Home > Training >
Advanced Skills > SF Sniper Course (SFSC)
This seven week long course provides training on
general sniping topics, marksmanship, urban and rural fieldcraft, technical
surveillance equipment, stalking, camouflage, concealment, use of
screening, use of natural vegetation, shooting technology, sniper weapon systems, and practical application.
Trains students in Level 1 special operations sniper skills and
operational procedures that are necessary for them to engage selected
targets with precision fire from concealed positions at long ranges and
under difficult conditions.
Level II Sniper Courses are run at home-station by
the respective Special Forces Groups. Those that excel at the Level II
training are sometimes selected for the SFSC.
PDA. Special Forces has always integrated
technology to allow the SF snipers to perform to the highest of levels.
The PDA has been introduced to improve the capability of the sniper. The
PDA helps compute the range, windage, and shooting techniques allowing
snipers to hit targets in excess of 800 meters. The PDA, which allows to
the storage of gun data, provides for a more accurate shot in a quicker
response.

A student at the Special Forces Sniper School
fires at targets on Fort Bragg, NC range. (photo by SGT David McLean,
22nd MPAD)
Reference Publications about the
Snipers
TC 3-22.10, Sniper, December 2017.
U.S. Army Sniper Training Circular. The intent of this training
circular is to create uniformity within the sniper community, and to align
sniper training and employment with current U.S. Army doctrine. Available
at
www.armypubs.army.mil.
FM 23-10, Special Forces Sniper Training and
Employment. The manual is available on Amazon.com at the following link.
Special Operations Sniper Training and Employment
Books about Snipers
Martin, Chris. Modern American Snipers: From the Legend to The Reaper
- on the Battlefield with Special Operations Snipers. New York: St.
Martin's Press, 2014.
Kyle, Chris. American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal
Sniper in U.S. Military History. New York: William Morrow and
Company, 2012.
Books and Resources - Sniper Central.
www.snipercentral.com/all-about-sniping/books-resources/
Other Websites with Info on Sniping and Snipers
Israeli Special Forces Sniping Guide. Provides info on weapons systems,
schools, gear and accessories, coordination systems and photos. Access the
website
here
on isayeret.com.
Weaponsman.com. "What does it take to be an SF Sniper?" Web page that is
full of information about the SF Sniper Course. View
here.
Sniper Country. "One Shot - One Kill!". Access the website
here. The web
site also has a listing of online articles about sniper
here.
Marine Corps Scout Sniper. Wikipedia has a detailed web page on the Scout
Sniper (MOS 0317) that you can view
here.
AmericanSnipers.org. A 501(c)(3) organization composed of "Snipers
Supporting Snipers in the Global War on Terror". Access
here.
American Sniper Association. An online sniper community with links,
events, products, and news. Access
here.
ShadowSpear Forum. Shooters and Thinkers: The Special Forces Sniper
Course. Access
here.
Department of Defense. Art of the Shot. An in-depth look at the
role of a sniper. What does he think about before taking that shot?
Explore the mindset, the rifle, the role, how a sniper hides, technology,
and more. (January 2020).
https://www.defense.gov/Experience/Art-of-the-Shot/
Books about Snipers and Sniping
Click here for a listing of books about
sniping and snipers.
Videos about the Sniper Course and Snipers
March 23, 2018. International Sniper Competition, USAJFKSWCS,
March 23, 2018. A short video of the International Sniper Competition held
by USASOC at Fort Bragg, NC.
www.facebook.com/jfkcenterandschool/videos/10150915765894943/
September 5, 2017. Sniper Waldo, U.S. Army. 3 minute long video
with info on the Army Sniper Course.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8qLKgyLdnw
Video of the Special Forces Sniper Course (SFSC) by DVIDS. Produced by SFC
Teresa Coble, DVIDS. Access the 9 minute long video
here.
August 2011.
Video about Army Snipers. "Surviving the cut: Army sniper". A
45 minute long video about the Army's five week long sniper course.
Access the video
here.
"Special Forces compete in sniper competition". Video about SF Snipers
competing in Colombia. Click
here to see the video.
"Soldier Shares Sniper Skills with Afghan National Army". YouTube video.
Click
here to view.
MARSOC snipers battle with a Taliban sniper. See the video
here.
"Sniper: Deadliest Missions". A History.com video posted on YouTube about
snipers. (1.5 hrs). See the video
here.
"Sniper: Bulletproof". A History.com video posted on YouTube about
snipers. (1.5 hrs). See video
here.

Army Special Forces sniper sights in his MK 12
sniper rifle during OIF in Iraq in September 2007 (photo PO Eli
Medellin)
Sniper Weapons and Equipment
M110 Sniper Rifle. One of the more common sniper weapons is the M110
Semiautomatic Sniper System - a 7.62 mm gas-operated rifle.
M25 Sniper Rifle. The M25 was a rifle designed for Navy SEALs and Army
Special Forces. Learn more about the rifle
here at Wikipedia.
Soviet Mosin-Nagant Rifle. The U.S.S.R. sniper weapon found in the Soviet
Army and exported throughout the world, beginning in WWII, for many years
is the
Mosin-Nagant rifle.
Ghillie Suits. Apparel worn to help the sniper blend in with his
environment. There are many different types of
ghillie suits
based on terrain, location, unit, and mission.
Precision Sniper Rifle (PSR). A Wikipedia web page about USSOCOMs program
for a bolt action sniper rifle chambered fro a .338 Magnum. Access the web
page
here.
Barrett M95. A Wikipedia web page aobut the bolt-action sniper rifle
chambered for .50 BMG and manufactured by Barrett Firearms Company. Access
the web page
here.
Sniper Rifles. Wikipedia has a detailed web page about sniper weapons.
See the page
here.
History of Snipers
Sniper Alley. The term refers to the main boulevard of Sarajevo during the
Bosian - Serb conflict in the 1990s. The conflict had its own character
and sniping was a huge part of that. Learn more
here
on Wikipedia. Also visit "Face of Mercy, Face of Hate: Sarajevo Survival
Map" for more info on
Sarajevo snipers on the Minnesota Public Radio web site.
Top 10 Snipers in History. ListVerse.com has compiled a list of the top
ten snipers in history - list can be seen
here.
SOITC. The SFSC was at one time called the Special
Operations Target Interdiction Course or SOITC. The name change occurred
in early 2007 along with an increase in length of training, change in the
course content, and increase in the prerequisites for attendence.

A member of 19th SFGA takes a high angle shot
with an MK13
at
Camp Williams, Utah (photo by Army National Guard)
News Articles And Other Postings about Snipers
Spring 2020.
"Closing the Gap: USASC Refines POI to Better Prepare Snipers for Modern
Fight", Infantry Magazine.
March 19, 2017.
"Book Review: 'White Sniper: Simo Hayha' by Tapio Saarelainen",
Guns.com.
September 28, 2016.
"This spec ops sniper rifle fits inside a 'granola-eater' backpack",
We Are The Mighty. News report on the Remington Defense
'Concealable Sniper Rifle' or CSR.
October 25, 2014.
"Special Forces team wins International Sniper Competition". Stars
and Stripes. A team from the 1st SFGA won the 14th annual
International Sniper Competition at Fort Benning, GA.
November 19, 2012.
"Silent but Deadly: Special Forces Seek Quiet, Subsonic Bullets".
Danger Room Wired.com.
November 7, 2012.
"Soldier team wins world sniper competition". Army Times.
October 26, 2012.
"Marine scout snipers use 'murder holes' in Afghanistan". Marine
Times Battle Rattle.
March 5, 2012.
"Special Forces Sniper Team cleans up at the International Sniper
Competition". SOFREP.
September 27, 2011.
"8 Longest Sniper Shots in History". Guns & Ammo.
May 2, 2011.
"Guns of the Special Forces". Shooting Illustrated.
September 24, 2010.
"Recovery in
his sights: Amputee graduates from Special Forces Sniper Course".
Army.mil.
May 2, 2010.
"Sniper kills Qaeda from 1 1/2 mi. away". New York Post.
February 2010. "The Distant Executioner", Vanity Fair, by William
Langewische.
www.vanityfair.com/news/2010/02/sniper-201002
May-June 2008. "Shooters and Thinkers: Special Forces Sniper Course
Revised", Special Warfare Magazine, Volume 21, Issue 3, pages
30-33, accessed on IrregularWarfare.org at the following link.
www.irregularwarfare.org/files/OperationalizingIntel.pdf
February 19, 2010.
"Range 37 at
Fort Bragg tests skills of even the most experienced Green Beret".
Army.mil.
November 2003.
"Special-Ops Sniper Training Stresses Control, Discipline".
National Defense. An indepth news article about the various military
sniper schools, weapons and sniper training.
August 24, 2001. "Transcript of a presentation by John Simpson at the CTS
Virtual Expo Seminar on Sniping entitled "Selection of Sniper Personnel"
accessed
here on snipercountry.com.
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