Army Requirements

Candidates for sniper training require careful screening. Commanders must screen the individual’s records for potential aptitude as a sniper. The rigorous training program and the increased personal risk in combat require high motivation and the ability to learn a variety of skills. Aspiring snipers must have an excellent personal record.

The basic guidelines used to screen sniper candidates are as follows:

Marksmanship: The sniper trainee must be an expert marksman. Repeated annual qualification as expert is necessary. Successful participation in the annual competition-in-arms program and an extensive hunting background also indicate good sniper potential.

Physical condition: The sniper, often employed in extended operations with little sleep, food, or water, must be in outstanding physical condition. Good health means better reflexes, better muscular control, and greater stamina. The self-confidence and control that come from athletics, especially team sports, are definite assets to a sniper trainee.

Vision: Eyesight is the sniper’s prime tool. Therefore, a sniper must have 20/20 vision or vision correctable to 20/20. However, wearing glasses could become a liability if glasses are lost or damaged.

Color blindness is also considered a liability to the sniper, due to his inability to detect concealed targets that blend in with the natural surroundings.

Smoking: The sniper should not be a smoker or use smokeless tobacco. Smoke or an unsuppressed smoker’s cough can betray the sniper’s position. Even though a sniper may not smoke or use smokeless tobacco on a mission, his refrainment may cause nervousness and irritation, which lowers his efficiency.

Mental condition: When commanders screen sniper candidates, they should look for traits that indicate the candidate has the right qualities to be a sniper. The commander must determine if the candidate will pull the trigger at the right time and place. Some traits to look for are reliability, initiative, loyalty, discipline, and emotional stability. A psychological evaluation of the candidate can aid the commander in the selection process.

Intelligence. A sniper’s duties require a wide variety of skills. He must learn the following:

Ballistics.

• Ammunition types and capabilities.
• Adjustment of optical devices.
• Radio operation and procedures.
• Observation and adjustment of mortar and artillery fire.
• Land navigation skills.
• Military intelligence collecting and reporting.
• Identification of threat uniforms and equipment.

In sniper team operations involving prolonged independent employment, the sniper must be self-reliant, display good judgment and common sense. This requires two other important qualifications: emotional balance and field craft.

Emotional balance: The sniper must be able to calmly and deliberately kill targets that may not pose an immediate threat to him. It is much easier to kill in self-defense or in the defense of others than it is to kill without apparent provocation. The sniper must not be susceptible to emotions such as anxiety or remorse. Candidates whose motivation toward sniper training rests mainly in the desire for prestige may not be capable of the cold rationality that the sniper’s job requires.

Field craft. The sniper must be familiar with and comfortable in a field environment. An extensive background in the outdoors and knowledge of natural occurrences in the outdoors will assist the sniper in

many of his tasks. Individuals with such a background will often have great potential as a sniper.

Commander involvement in personnel selection is critical. To ensure his candidate’s successful completion of sniper training and contribution of his talents to his unit’s mission, the commander ensures that the sniper candidate meets the following prerequisites before attending the US Army Sniper School:

• Male.
• PFC to SFC (waiverable for MSG and above).
• Active duty or ARNG and USAR.
• Good performance record.
• No history of alcohol or drug abuse.
• A volunteer (with commander recommendation).
• Vision of 20/20 or correctable to 20/20.
• No record of disciplinary action.
• Expert marksman with M16A1 or M16A2 rifle.
• Minimum of one-year retrainability. (left in the Army)
• Career management field 11B, 11M, 18 series. (Infantry)
• Pass APFT (70 percent, each event consisting of a 2 mile run, 2 min of pushups and sit-ups)
• 110 GT score