Beyond

Snipers Transforming Soldiers to Superwarriors

Confidential

Table of Contents

Introduction

Page 3

Page 4

Advanced Weapons Technology for Soldiers and Marines

Page 5

Squad-Level Precision Guided Firearms

Page 8

Traditional Squad Small Arms

Page 9

The Supercharged Squad

Page 11

Echelonment of Fire Impact of Precision-Guided Firearms

Page 12

Summary

Page 14

The Culture of Shoot and Hope

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Introduction

The United States Army has lost its edge in small arms. For decades the General Infantry has
been overlooked. The individual soldier is fighting with technology that is obsolete and
inadequate. They are overmatched by any adversary carrying an AK-47. Even ISIS has a more
lethal and capable system (7.62 x 51mm). Our soldiers carry the M4 rifle which was invented 55
years ago. While the Air Force has gone from propeller planes to supersonic jet-fighters and the
Navy has gone from sailing ships to aircraft carriers, the Army Infantry Soldier is fighting with the
same technology deployed in World War I.

This happens because the current U.S. Army small arms development and acquisition system is
dysfunctional and virtually unworkable, even for those within the system. Lives are often lost as
a result.2 This byzantine and anachronistic organizational structure undermines Army leadership
as they attempt to innovate. It took Samuel Colt over a decade to get the U.S. Army to adopt
his game-changing revolver. Even a mandate from Congress was ignored. The Army insisted the
Colt revolver was not feasible. It happened only after General Sam Houston aggressively pressed
President Polk who forced the Army to adopt the breakthrough weapon. The AR-15 was only
adopted only because of the direct personal involvement of Defense Secretary Robert
McNamara and President John F. Kennedy.2

The Armys own report Soldier Weapons Strategy 2014 admits that the U.S. no longer has
overmatch in a small arms fight. Yet available technology from TrackingPoint and others
enables the Infantry rifleman to track and eliminate static and moving targets with incredible
efficiency even beyond the performance of todays operational snipers. An astounding statistic
based on General Accounting Office data shows that as of 2011 the military used 250,000
rounds for every insurgent killed in Afghanistan and Iraq. Much of the ammunition is used in
non-lethal suppressive fire. With new but already available small arms, fire controlled rifles
rounds-per-kill will drop orders of magnitude. The need for suppressive fire is greatly reduced
given that battle standoff ranges are dramatically expanded. In point firing today, where our
soldiers are aiming to kill a particular adversary, First-Shot-Success Probability on moving
adversaries at 300 yards is less than 2%.3 Data on emerging fire controlled systems show a First-
Shot-Success Probability of more than 90% at 300 yards on 10MPH moving targets.3

In comparison to other branches of the military, the Army has been extremely resistant to
change. The nation will be remiss if it does not exploit the many modern, often paradigm
shifting technologies that are available today in the commercial and defense markets.2 Perhaps
it will take Presidential intervention once again to move the Army forward. Many American
lives will be saved and many enemies will be vanquished if the Army embraces the same level of
technology deployed by the other military branches.

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The Culture of Shoot-and-Hope

In 1999, the Army commissioned a study on the efficacy of operational snipers. Code named
Whitefeather, the report concluded that even operational snipers are not particularly proficient
shooters. The conclusion was that in general when snipers engage static human-sized targets
had a First-Shot-Success-Probability is only 3%.4 Mis-aiming and the lack of ability to rapidly
calculate and adjust for the majority of environmental factors cause snipers to work in teams so
they can walk-in their shots, since they rarely kill long-range targets on the first shot. After a
miss, the target is moving and the snipers odds of impact approach zero. The report points out
that this study does not contemplate battle stress and battle kinematics, which further diminish
efficacy.

This whitepaper is not about snipers or for snipers. Emerging small-arms weapons technology is
not aimed at the sniper but the Infantry Soldier and Marine. The aforementioned sniper data is
provided only to give a sense of the difficulty our soldiers face when trying to kill the enemy
with inadequate weapons and a paucity of training. If snipers struggle with the best weapons
and an abundance of training, how can our Infantry Soldiers expect to be effective?

The Army fully recognizes that our soldiers are at a disadvantage when it comes to shooting.
The reaction of Army leadership is to retrain everyone. Weve culturally lost the ability to
teach soldiers how to train and shoot marksmanship,5 said Lt. Col. Bret Tecklenburg. The Army
faces classic diminishing returns as they try to overcome inferior weapons technology by
increasing the amount of marksmanship training. What the Army is attempting to do is akin to a
Native American Indian Chief in the 1800s retraining his braves to be more proficient at the
bow-and-arrow when the Colt Revolver arrived. Unlike Native Americans, our Army has
meaningful options to upgrade the firepower of our soldiers.

The only purpose of small arms is to hit what a soldier is aiming at. Given that our Army fired
250,000 rounds in Afghanistan and Iraq for every enemy casualty is a fairly good indication that
something is very wrong. Why is shooting efficiency startling low? Some considerations:

1) Humans generally cant time the trigger release such that the gun fires at the correct
point of alignment. According to Whitefeather, this aiming error is true even for
operational snipers.
2) Most soldiers dont understand ballistics and dont have the time to do complex math in
the heat of the battle. Nor do they have the sensors needed to measure and
compensate for environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity, barometric
pressure and wind.
3) Few soldiers know how to zero and re-zero their weapons.5
4) Estimating lead and holdover based on target velocity, distance, and wind are difficult at
best for well-trained snipers, let alone soldiers with a paucity of training.
5) Soldiers lose their skills. They atrophy over time and need frequent retraining.5
6) Human central nervous systems degrade under battle stress.
7) The M4 is innately imprecise and inaccurate.2

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Advanced Weapons Technology for the Soldiers and Marines

Small arms fire control technology and weapons are available and proven. Data shows that
soldiers and marines can outshoot the greatest marksmen in the world with minimal training.6
Precision-Guided Firearms can potentially change the face of war and supercharge the soldier
and the squad. Precision-Guided Firearms are imbued with space-age fighter-jet technology and
are instilled with the first significant small-arms innovations since the invention of the telescopic
scope in 1844. Precision-Guided Firearms bring several powerful capabilities to soldiers and
Marines:

1) Eliminates misses due to mis-aiming and improperly timed firing. Eliminates error from
trigger jerk and shooter jitter.
2) Eliminates need to zero and re-zero a weapon. The reticle is always ballistically correct
regardless of target distance, target velocity, temperature, barometric pressure,
humidity, and 17 other ballistic variables. Precision-Guided Firearms are laser zeroed on
every shot. The soldier never needs to zero or re-zero his rifle.
3) Initial training time is reduced by over 90%. The need to retrain is virtually eliminated.
Much like riding a bike.
4) Shooting skills do not degrade under battle stress. Precision-Guided Firearms are based
on Artificial Intelligence and are impervious to stress.

A soldier with a standard issue service rifle can eliminate a moving human-sized target at 300
yards on the first shot only 1.6% of the time.3 Data shows that a soldier with a Precision-Guided
Firearm will eliminate a moving human-sized target at 300 yards on the first shot 92% of the
time.3
Table I

Standard Service Rifle

Precision Guided Firearm

Guided
Trigger

Stabilized
Target
Acquisition

Target
Tracking

Automatic
Ballistics

Barrel
Reference
System

Suppressive
Fire

No

No

No

No

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Table I - continued

Standard Service Rifle

Precision Guided Firearm

CQB

Precision
Fire

Backup
Sights

Battlefield
Network

Anti-Proliferation
Controls

Hit*
Rate

Yes

No

No

No

No

1.6%

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

92%

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Precision-Guided Firearms

Precision-Guided Firearms are comprised of six primary subsystems; Target Tracking Optic,
Guided Trigger, Barrel Reference System, Weather Station, Laser Range Finder, and Networking.


Figure 1

Target Tracking Optic (TTO) The TTO is based on Artificial Intelligence and Computer Vision.
The digital optic acquires and tracks designated targets, and maintains a point-of-impact
designation for the shooter. The TTO includes over a dozen sensors and tracks the background
scene, the foreground scene (the target), and the position of the target. The TTO controls the
trigger such that if the shooter tries to release the round when not aligned with the lethal zone-
of-impact the rifle does not fire. When a target is acquired the TTO computes ballistics and the
reticle adjusts all within 100ms - beyond the perception of the soldier.

Guided Trigger The electro-mechanical computerized trigger is networked with the TTO. As
the shooter squeezes the trigger the digital scene in the TTO stabilizes and the shooter paints
the target with a designated point-of-impact. The shooter continues his squeeze to a full stop
and sweeps the point-of-impact. The TTO releases the trigger/round at the perfect point of
intersection. Total-Time-To-Kill (TTK) from engagement to elimination is approximately 2.5
seconds.

Barrel Reference System Advanced weapons systems such as the M1 Tank have laser-based
systems that continually check the alignment of the sighting system and the barrel. Precision-
Guided Firearms incorporate the same laser system and check the optical alignment on every
shot and adjust aim-point if necessary based on any mechanical shifts. The Barrel Reference
System eliminates the need for soldiers to zero or re-zero their weapons.

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Weather Station Includes a thermometer, barometer, and relative humidity sensor. Each
sensor is instantaneously read at the time of target acquisition and ballistics then adjust based
on these readings.

Laser Range Finder At target acquisition time the Laser Range Finder determines the range to
target and ballistics are automatically updated.

Networking Precision-Guided Firearms have embedded secure wireless capabilities for
connecting to a battlefield network. The shooters view is provided to Command and Control
and to field leaders for real-time target discrimination. Precision-Guided Firearms also have the
ability to provide picture-in-picture capability for the shooter. For instance a drone can provide
images to the shooter as he engages targets.

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Squad-Level Precision-Guided Firearms

Precision-Guided Firearms were designed for the squad not for snipers. There are three models;
M600 Service Rifle, M800 Designated Marksman Rifle, and the M1400 Extreme Marksmen Rifle.

Table II

M600
Service Rifle


M800
Designated
Marksman Rifle


M1400
Extreme
Marksman Rifle

Caliber Lethality Max Target Probability of Tracking Time-To-Kill

Range Velocity
Kill at Max Range Precision

5.56 NATO 600 yards 15MPH

7.62 NATO 800 yards 20MPH






.338 LM 1400 yards 20MPH

87%

.047MOA 2.5 seconds

90%

.047 MOA 2.5 seconds

91%

.047 MOA 2.5 seconds

Squad-Level Precision Guided Firearms

1
Less flight time

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Traditional Squad Small Arms

The Army Rifle Squad is comprised of two four-man teams led by a Squad Leader. Team
Leaders, Riflemen, and Grenadiers carry an M4 (5.56). The Designated Marksman, usually the
Squad Leader, carries an M110 (7.62).

Figure 2

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For these standard-issue weapons the estimated distance for 90th percentile lethality is shown in
Table III. For comparisons sake Table III shows the estimated distance for 90th percentile using
Precision-Guided Firearms.

Table III






Service Rifles






Designated Marksman Rifles





Extreme Marksman Rifles

Lethality of shots Static targets1 Lethality of shots Moving targets1

M4

M600

55 yards
515 yards

40 yards
475 yards

M110
M800

115 yards
670 yards

95 yards
620 yards

M110
M1400

115 yards
1200 yards

87 yards
1150 yards

90% Lethality Target Engagement Ranges

1
Range at which 90% of shots are lethal under battle stress

The differences represent a dramatic leap in lethality.

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The Supercharged Squad

Precision-Guided Firearms can be deployed with the current squad structure with minimal
change in doctrine. The Squad Leader carries the M1400, Team Leaders carry the M800, and
Riflemen, and Grenadiers carry an M600.

Figure 3

Employing Precision-Guided Firearms delivers tremendous squad overmatch capability, creates

insurmountable battle standoff distances, and delivers dramatic force multiplication.

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Echelonment of Fire Impact of Precision-Guided Firearms

Echelonment of fires is the schedule of fire ranging from the highest caliber munitions to the
lowest caliber munitions. The purpose of echeloning fires is to maintain constant fires on the
enemy while using the optimum delivery system. Strikingly, today small arms are only slotted for
engagements of 135meters and in which is the limit of their capability.

Figure 4

Echelonment of Figure 4 shows that small arms are come into play only when the enemy is
within 135 meters. Fire changes dramatically when Precision-Guided Firearms are deployed
Figure 5.

Figure 5

Precision-Guided Firearms deliver lethality that parallels the standard Echelonment of Fires. The
enemy while under fire by Howitzers and Mortars are simultaneously eliminated with precision
point fire at distances that exceed the safe distances of area fire weapons. For instance with the
enemy under mortar fire at 450M he will be simultaneously under assault from any soldier

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deployed with Precision-Guided Firearms. The advantages are:

Probability of kills increase dramatically deterring further enemy encroachment.
Point fire is safer. The probabilities of friendly-fire casualties drop dramatically.
The psychological impact on the enemy is high.
Probabilities of battle victory increase.
Lower casualty rates.

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Summary

Precision-Guided Firearms can change the face of war and bring our overlooked soldiers
capabilities that cannot be matched by any adversary. They deliver new and advanced
capability while maintaining traditional CQB and Suppressive Fire capabilities. The accrued
benefits include:

Battle Dominance Standoff ranges, overmatch capabilities, and force multiplication all
increase significantly.
Mastery Persistence Initial training time is minimal and the need to retrain is likely not
needed.
Safety Precision point fire coupled with much higher optical magnifications reduces
friendly fire casualties.
Controlled Engagement battlefield network integration virtually transports leadership
to the field of battle.
Lower cost of deployment Reduced ammunition costs pays for the Precision-Guided
Firearm in the first year of use.
Loss-of-life reduced Our enemies have no such capability. Our soldiers can eliminate
enemies at distances that are unreachable by the enemys inferior weapons.
Psychologically Beneficial Not only are Precision-Guided Firearms psychologically
devastating to the enemy they are also psychologically protective of the Infantry Soldier.
Walking into battle knowing they have a profound advantage lowers stress for the
soldier.

The resistance to Precision-Guided Firearms will be similar to the headwinds encountered by
Samuel Colt. There will be many peripheral objections but in the end the Precision-Guided
Firearm transforms the Infantry Soldier into a Superwarrior.

Footnotes
1

Boots on the Ground, November 2014, ARMY magazine.

Jim Schatz, U.S. Military Losing Edge in Small Arms, November 2015, National Defense magazine.
3
TrackingPoint test data, December 2015
4
Static e-silhouette target @800meters. 300WM.
5
Michelle Tan, Army Tackles marksmanship Shortfalls with New Training Course, March 2016, Army Times
6
U.S. Army testing of TrackingPoint 338LM, Yuma Proving Grounds, May 2014 TrackingPoint hit rates;
91%@900yard, 100%@1000yards, 100%@1100 yards, 91%@1200 yards.
2

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