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British sniper describes moment he shot Taliban commander... from TWO KILOMETRES away
By Mail Foreign Service
Last updated at 2:30 PM on 15th August 2009
Corporal Christopher Reynolds has racked up 32 rebel kills during his stint in Afghanistan
A British sniper killed a Taliban leader with the longest-ever fatal bullet shot in Afghanistan - from nearly TWO KILOMETRES away.
Corporal Christopher Reynolds, 25, camped on the roof of a shop for three days as he waited for the perfect conditions to shoot the terrorist commander.
He calculated the range, wind and trajectory before pulling the trigger - and the bullet flew 1,853 metres before hitting the target in the chest.
The warlord, known as 'Mula', is thought to be responsible for co-ordinating several attacks against British and American troops since the outbreak of war in 2001.
Cpl Reynolds, of 3 Scots, The Black Watch, who has already killed 32 rebel fighters, has now been credited with the longest kill in Afghanistan at 1.15 miles away.
The incident happened last week during heavy fighting in the town of Babaji in Helmand Province.
Today he told how the Taliban chief slumped into the arms of a stunned colleague after being hit by the 'lead sleeping tablet'.
Cpl Reynolds, a father-of-one, said: 'We were in a bazaar for days in some very heavy fighting and had taken up a position on a shop roof to observe the surrounding area.
'From the first few minutes after we landed, we came into contact with the enemy.
'We were taking fire all the time. We were observing down the valley and I saw a group of five Taliban.
'I identified one straight away as the commander because I watched him through the scope and when he spoke on the radio, the other one would do what he said.
'I saw that he had a weapon, an AK47. We did all the calculations for range, wind speed and all that.
'I have to admit the first round landed next to him. We were so far away that he didn't even realise he was being shot at.
'We changed our aim and when I took into account different factors like the trajectory of the bullet, my gun scope was actually aiming at the top of a doorway.
'I fired and the bullet went off, coming down and hitting him in the chest.
'He dropped straight away into the arms of a fighter behind him. The guy just panicked and dropped the leader and ran away.
'He had been given a lead sleeping tablet. I was quite proud of that shot - it is the longest recorded kill in Afghanistan.' Cpl Reynolds, who has been in Afghanistan since March, was camped with spotter Lance Corporal David Hatton when they noticed Mula walk into range.
In the ensuing battle, an Afghan sniper was taken out by one of Cpl Reynolds' comrades - who fired a state-of-the-art Javelin missile launcher.
L/Cpl Hatton, 20, from Castlemilk, in Glasgow, said: 'We had been in position for three days when he made that shot. I was the spotter on that job and I was giving him the information about the target.
Sniper: The 25-year-old had been in position for three days when he shot the Afghan warlord
His wife Becca, 29, who lives in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, with their three-year-old son Joshua yesterday hailed her husband a hero.
She said: 'I was ecstatic when I found out what he had done. I thought it was fantastic, not only for him but for the whole of Black Watch.
'He is on patrol at the moment but I speak to him about once a week.
'This is his first time in Afghanistan. he has been there since March and has been in Iraq before as well.
Great story, excellent result but I cannot believe they published his name , home town , wife and kids name and where they live. Plus a photo of the Young jock in full uniform . Our Government have no idea who is in this country and this soldier could become a target in his own home with the information provided. He should have beemn soldier X for his own safety, what were his superiors thinkinhg allowing this information to be splashed all over the papers. :angry:
By Mail Foreign Service
Last updated at 2:30 PM on 15th August 2009
Corporal Christopher Reynolds has racked up 32 rebel kills during his stint in Afghanistan
A British sniper killed a Taliban leader with the longest-ever fatal bullet shot in Afghanistan - from nearly TWO KILOMETRES away.
Corporal Christopher Reynolds, 25, camped on the roof of a shop for three days as he waited for the perfect conditions to shoot the terrorist commander.
He calculated the range, wind and trajectory before pulling the trigger - and the bullet flew 1,853 metres before hitting the target in the chest.
The warlord, known as 'Mula', is thought to be responsible for co-ordinating several attacks against British and American troops since the outbreak of war in 2001.
Cpl Reynolds, of 3 Scots, The Black Watch, who has already killed 32 rebel fighters, has now been credited with the longest kill in Afghanistan at 1.15 miles away.
The incident happened last week during heavy fighting in the town of Babaji in Helmand Province.
Today he told how the Taliban chief slumped into the arms of a stunned colleague after being hit by the 'lead sleeping tablet'.
Cpl Reynolds, a father-of-one, said: 'We were in a bazaar for days in some very heavy fighting and had taken up a position on a shop roof to observe the surrounding area.
'From the first few minutes after we landed, we came into contact with the enemy.
'We were taking fire all the time. We were observing down the valley and I saw a group of five Taliban.
'I identified one straight away as the commander because I watched him through the scope and when he spoke on the radio, the other one would do what he said.
'I saw that he had a weapon, an AK47. We did all the calculations for range, wind speed and all that.
'I have to admit the first round landed next to him. We were so far away that he didn't even realise he was being shot at.
'We changed our aim and when I took into account different factors like the trajectory of the bullet, my gun scope was actually aiming at the top of a doorway.
'I fired and the bullet went off, coming down and hitting him in the chest.
'He dropped straight away into the arms of a fighter behind him. The guy just panicked and dropped the leader and ran away.
'He had been given a lead sleeping tablet. I was quite proud of that shot - it is the longest recorded kill in Afghanistan.' Cpl Reynolds, who has been in Afghanistan since March, was camped with spotter Lance Corporal David Hatton when they noticed Mula walk into range.
In the ensuing battle, an Afghan sniper was taken out by one of Cpl Reynolds' comrades - who fired a state-of-the-art Javelin missile launcher.
L/Cpl Hatton, 20, from Castlemilk, in Glasgow, said: 'We had been in position for three days when he made that shot. I was the spotter on that job and I was giving him the information about the target.
Sniper: The 25-year-old had been in position for three days when he shot the Afghan warlord
His wife Becca, 29, who lives in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, with their three-year-old son Joshua yesterday hailed her husband a hero.
She said: 'I was ecstatic when I found out what he had done. I thought it was fantastic, not only for him but for the whole of Black Watch.
'He is on patrol at the moment but I speak to him about once a week.
'This is his first time in Afghanistan. he has been there since March and has been in Iraq before as well.
Great story, excellent result but I cannot believe they published his name , home town , wife and kids name and where they live. Plus a photo of the Young jock in full uniform . Our Government have no idea who is in this country and this soldier could become a target in his own home with the information provided. He should have beemn soldier X for his own safety, what were his superiors thinkinhg allowing this information to be splashed all over the papers. :angry:
That is why I kept quite as it just looked like a typo to me :y18:
