In 1966, Tom Ferran, a.k.a. "Moose", volunteered for the 1st Marine Division Sniper School taught by Sgt Carlos Hathcock and Gy Sgt Mitchell in RVN. Upon completion of the two week course Moose was assigned to M Company, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines. In a two week period during Operation Desoto, Moose and his teammate were credited with five confirmed kills and were able to call in artillery on twelve more enemy. The Sniper team's effort resulted in meritorious combat promotions by the Task Force Commanding General, Brigadier General F.C. LaHue. During Moose's 13 month tour in Vietnam, he was wounded twice and accumulated a total of forty-one confirmed kills.

PFC Tom "Moose" Ferran
Vietnam 1967

Please visit:  Semper Fidelis 7th Marines

In World War II, an average of 25,000 bullets were fired for each soldier killed. By Vietnam, that number had climbed to 200,000. Yet, on average, trained snipers expend only 1.3 bullets per kill. It's no wonder they are called the "most hated men on the battlefield."

See interviews with Moose in The History Channel's SNIPERS series:  One Shot-One Kill, World's Deadliest Snipers, Stalk & Kill and Law Enforcement Snipers.

From sessions at the Marine Corps Sniper School to the legendary battle between German and Soviet marksmen that inspired the film Enemy at the Gates, SNIPERS looks through the scope and takes aim at these specialized soldiers.

 

Thomas Beckett is a US soldier working in the Panamanian jungle. His job is to seek out rebels and remove them using his sniper skills.

Moose also served as the "Sniper Consultant" for the hit movie, Sniper, starring Tom Berenger.

 
Moose was also featured in the books, Death From Afar, Volumes I and II,
by Chandler and Chandler; and the book, Stalk and Kill, by Adrian Gilbert
The first of a five volume series that opens the door on U.S.M.C. Sniping. This definitive work is solid stuff that combines a reference work with the real-world of the finest warrior-marksman ever trained. The series allows an inside look at the deadly world of the Marine Corps Scout Sniper. Volume II opens with a Desert Storm sniper kill report and includes the latest Marine Corps Rifle purchases. Scopes, rifles, ghillie suits and war stories... are all here. There are book reviews, sniping tips, unusual stuff, and lots of informed opinion... nothing is omitted. From the sharpshooters of the American Revolution to the Marine snipers who dominated the streets of Mogadishu, a famed military historian puts you behind the crosshairs of the most adept killers in history.
 

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