What do you think?
Rate this book
Inside the Crosshairs: Snipers in Vietnam
"The American sniper could be regarded as the greatest all-around rifleman the world has ever known. . . ."
At the start of the war in Vietnam, the United States had no snipers; by the end of the war, Marine and army precision marksmen had killed more than 10,000 NVA and VC soldiers--the equivalent of an entire division--at the cost of under 20,000 bullets, proving that long-range shooters still had a place in the battlefield. Now noted military historian Michael Lee Lanning shows how U.S. snipers in Vietnam--combining modern technology in weapons, ammunition, and telescopes--used the experience and traditions of centuries of expert shooters to perfect their craft.
To provide insight into the use of American snipers in Vietnam, Lanning interviewed men with combat trigger time, as well as their instructors, the founders of the Marine and U.S. Army sniper programs, and the generals to whom they reported. Backed by hard information and firsthand accounts, the author demonstrates how the skills these one-shot killers honed in the jungles of Vietnam provided an indelible legacy that helped save American lives in Grenada, the Gulf War, and Somalia and continues to this day with American troops in Bosnia.
At the start of the war in Vietnam, the United States had no snipers; by the end of the war, Marine and army precision marksmen had killed more than 10,000 NVA and VC soldiers--the equivalent of an entire division--at the cost of under 20,000 bullets, proving that long-range shooters still had a place in the battlefield. Now noted military historian Michael Lee Lanning shows how U.S. snipers in Vietnam--combining modern technology in weapons, ammunition, and telescopes--used the experience and traditions of centuries of expert shooters to perfect their craft.
To provide insight into the use of American snipers in Vietnam, Lanning interviewed men with combat trigger time, as well as their instructors, the founders of the Marine and U.S. Army sniper programs, and the generals to whom they reported. Backed by hard information and firsthand accounts, the author demonstrates how the skills these one-shot killers honed in the jungles of Vietnam provided an indelible legacy that helped save American lives in Grenada, the Gulf War, and Somalia and continues to this day with American troops in Bosnia.
278 pages, Paperback
First published July 29, 1998
34 people are currently reading
94 people want to read
About the author
Michael Lee Lanning
40 books12 followersLieutenant Colonel Michael Lee Lanning (USA, Ret.) is an American retired military officer and writer of non-fiction, mostly military history.
After spending his early life in Texas, in 1964 Michael Lee Lanning graduated from Trent High School (Trent, Texas) and entered Texas A&M University (College Station, Texas), where in 1968 he earned a BS in Agricultural Education.
Upon graduation from Texas A&M in 1968, Lanning was commissioned a second lieutenant and received infantry, airborne, and ranger training at Fort Benning, Georgia. After serving as a platoon leader in the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, he was ordered to the Republic of Vietnam where he served as an infantry platoon leader, reconnaissance platoon leader, and rifle company commander in the 2d Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment of the 199th Light Infantry Brigade. During subsequent tours of duty he served throughout the United States and Germany, as (among other things) an instructor in the U.S. Army Ranger School, a mechanized infantry company commander in the 3rd Infantry Division, and executive officer of an infantry battalion in the 1st Cavalry Division. He also served in several non-command assignments, including positions as public affairs officer, serving in that role first for General H. Norman Schwarzkopf and later as a member of the Department of Defense public affairs office. In 1979, he earned an MS in Journalism from East Texas State University (Commerce, TX); he was selected to attend the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College (Fort Leavenworth, KS) that same year.
Lt. Col. Lanning's first book, 'The Only War We Had: A Platoon Leader's Journal of Vietnam' was published by Ivy Books/Ballantine Books/Random House, Inc. in September 1987.
After spending his early life in Texas, in 1964 Michael Lee Lanning graduated from Trent High School (Trent, Texas) and entered Texas A&M University (College Station, Texas), where in 1968 he earned a BS in Agricultural Education.
Upon graduation from Texas A&M in 1968, Lanning was commissioned a second lieutenant and received infantry, airborne, and ranger training at Fort Benning, Georgia. After serving as a platoon leader in the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, he was ordered to the Republic of Vietnam where he served as an infantry platoon leader, reconnaissance platoon leader, and rifle company commander in the 2d Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment of the 199th Light Infantry Brigade. During subsequent tours of duty he served throughout the United States and Germany, as (among other things) an instructor in the U.S. Army Ranger School, a mechanized infantry company commander in the 3rd Infantry Division, and executive officer of an infantry battalion in the 1st Cavalry Division. He also served in several non-command assignments, including positions as public affairs officer, serving in that role first for General H. Norman Schwarzkopf and later as a member of the Department of Defense public affairs office. In 1979, he earned an MS in Journalism from East Texas State University (Commerce, TX); he was selected to attend the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College (Fort Leavenworth, KS) that same year.
Lt. Col. Lanning's first book, 'The Only War We Had: A Platoon Leader's Journal of Vietnam' was published by Ivy Books/Ballantine Books/Random House, Inc. in September 1987.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 14, 2017
A very enjoyable but erudite little book about Snipers in the VietNam War and Era, but not what it may appear. Coming as it does in the same format as many "boys own" style tales of derring-do adventure-style books about the Campaign, the actual content, a sober academic look at the process of developing a sniper program, may disappoint some. But the true Military Enthusiast will still find a treasure trove.
Lanning does a nice job of going through the history of world and American Sniping, the US Army/Marine Approach to Sniping in Korea and WWII, the dropping of the the art in the Nuclear Age, and the renewal in Sniping in the USArmy, the Marines , and the Allies in Vietnam. There is even a survey of VC/NVA sniping/countersniping efforts. The prose is seldom the sort of anecdotal stuff some are looking for, but those who seek a complete sober look at a methods and the statistical records left by this effort will be rewarded Because Lanning has certainly done the work to find all the documents. There is a nice little photos section that shows all the discussed gear in use and at rest.
Junior readers may find this a little dry, but incredibly informative. This is a great book for reading before you read the rest of the Vietnam Sniper Oeuvre (over 30 non fiction and perhaps 500 fiction works), since Lanning does remind the reader twice that we're discussing 2% of the total casualties in this struggle. The Military Enthusiast will find this a bone enjoyed to the marrow(good appendixes), while the Gamer/Modeller will use this more on background than for any particular scenario/diorama development. Lanning gives all of us a simple context within which to view this effort- the origin of today's sniper tradition.
Lanning does a nice job of going through the history of world and American Sniping, the US Army/Marine Approach to Sniping in Korea and WWII, the dropping of the the art in the Nuclear Age, and the renewal in Sniping in the USArmy, the Marines , and the Allies in Vietnam. There is even a survey of VC/NVA sniping/countersniping efforts. The prose is seldom the sort of anecdotal stuff some are looking for, but those who seek a complete sober look at a methods and the statistical records left by this effort will be rewarded Because Lanning has certainly done the work to find all the documents. There is a nice little photos section that shows all the discussed gear in use and at rest.
Junior readers may find this a little dry, but incredibly informative. This is a great book for reading before you read the rest of the Vietnam Sniper Oeuvre (over 30 non fiction and perhaps 500 fiction works), since Lanning does remind the reader twice that we're discussing 2% of the total casualties in this struggle. The Military Enthusiast will find this a bone enjoyed to the marrow(good appendixes), while the Gamer/Modeller will use this more on background than for any particular scenario/diorama development. Lanning gives all of us a simple context within which to view this effort- the origin of today's sniper tradition.
December 14, 2022
To be brutally honest, I picked up this book hoping to learn more about the snipers of Vietnam their stories. What I got was a very detailed report about the correctly budgetary and training bulletins that went through during the actions in Vietnam. He was very precise and always cited his sources, but the actual amount in formation about the men doing is the job would have filled a chapter. The rest of the book was all about what decisions were made and how in the author's experiences, snipers were completely interchangeable with any other infantryman on the ground.
Obviously this was written by someone who didn't start his career in the military and walked straight into it as an officer. While he has combat experience, he wrote like this was an interoffice training or report to be filed and it was, in my opinion, pretty lacking on anecdotes about the soldier's actual experiences.
Obviously this was written by someone who didn't start his career in the military and walked straight into it as an officer. While he has combat experience, he wrote like this was an interoffice training or report to be filed and it was, in my opinion, pretty lacking on anecdotes about the soldier's actual experiences.
May 30, 2014
A decent book, discuss snipers throughout history ,although mostly focuses on Vietnam. The book mentions NVA,VC, and AVRN snipers , but mostly focuses on US as expected.
The book contains a decent amount of detail, could contain more first person recounts though(in my opinion, already has a lot though).
The book happens to throw a lot of facts at readers ;however does not give them context in place of the conflict, if you do not have extensive knowledge of Vietnam not much will be gained from reading the book. It fills a niche role of information, however does not go into the politics or reasons of the war.
The book contains a decent amount of detail, could contain more first person recounts though(in my opinion, already has a lot though).
The book happens to throw a lot of facts at readers ;however does not give them context in place of the conflict, if you do not have extensive knowledge of Vietnam not much will be gained from reading the book. It fills a niche role of information, however does not go into the politics or reasons of the war.
March 28, 2021
Facts and figures
There is no action, no story, nothing but facts and figures page after page. It has nothing to do with snipers in Vietnam.
There is no action, no story, nothing but facts and figures page after page. It has nothing to do with snipers in Vietnam.
July 24, 2015
Definitive.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews