Past the Military Day of the Sniper World Cup

On Monday, 8 May the weather was ideal for shooting, and the snipers were assigned a lot of surprise exercises in Tatárszentgyörgy and Táborfalva on the second, military day of the world cup. In contrast to the previous – police – day, the participants had to hit targets placed at distances of up to 900 meters, while the allowed postures were not so optimal for target detection and firing.

“Year by year, we are preparing various and lifelike tasks so that the competitors cannot perform them as a matter of routine. While in terms of the firing distances and the design, the Tatárszentgyörgy range is an open battleground, the distances at Táborfalva are much shorter, but the tasks are equally difficult", Maj. Károly Molnár, Senior Officer, HDF Augmentation, Preparation and Training Command, Military Preparation and Physical Training Department told us. He added that the snipers had to fire their weapons while located on various items of military equipment, objects, or lying or taking cover beside them, just like it could happen on a battlefield.

There are many similarities and differences between the activities of army and police snipers. “In contrast to policemen, the army snipers rarely operate in built-up urban areas, and they carry out fire missions on longer distances, in synchronization with soldiers of other branches of service in more complex tactical situations. They wait for the right moment to come, whereas a police sniper operates by very strict rules for opening fire, Brig.-Gen. Gábor Horváth, Commander, HDF 25th Klapka György Infantry Brigade said. He added that there is no difference between the two fields in terms of the basic characteristics that one can expect from any sniper and that must be gradually developed. Beyond the physical parameters, these characteristics include firm hands, sharp eyes, a very balanced and calm nature, patient attitude to task execution, a great deal of self-control, and perfect knowledge of the weapon.

The brigadier-general also said that in the future, more attention must be paid to acquiring and continuously developing those items of equipment that improve the combat effectiveness of army snipers, and a proper system of training courses must be provided for the young would-be snipers.

The Hungarian Defence Forces represent themselves with altogether seven teams at the three-day competition. Besides the soldiers of the HDF 2nd vitéz Bertalan Árpád Special Operations Forces Regiment, the participants also include personnel from the HDF 5th Bocskai István Infantry Brigade, the HDF Logistic Centre and the HDF Military Police Centre.

“The sniper training itself, too is based on a special type of training in the unit", Col. Tamás Sándor, Commander, HDF 2nd vitéz Bertalan Árpád SOF Regiment told us. He emphasized that the soldiers serving in the sniper teams of the unit already have qualification in some special MOS, such as communications sergeant, weapons sergeant, engineer sergeant or medical sergeant. This is followed by sniper training, which is “unbelievable as it may sound, does not only consist of shooting, because, in a given case, a sniper must act as the commander’s eyes and ears in the area of operations. Snipers must be able to carry out target detection or post-strike analysis, to communicate with the vehicle crews, inside the team or with the headquarters, and to do all these things in an area surrounded by enemy forces, in a given case after insertion as divers or paratroops", the commander added.

The announcement of results takes place in the Training Centre of the National Police Headquarters Law Enforcement Organs, where the first six best competitors in the police and military individual and team categories will stand on the rostrum. The best of the best among them is the winner of the overall individual category. The award ceremony is attended by Chief of Defence Gen. Dr. Tibor Benkő as well.

Photo: László Tóth