Photo By Capt. Robert Hughes | U.S. Army Sgt. Aaron Fouts (right), an infantryman with Headquarters and Headquarters...... read more read more
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PARNU, Estonia - U.S. Army Sgt. Aaron Fouts waited in a government van on a cold, wet, windy, and rainy April day at a long-distance shooting range near Parnu, Estonia, along with his three teammates. They participated in the Estonian Defence League’s Stage II of the Long-Range Distance Shooting Championship Series, held at the Estonian Defence Force’s Kikepera Training Ground April 6, 2024.
Fouts, of Shawnee, Kansas, is an infantryman and sniper team leader responsible for the health, welfare, discipline, training and combat readiness of his air assault infantry sniper team, capable of deploying worldwide within 36 hours. They are assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters “Hatchet” Company, 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment “Leader Rakkasans,” 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), supporting 3rd Infantry Division.
The competition featured a long, rectangular shooting line with a brown roof, concrete floor, and small wooden planks marking the lanes. Fouts and his team prepared their weapons along with snipers from Estonia and France. The three soldiers who represented the United States, alongside Fouts, were Sgt. Joseph Abeyta, Sgt. Blake Spaulding, and Spc. Brell Patterson.
Fouts and other snipers were given time to prepare their weapons, survey the targets, and complete their calculations, including measuring wind speed and direction; however, it wasn’t time to pull the trigger yet.
This moment had been years in the making for Fouts, who was living his dream thousands of miles from home.
“I have always wanted to join the military and be a sniper since I was young,” said Fouts. “The path to becoming a sniper is not very well known or talked about. As soon as I learned about the scout platoon, I saw being a sniper as an opportunity to progress my career, challenge myself, and achieve a goal I have always had.”
The road to becoming a sniper starts with scout tryouts at the battalion level. The best go on to sniper school at Fort Moore, Georgia, yet they continue to educate themselves long after they’ve graduated, explained Fouts.
“Your job never ends; as a sniper, you are always trying to progress your skills and become more qualified,” said Fouts.
Snipers must have the ability to retain a tremendous amount of information and learn the skills of the craft.
“The most challenging aspect of being a sniper is being able to hit the ground running when you come to the section,” continued Fouts. “It is like drinking through a fire hose when you first show up. You are constantly being taught new information and are required to learn multiple things at once. You have to have the ability to retain a high amount of information at once and are expected to perform.”
Pulling the trigger is actually a very small part of a sniper’s job.
“To be an elite sniper, you must be good at all aspects of the job,” said Fouts. “It is not all about accurately pulling a trigger. A lot of people in the community get their B4 [additional skill identifier] at the sniper course in Fort Moore, Georgia, and then get very complacent. You must constantly build and improve your skills as a sniper and strive to be the best. You should want to go to more advanced schools such as the Special Forces Sniper Course, as well as the dozens of other courses inside the military and civilian world.”
Snipers are expected to have a variety of skills to help the mission succeed.
“Sniper deployment in scouts requires a calculated strategy that blends tracking abilities with accurate shooting,” said 1st Lt. Paul Rose, Fouts’ scout platoon leader. “The missions that snipers are assigned can vary; therefore, there will always be a variation when deploying them on the battlefield.
“Most recently, Sergeant Fouts and his sniper team conducted training to support the battalion during platoon [exercise evaluations], assisting platoons crossing linear danger areas by securing key intersections,” continued Rose. “However, Fouts’ sniper team may help soldiers in numerous ways. Our main missions usually consist of eliminating high-value targets, securing battalion routes, and long-range surveillance/engagement in observation posts. The mission for snipers is endless; that’s why they are the best of the best in the battalion.”
Snipers have been romanticized in popular culture, but the job can be much tougher than it looks.
“Snipers are definitely glamorized in movies and TV shows,” added Fouts. “The general public doesn’t get to see the different aspects of being a sniper. We will spend eight hours walking through the woods with a ruck that easily weighs 100 plus pounds, so you have to move silently to your objective with all the necessary equipment while also not being spotted or tracked by the enemy; that by itself is not an easy task. Once on the objective, we set up and are usually at a minimum there for 48-72 hours conducting reconnaissance and building reports for our leadership,” continued Fouts. “This is what Hollywood doesn’t really show you. Only one percent of a sniper’s mission is pulling the trigger; however, every time we go out, that’s what we’re prepared to do.”
“Much of the job is being stealthy and sneaking to the enemy’s backline to gather and feed information to key leaders,” added Rose.
Fouts has worked hard to try and stand out through continuous education and training.
“Sergeant Fouts is an outstanding soldier,” shared Rose. “He is always on top of his work and getting after rigorous [physical training] with his men. He is always assisting and advising myself and the [platoon sergeant] in technical and tactical matters when we plan training.”
With all the hard work and rigorous training leading up to the Estonian Defence League’s Stage II of the Long-Range Distance Shooting Championship Series near Parnu, Estonia, Fouts stood ready, fully trained, to represent his unit and the United States.
“The biggest part of preparing for a competition is ensuring all of your equipment and weapons are fully mission-capable and ready to go,” explained Fouts. “You need to show up ready to perform at your highest level, and there is no room for error or silly mistakes.”
Fouts competed in the Precision Shooter Semi-Automatic category, which included targets from 300 meters to 600 meters. His weapon was the M-110 Semi-Automatic Sniper System, which fires .308 caliber bullets. Scores were based on the grouping and zeroing each shooter achieved. Targets had circular rings, each equaling different points. Competition officials then added up the points to calculate the shooters’ score each round.
Fouts did everything he could during training to be ready for when this moment came.
Among dozens of elite international competitors, Fouts placed third in the Semi-Automatic category.
“Preparing yourself all comes down to your training,” said Fouts. “If you gave it your all during training and ranges, then when it comes time for a competition or to complete a mission, the only thing left to do is perform.”
| Date Taken: | 04.06.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 04.19.2024 11:45 |
| Story ID: | 468936 |
| Location: | PARNU, EE |
| Hometown: | FORT CAMPBELL, KENTUCKY, US |
| Hometown: | SHAWNEE, KANSAS, US |
| Web Views: | 1,543 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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