The Craziest Shots in Firearms History by Bobby Thurman
Being a student of long-range precision shooting I thought I would contribute another post about amazing, crazy, almost unbelievable shots.
While these are not in chronological order, we will start with the oldest one.
Billy Dixon's Second Battle of Adobe Walls Shot
Billy Dixon was orphaned at 12 years old and was an "adult" by the time he hit 15. A former buffalo hunter and mule skinner.
In 1874 he was an Army Scout and helped reestablish a small fort on the frontier in an area known as "Adobe Walls" on the south side of the Canadian River (north of Amarillo).
On June 26th, 1874, somewhere between 700 and 1500 Indian warriors from different tribes attacked. There were only 28 Americans in the fort, among them was legendary old west lawman Bat Masterson. The Americans did the best they could fighting off the attack.
On the 3rd day, Dixon and some others spotted some Indian scouts on a ridge about a mile away. Dixon, who was known to be a crack shot, was loaned a Sharps "Big 50", .50-90 loaded with a 600-grain bullet, and adjusted the rear sight as he was lobbing the shot, then he took aim.
Dixon killed one of the warriors, knocking him off his horse. The Indians probably didn't even hear the shot as the noise came 4 seconds after the gun was fired, probably around the same time the Indian hit the ground. You can imagine the fright this put into the Indians and that fright ended the Second Battle of Adobe Walls.
Later the shot was measured out at 1,538 yards, a World Record confirmed kill. For his actions Dixon was awarded the Medal of Honor.
Did it really happen this way? Yep, there were numerous witnesses to the event, including the Indian warriors who told the story of the mystic "medicine" that the white man at Adobe Walls possessed.
The craziest part: The rifle used was not owned by Billy, nor had he shot it before and get this, the record stood for nearly 100 years.
Gunnery Sergeant Carlos "White Feather" Hathcock's Record Shot
Gunnery Sergeant Carlos Hathcock had already earned a reputation as an excellent sniper. He competed at Camp Perry and won the Wimbledon Cup for the Marine Shooting Team.
He wanted something better than the 30-06 Winchester Model 70 that he had been issued.
So, he took a Browning M2 Machine gun, had the Seabees build him a special base and mounted a scope to it.
While testing the rifle on a mountain top his team noticed they were surrounded by NVA regulars, he then zeroed the rifle to 2500 yards. While still in position enemy troops showed up (maybe they heard the shots?) and one of them stepped into the very spot Hathcock had his rifle pointed and zeroed at. He fired, killing the NVA soldier and broke Billy Dixon's record. The 2,500-yard shot would stand for 35 years.
Did it really happen this way? Yep, there were numerous witnesses to the shot (a confirmed kill requires an independent witness, usually the spotter as well as an officer).
The craziest part: You mean besides taking a .50 machine gun and turning it into a sniper rifle? What are the odds that an enemy literally walks into the view of your scope right after you zeroed the rifle at that exact spot?
Hathcock Kills a Cobra
Counter-Snipers are real, they started showing up in WWII. If you have seen the movie Enemy at the Gates. You know what that kind of warfare is like.
The North Vietnamese knew about White Feather and trained some counter-snipers to kill him.
An NVA sniper named "Cobra" had moved into the area and killed some Marines (many Marines wore white feathers in their hat to confuse the enemy snipers).
Whitefeather was went hunting for these counter snipers near Hill 55 (SW of Da Nang). While searching, Hathcock saw a glint of a scope's glass, he lined up his shot and fired, the bullet went through the scope and killed Cobra.
This event was immortalized in the film Saving Private Ryan.
This type of shot has also been duplicated under controlled circumstances. While we do not know the exact distance it was probably at 200-400 yards away, maybe even less.
Did it really happen this way? Yep, Hathcock's spotter testified that this really happened, in addition Hathcock returned to base with the enemy's rifle, it was tagged and stashed in the armory but was later stolen.
The craziest part: At 400 yards or less, the only way for the bullet to traverse the scope and kill the other sniper was if both rifles were lined up to each other exactly in line, in other words Cobra had White Feather in his sights, it is entirely possible that Cobra also fired, but his shot was too high or too low. At distances greater than 400 yards, his 30'06 bullet would have begun dropping which would make the shot just about impossible.
Sergeant York Takes a Machine Gun Emplacement
If you haven't heard the story of Sergeant Alvin York, then you need to do some more reading about history.
Alvin York was a pacifist from Tennessee, a devout Christian he was not willing to kill anyone for any reason. After he got drafted and his commanding officers saw his shooting ability, they convinced him that he could help end the war early, saving lives......a solid argument if you ask me.
On October 8th, 1918, about a month before the end of the war, Alvin's battalion was in France and was sent to capture a machine gun nest near Hill 223, along the Decauville Railroad line.
There were 17 men in Alvin's group, four NCOs and 13 Privates, six of those men were killed and four were injured by machine gun fire, of which there were 32. The 4 NCOs had become casualties, so York was now in command of the remaining 7 men.
It is rumored that York was carrying a M1917 rifle, even though he was issued a M1903, he supposedly liked the sights on the M1917 better.
York began firing at the German machine gunners, taking them down every time they popped their heads up to shoot. He never missed, not once.
Before long a German Officer mounted a charge against York, who had run out of ammo in his rifle and resorted to his 1911 pistol. He started by shooting the men in the back of the charge and worked his way to the front (that way the men would not scatter and be easier to shoot), before the men got to York, the officer, in English offered to surrender if he would stop shooting them.
Alvin accepted their offer of surrender and took control of the area returning to HQ with 32 machine guns and 132 German POWs.
One superior officer said to York; "Looks like you captured the entire German Army", to which York replied, "No sir, I only got 132".
For his actions he was awarded the Medal of Honor along with a host of other medals from the US, France and Italy.
Did it really happen this way? Yes sir, the remaining members of his battalion, still in shock as to what they had witnessed, gave testimony, leading to Alvins accolades.
The craziest part: While I cannot find confirmation, I have read that not only was York's rifle empty, so was his pistol. I am sure the Germans didn't know that they surrendered to a man without any ammo, but they probably would have surrendered anyway, just in case he found another gun.
Elmer Keith's 600-yard Deer Kill
In the mid 1950s Keith was hunting in the mountains of Idaho with a friend. His friend had wounded a mule deer at 600 yards. Keith, attempting to put the animal down raised his 6 1/2" Smith & Wesson 44 Magnum and took aim. His friend helped him walk the shot up to the animal and Keith ended up hitting the deer twice.
Did it really happen this way? That is something that has been debated, he had only one witness, his close friend. This would be a tough shot for most people, but not Elmer, he was known to have the ability to hit targets at great ranges with his handguns, he also was the inventor of the .44 Mag, so if anyone could do it, he could. World Record shooter Bob Munden duplicated the shot on the TV program Impossible Shots.
The craziest part: a 44 Magnum's point-blank range is around 100 yards, at 600 yards the bullet is dropping a foot or more, the Model 29 had open sights, so to make the shot you have to shoot above the target and still try to keep the target lined up.
Craig Harrison's Double Shot
In November of 2009, while providing overwatch during Operation Herrick, British sniper Craig Harrison was perched in a "snipers nest" more than 1.5 miles away (2,707 yards) watching American and British troops clearing an Afghani village. He spotted a Taliban fighter with a radio, giving intel to some unseen fighters likely planning an ambush.
Harrison was armed with an Accuracy International AVM rifle in .338 Lapua Magnum.
He had ranged the gun to that area before, earlier in the morning, now he needed to take out a target. He fired and missed, just in front of the target, which then took cover. When the Taliban stood up again, Harrison fired once more, hitting him in the chest, tango down.
Then, like a prairie dog, a second Taliban fighter appeared he took aim and fired, worried that he was going to miss, he reset and quickly fired again. The first one did miss, the second one hit him in the side, ending his fight.
Did it really happen this way? Yes, it did, in fact those two kills set a new record for a confirmed kill, which only lasted for 3 years.
The craziest part: When Harrison hit the second target, he fired two shots back-to-back, the first bullet took 6+ seconds to get there, that means that he had two bullets in the air at the same time.
Chris Kyle's "lucky shot"
One of, if not the, most prolific sniper in American Military History. Chris was a Chief Petty Officer Navy Seal sniper with 160 confirmed kills.
This particular one was special, it was in 2008, in Iraq, Kyle was perched on a rooftop watching over a US Army convoy, he noticed an enemy combatant with an RPG that was looking to take aim at the approaching convoy.
Kyle checked the distance it was 2,100 yards, his CO told him the shot was impossible, he took the shot anyway and ended the bad guy's intentions.
Long distance shots like this are rare, I suppose that is why they get the most attention. Most of Kyle's confirmed kills came at much shorter ranges.
Kyle was armed with a Macmillin Tac-338 in .338 Lapua Magnum
Did it really happen this way? Yes, there were more than three witnesses to the shot.
The craziest part: Chris Kyle was on a roof top in one village, while the bad guy was more than a mile away in a different village.
Owen Baggett takes down a Zero
B-24 Liberator co-pilot John Owen Baggett was on a mission in Burma during WWII. His squadron was intercepted by some Japanese Ki-43 "Army Zero" fighter planes.
His plane was hit numerous times and caught fire; Baggett and the crew had to bail out and parachute to "safety".
It was well known that Japanese pilots would attempt to kill any parachuting survivors, so Baggett feigned death. When one of the pilots with an open canopy came by to take a closer look, Baggett drew his M1911-A1 pistol and fired 4 shots at the pilot, killing him and sending the plane to the ground.
Did it really happen this way? There is no proof or witnesses that this actually happened in addition the Japanese claim that no planes were lost during the engagement. It is possible that the pilot was injured but survived or lived long enough to land the plane or it could be that the Japanese were lying.
Baggett did re-up after the war and retired from the Air Force in 1973.
The craziest part: Hitting a moving object going a minimum of 50 mph (it was probably going closer to 100-150 mph), especially while hanging in mid-air with nothing to rest against sounds very difficult.
Honorable Mentions
Indiana Mall Shooting
On July 17th, 2022, shortly before 6pm 22-year-old Elijsha Dicken was at the Greenwood Park Mall food court with his girlfriend when he heard shots.
A POS had brought two AR-15s and a handgun to ruin as many lives as he could. Within 15 seconds he had fired 24 times killing 3 and injuring two others, that's when Dicken drew his Glock 9mm pistol and began firing while approaching the shooter. At the same time, he had the presence to yell at the mall patrons to seek cover and get behind him. Dicken fired 10 rounds, 8 of which found their target at a distance of 40-50 yards (120-150 feet). The shooter attempted to retreat to the restroom but died on the floor.
Did it really happen this way? You're God damned right it did, there were dozens of witnesses who not only saw Dicken's actions but praised him for saving lives. He was made Greenwood's citizen of the year for his actions.
The craziest part: Indiana's Concealed Carry Law had just gone into effect just 17 days prior. In addition, his actions led to a new shooting drill being created in which a person must hit a human sized target from 40 yards within 15 seconds.
The Kenosha Kid
Kyle Rittenhouse, a red blooded, freedom loving 17-year-old from Antioch, Illinois, went to Kenosha with some friends in an attempt to stop rioters from looting stores and setting fires.
He was attempting to help an injured person when a crowd started after him, he was cornered by one of the leftist pieces of shit and the turd tried to disarm Rittenhouse (no doubt with the goal of killing Rittenhouse), it didn't work out as he wanted as Rittenhouse shot him dead where he stood.
While attempting to render first aid to the turd he just shot, a crowd yelled "kill him" and chased Rittenhouse down the street, now running for his life.
One of the leftist agitators hit Rittenhouse with his skateboard and attempted to take his rifle, Kyle fired again, killing this turd with one shot.
Within seconds a 3rd leftist armed with a pistol and evil intent aimed his illegally possessed pistol at Rittenhouse, in turn Rittenhouse shot him in the arm (the one holding the pistol) and ended the fight.
All three of these leftist miscreants were criminals, one had a warrant out for his arrest after beating up his girlfriend and was a convicted child molester, the one with the gun had a lengthy criminal record and was not allowed to own a firearm, the asshole who thought a skateboard was a good weapon was a repeat domestic abuser with a laundry list of offenses.
Did it really happen this way? You bet, all but the first shot was caught on camera, multiple cameras actually.
The craziest parts: Kyle Rittenhouse fired three shots in self-defense in an extremely stressful situation, he did not miss, nor were any innocent bystanders injured.
He was put on trial for 1st degree murder by a leftist piece of shit A.D.A.
Thankfully the jury said he acted in self-defense and acquitted him.
Now the killing of a child molester and two wife beaters is known as the "Kenosha Hat Trick".
About the author:
Bobby Thurman grew up in the wilds of Southern Oregon and has been around guns all his life, a Navy veteran and SEALs applicant, he has participated in IDPA and other shooting competitions. He has hit a milk jug sized target at 1000 yards with his Savage rifle in .338 Lapua and has a goal to hit one at a mile.
