CS#63: Sniper Shots at Night in Combat | 20+ Years Green Beret | Tactical Rifleman | Karl Erickson
Combat Story
Ryan Fugit
4.8 • 1.3K Ratings
🗓️ 19 February 2022
⏱️ 123 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
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After the military, Karl took his decades of teaching as a Green Beret into the civilian world and has a huge online following for his Tactical Rifleman brand and I can see why.
In this episode, we dive into the deep, deep details of being a sniper in combat, to include taking a sniper shot at night just before breaching a target (scopes, windage, aerodynamics, countdowns for simultaneous shots, round selection, and more), which is just a glimpse of what he shares with his followers online.
Karl is a natural born storyteller and I know you’ll enjoy this hilarious and deeply technical Combat Story as much as I did.
Find Karl online:
Instagram @tactical_rifleman
Twitter @TacRifleman
TacticalRifleman.com
Find Ryan online:
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Instagram @combatstory
Facebook @combatstoryofficial
Send us messages or email [email protected]
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Intro Song: Sport Rock from Audio Jungle
Show Notes
0:00 - Intro
0:38 - Guest introduction (Karl Erickson)
1:30 - Interview begins
6:15 – Making Sergeant Major and being an Operator at Headquarters
15:38 - Childhood as self-proclaimed “juvenile delinquent” and when he knew he wanted to be a Green Beret
30:3 - How the lack of mentor influenced his career path
40:31 - What makes a good sniper
44:15 - Feelings in Desert Storm
53:58 - Combat Story #1 - Gunfight in Afghanistan
1:07:20 - Technical description of shooting with a suppressor
1:10 - Shooting in the dark
1:14:38 - First time having somebody in a scope for real
1:20:42 - Combat Story #2
1:39:28: - About Tactical Rifleman project
1:55:11- What did you carry into combat?
1:56:24 - Would you do it all again?
2:01:14 - Listener comments and shout outs
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Oh my god, I can't believe I'm really going to do this. |
| 0:02.2 | I've got the crosshairs in the guy's ear. |
| 0:04.9 | Condor's getting ready to do the assault countdown. |
| 0:08.2 | And you know your buddies are on the bridge point |
| 0:10.7 | on the outside of the compound wall |
| 0:12.8 | while the center's walking on the inside of the fence. |
| 0:16.9 | You've got your red dot in his ear. |
| 0:19.4 | Welcome to Combat Story. |
| 0:20.7 | I'm Ryan Fugent, and I serve Warzone Tourers |
| 0:22.8 | as an Army attack helicopter pilot and CIA officer |
| 0:25.6 | over a 15-year career. |
| 0:27.4 | I'm fascinated by the experiences |
| 0:29.1 | of the elite in combat. |
| 0:30.8 | On this show, I interview some of the best |
| 0:33.0 | to understand what combat felt like on their frontlines. |
| 0:36.2 | This is Combat Story. |
| 0:38.5 | Today, we hear the combat story of Carl Erickson, |
| 0:41.2 | a longtime green beret expert sniper |
| 0:43.6 | and retired sergeant major, who deployed pre-Ampose 9-11, |
| 0:47.6 | including into Afghanistan just after the twin towers |
| 0:50.5 | fell to hunt bin Laden. |
| 0:52.6 | After the military, Carl took his decade to teach |
... |
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