leaned forward to fire down the valley. Calling on all his training at Camp Pendleton, he took a deep breath, let half of it out and squeezed the trigger. The shot hit the area the Japanese were firing from. Cass was more or less on target and he kept on firing. From somewhere 7.62mm (0.3in) rounds were coming in and hitting home. The long-range sniper training of the U.S. Marine Corps had certainly paid off.
A tree that had been used by a Japanese sniper somewhere in the Pacific shows how the thick jungle vegetation provided excellent camouflage and how difficult it was to spot a sniper. A figure standing to the left of the base of the tree is difficult to spot even though he is standing in the open.
Guadalcanal
The first major offensive by Allied forces in the Pacific was at Guadalcanal. Here, 6000 U.S. Marines landed on August 7, 1942, catching the Japanese, who were building an airfield, by surprise. The Japanese, however, began to bring in reinforcements and the fighting in the jungle was intense and bitter, despite light opposition to the first landings. A U.S. correspondent accompanied the Marines on Guadalcanal and wrote an account of the battle that was to become a classic of war reporting. Some of his experiences with the fighting men included encounters with Japanese snipers:
More Jap .25s opened up ahead; a storm of fire broke and filled the jungle. I dived for the nearest tree, which unfortunately stood somewhat alone and was not surrounded by deep foliage. While the firing continued and I could hear the occasional impact of a bullet hitting a nearby tree or snapping off a twig, I debated whether it would be wiser to stay in my exposed spot or to run for a better ’ole and risk being hit by a sniper en route. I was still debating the question when I heard a bullet whirr very close to my left shoulder, heard it thud into the ground and then heard the crack of the rifle which had fired it. That was bad. Two Marines on the ground ten or fifteen feet [3–4.5m] ahead of me turned and looked to see if I had been hit. They had evidently heard the bullet passing. That made up my mind. I jumped up and made for a big bush. … The sniper who had fired at me was still on my track. He had evidently spotted my field-glasses and taken me for a regular officer.
I searched the nearby trees, but could see nothing moving, no smoke, no signs of any sniper. Then a .25 cracked again and I heard the bullet pass–fortunately not so close as before. I jumped for better cover, behind two close trees which were surrounded by ferns, small pineapple plants and saplings. Here I began to wish I had a rifle. I should like to find that sniper, I thought. I had made an ignominious retreat. My dignity had been offended.
The Japanese lost twenty-four thousand men in the battle while the Americans had sixteen hundred killed and four thousand two hundred wounded.
New Guineay
Although the Australian and New Zealand Commonwealth forces received little formal training in sniper work, their experience grew as the threat to their homelands increased.
TYPE 99 RIFLE
Country of Origin Japan
Caliber 7.7mm (0.3in) Arisaka
Overall length 1120mm (44.1in)
Barrel length 657mm (25.87in)
Weight 3.7kg (8.16lb)
JAPANESE SNIPERS
The Japanese wore a green uniform that was often supplemented by a sniper cloak and camouflage netting. They often painted any exposed parts of the body. The Japanese sniper rifle had initially been a modified Type 38 infantry rifle fitted with a 4x magnification scope.
This was followed by the Type 97 rifle, with 6.6mm (0.25in) caliber. By 1932 they had graduated to a Type 99 rifle with a 7.7mm (0.303in) caliber and 4x magnification scope.
The Japanese telescopic sights were fixed and came with no adjustments for windage or elevation, which Allied servicemen were accustomed to. The sniper was expected to make the necessary adjustment by aiming off as far as was necessary. Some rifles had open iron sights that still allowed some Japanese snipers to shoot with remarkable accuracy. The advantage of the fixed telescopic sight with no adjustmen
t was that it would remain stable despite rough handling and, if the sniper knew his rifle well, he could aim off as required and allow the accuracy of the rifle to do the rest.
A U.S. serviceman stands over the body of a dead Japanese sniper. Sometimes snipers were brought down by machine-gun fire or by shotgun-style barrages into the tree tops.
The Australians used either the Lithgow Short Magazine Lee-Enfield (SMLE) No.1 Mk.III rifle with the 1918 pattern telescope or the Enfield No.3 Mk.1* (T) rifle with the same scope. Both were highly effective weapons.
Despite the lack of formal training, many Australians selected to do sniper work had natural hunting experience gained in the outback and some were even kangaroo hunters. It did not take much to tidy up their skills with additional fieldcraft training and target practice to make them as effective, if not better, as snipers from other Allied nations. On Timor, an Australian sniper was said to have hit twelve advancing Japanese with twelve shots.
In their whirlwind expansion, the Japanese also attacked New Guinea to the north of Australia. This was part of a plan to isolate Australia by also capturing Samoa, Fiji and New Guinea. When the Japanese tried to invade Port Moresby on May 4, their plans were scuppered by the U.S. Navy in the Battle of the Coral Sea.
From July, the Japanese landed on the northeast coast from where they planned to move to Kokoda and down a jungle path to attack Port Moresby. The track itself was only a few feet wide and crossed some of the most remote jungle areas in the world for about 97km (60 miles). The Australians, who were massively outnumbered, put up a sterling defense but the Japanese managed to take the airfield at Kokoda.
Sniper in Action Page 8
