Meet Navy SEAL Chris Kyle... the deadliest sniper in US history

By MICHAEL ZENNIE

Making the shot: Chris Kyle takes aim from on top of an overturned crib during the Second Battle of Fallujah

Chris Kyle hesitated the first time he killed a person at long range with a rifle. It was a woman who was about to attack a group of US Marines with a hand grenade.
The US Navy SEAL was overlooking an Iraqi town from a shabby building as US forces were still invading the country, before Saddam Hussein had been ousted. The Marines didn't see the woman coming.
'Take a shot,' Mr Kyle's chief told him.
Mr Kyle stammered: 'But...'
'Shoot!' the chief told him again.

Four tours: During his time in Iraq, he gained infamy among the insurgents, who nicknamed him 'the Devil of Ramadi' and put a $20,000 price on his head

When Mr Kyle finally pulled the trigger, the woman dropped the grenade. He shot her again as it exploded.
But after four deployments to Iraq, he learned to stop hesitating and start shooting straight.
With 255 kills, 160 of them officially confirmed by the Pentagon, the retired Navy Seal sniper is the deadliest marksman in US military history.

Telling his story: Mr Kyle (left) has just written a book about his experiences in Iraq called 'American Sniper.' It will hit bookshelves Tuesday

Despite the incredible number, Mr Kyle is still far from being the deadliest marksman in the world. That distinction goes to Simo Häyhä, a Finnish soldier who killed 542 Soviet soldiers during World War II.
Mr Kyle is a cowboy from Odessa, Texas, who was a professional bronco rodeo rider before he joined the Navy. He grew up hunting deer and pheasant with a rifle and a shotgun his dad bought him.
He never realized he was a good shot until he joined the Navy and got into the prestigious SEAL special operations unit.

Long shot: Mr Kyle poses here with the rifle, a .338 Lapua Magnum, he used to kill an insurgent from 2,100 yards away outside Sadr City

'It was my duty to shoot the enemy, and I don’t regret it. My regrets are for the people I couldn’t save: Marines, soldiers, buddies. I’m not naive, and I don’t romanticize war. The worst moments of my life have come as a SEAL. But I can stand before God with a clear conscience about doing my job,' he told Texas Monthly.
He left the service in 2009, deciding not to enlist in order to 'save his marriage' he told his publisher.
Mr Kyle has two children and lives in Dallas.
Since leaving the Navy, he has started his own military contracting firm, Craft International. It provides military and law enforcement sniper training, as well as private security and protection.

source: dailymail