| Zhang Taofang 張桃芳 | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1931 |
| Died | April 29, 2007 (aged 76) |
| Place of birth | China |
| Place of death | China |
| Allegiance |
 China |
| Service/branch |
People's Volunteer Army |
| Years of service | January 11, 1953 – |
| Unit | 8th company, 214th Regiment, 24th Corps |
| Battles/wars | Korean War |
| Awards | Combat Hero (2nd Class) |
Zhang Taofang, (Chinese: 張桃芳; Wade–Giles: Zhang Tao-fang; 1931 – April 29, 2007) was a Chinese sniper during the Korean War.It is claimed he has 214 confirmed kills in 32 days without using a sniper magnifying scope.[1]
Biography[]
Born Xinghua City in Jiangsu Province.
Korean War[]
On January 11, 1953, Zhang, who had been enrolled in the army for no more than two years and together with soldiers of 8th company, 214th Regiment, 24th Corps, he was assigned to Triangle Hill, equipped with an old Mosin-Nagant without a PU scope. After waiting 18 days at his position, Zhang spotted an enemy and immediately aimed and fired 12 shots, only to miss them all. This eager action attracted enemy fire, which almost killed him. After this, he carefully analyzed why he failed and figured out a technique using the iron sight to improve his shooting ability. He shot down one enemy the next day.
On February 15, he hit 7 enemies with 9 bullets, which surpassed the ratio of many experienced snipers.[citation needed]It is claimed He achieved a total of 214 confirmed kills on UN troops, mostly American, in 32 days,[2] with only 442 bullets [3]
Media[]
In 2003, Zhang was the topic of a CCTV documentary.
Books[]
- Martin Pegler (2006) "Out of Nowhere: A history of the Military Sniper" ISBN 1-84176-854-5
- Kevin Dockery (2007) "Stalkers and Shooters: A History of Snipers" ISBN 0-425-21542-3
References[]
The original article can be found at Zhang Taofang and the edit history here.