---
title: "This Marine made history’s 5th longest sniper kill with a machine gun"
date: "2018-04-02"
modified: "2020-10-21"
authors:
  - name: "Logan Nye"
    job_title: "Senior Contributor, Army Veteran"
    link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/logan-nye/"
url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/articles/marine-made-historys-5th-longest-sniper-kill-machine-gun/"
categories:
  - "History"
  - "Marine Corps"
  - "Vietnam War"
  - "War History"
---

# This Marine made history’s 5th longest sniper kill with a machine gun

![](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/wp-content/uploads/legacy/assets.rbl.ms/17292323/origin.jpg>)

Gunnery Sgt. Carlos Hathcock III is a legend in both the sniper and Marine Corps communities for a [number of reasons](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-moments/marine-american-sniper-vietnam-war-hathcock/>).

---

One of them was a shot he took in 1967. In the book, "[Inside the Crosshairs: Snipers in Vietnam](<https://smile.amazon.com/Inside-Crosshairs-Col-Michael-Lanning/dp/0804116202/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8qid=1447188854sr=8-1keywords=inside+the+crosshairs>)," Army Col. Michael Lee Lanning described it:

*Firing from a hillside position using an Unertl 8X scope on a .50-caliber machine gun stabilized by a sandbag-supported M3 tripod, Hathcock engaged a Vietcong pushing a weapon-laden bicycle at 2,500 yards. Hathcock's first round disabled the bicycle, the second struck the enemy soldier in the chest.*

https://i.imgur.com/P57fW.jpg

At the time this was the longest sniper kill in history, and it was made with a machine gun in single shot mode. The record stood until March 2002 when Canadian sniper Master Cpl. Arron Perry beat it. Since then, at least three other snipers have [beaten Hathcock's distance](<https://controversialtimes.com/military/10-longest-recorded-sniper-shots-in-history/>).

https://i.imgur.com/FsrQz.jpg

Hathcock wasn't the only sniper to use the M2 instead of a traditional sniper rifle. The weapons had been used as sniper weapons in Korea and Vietnam before, but no one else made a shot at nearly the distance of Hathcock's.

In fact, Hathcock's shot beat a record that had stood for nearly 100 years. On June 27, 1874, Buffalo Hunter Billy Dixon [killed a Comanche leader during the Second Battle of Adobe Walls](<https://books.google.com/books?id=qIHKAwAAQBAJpg=PT364lpg=PT364dq=billy+dixon+sniper+shotsource=blots=hsE0u6S-d3sig=uZibl1oCioXgWN9RPN6iovfylxwhl=ensa=Xved=0CB4Q6AEwATgKahUKEwjY3d_E5YbJAhWBLJQKHe19BTI#v=onepageq=billy%20dixon%20sniper%20shotf=false>) from 1,538 yards. But while Dixon was firing at a group of warriors silhouetted against the sky, Hathcock fired against a single target.

*Check out [WATM's podcast](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/podcast/the-insane-vietnam-war-adventures-of-legendary-sniper-carlos-hathcock/>) to hear the author and other veterans discuss the Vietnam War adventures of Carlos Hathcock.*

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## Author
Logan was an Army journalist and paratrooper in the 82nd. Now, he's a freelance writer covering military history, culture, and technology. He has two upcoming podcasts and a Twitch channel focused on basic military literacy.

### Author social links  
[Twitter](<https://twitter.com/JustLoganNye>)  
[Facebook](<https://www.facebook.com/ProfHarlequin-111921498198749>)