Customer Reviews

Inside the Crosshairs: Snipers in Vietnam

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I found this book to be excellent from an historic standpoint of what is a sniper and what do they do. It is not one that has lots of war stories but it does document what snipers did and how they did it. If youre looking of for a bunch of war stories then this isnt it. If youre looking for details and research behind snipers ... then this is it

This is an interesting book that tells the virtualy untold story of the special Army and Marine Corps marksmen known as snipers. The book follows the history of the special marksmen and the development of their weapons. This book is fast-paced and easy to read without military acronyms

Provides history on the development of the concepts, weapons, and the teams and training programs that make up what the snipers and their group do today. Some interesting details in the history of the development of the snipers, but few first-hand accounts included. Also provides a great review of past and current sniper-related books and manuals, as well as detailed appendices concerning the employment, weapons, and training schedules for snipers.

Mr. Lanning has done a good job of discribing the history of the snipers in Vietnam. He is one of the only authors to include information on the enemy snipers, VC/NVA. Mr. Lanning does not go into wonderful 'superman stories' you read, and now see so much of in other works. While 'Lone Wolf' actions, and miracle shots did happen, Mr. Lanning points out that these were far from the normal operations under taken by both the Army and the Marines. This is a good book that can be easily understood by anyone, no military background needed to decode the cryptic language. The only real flaw I found was the lack of knowledge in what to capitalize. Mr. Lanning is obviously a fan of the Enlisted Marine, since he cannot seem to capitalize the title Army, or Officer. It is sad that a work of such completeness suffers from such unprofessional behavior. Does not say much for Ivy Books either. All in all still worth reading.

This is the most comprehensive book regarding the organization, training and the operations of US Army and USMC snipers in Vietnam.

Unlike the other sniper books such as Charles Henderson's Marine Sniper or Ed Kugler's Dead Center that deal with sniper operations down to the personal level, this book approaches the topics from the institutional point of view. And, comparing with other generic sniping books such as Adrian Gilbert's works, Lenning's book is definitely much more organized and comprehensive. However, Lenning does not spend lots of volume dealing with weapons and equipments either (only one chapter). For those who want to know more about the equipments, Peter R. Steinch's works such as The One Round War would be more in depth.

The books starts with a recount of sniping history up to the Vietnam War, then Lenning really dig into the organization and development of snipers during the Vietnam War. Not only the better known parts of USMC snipers, he also covers the less known ones such as US Army and allies, and even devotes a chapter for VC/NVA snipers. He talks about the psychology of the snipers, the tools of trade, training and organization, operations, and, best of all, his own study and assessment of the effectiveness and accomplishments of US snipers in the Vietnam War.

This book is definitely a "must read" for whoever interested in the topic of snipers.

Not until chapter 6 is this book about the use of snipers in Vietnam. The early chapters, which are more lively than the rest, cover the evolution of the use of snipers (or proto-snipers) prior to the Vietnam war, all the way back in history before the invention of gunpowder. The title of the book may be misleading in another way. The book does not contain stories of snipers in Vietnam. It is a look at how snipers came to be used in Vietnam.

The chapters on the Vietnam era are focused on the external details of how the sniper programs began in the Marine Corps and the Army, who was involved, the decisions made on the rifles and scopes to be issued (the Marine Corps and the Army chose very different systems), and how the men were trained as snipers. The book is rather dry and at times even fussy because of this, but it does contain historical information that would interest many readers. Anyone interested in the methods and how-to of military sniping will need to look elsewhere.

The bibliography is annotated and contains titles not only of books but of periodical essays, Army and Marine Corps documents and field and technical manuals.

FMFM 1-3B [now MCWP 3-15.3] is the U.S. Marine Corps sniper manual
MCRP 3-01A is the U.S. Marine Corps Rifle Marksmanship publication

FM 23-10 is the U.S. Army sniper manual
FM 3-22.9 is the U.S. Army Rifle Marksmanship manual

By definition, "a sniper is someone who uses a special weapons system to shoot at an individual from a protected area far from the target...he differs from other warriors because he maximizes accuracy and stealth to neutralize the enemy from a distance..." Author Lanning takes the reader into the procedures, tactics, and the history of the sniper. It was surprising to me that that at the start of the Viet Nam War, there were no snipers in our military services. But the Marines and Army went into full, fast development and by the end of that war, more than 10,000 NVA and VC soldiers has been killed by US marksmen, and many American, Australian, New Zealanders, Thai and Koreans lives had been saved by the intrusion of the snipers. This book doesn't have the glamor and excitement of a Hollywood movie, but it does possess precise information about the weaponry, bullets and training, and how a sniper is selected for the job. Some valiant warriors are mentioned and the number of confirmed kills discussed. The research was excellent, and the maps were a big help in understanding the wars - Viet Nam, Grenada, the Gulf War, Somalia and Bosnia.

More a history of snipers than a account of specific Vietnam service.
Interesting history lesson and well documented.

Not a very exciting book. Lots of statistics and facts about the formation of sniping units. If that is what you are looking for then this is the book for you.
Ed Kugler's review is right on the money but I enjoyed Ed's book "Dead Center: A Marine Sniper's Two-Year Odyssey in the Vietnam War" much more. I respect both authors for their service to our country.
Thanks Guys!

This is an especially good book for the novice and military buff alike. Lanning takes the reader on a whirl-wind tour of the history of accurate, long range military achievements, but balances the technology with the human aspect. Good book!