This archive report was first published on 18 November 2021.
Published on November 18, 2021, a former KDF Special Forces soldier and trainer, Byron Adera, shared insights into the mind of a Kenyan sniper.
Unlike the often-glamorized depiction in action movies, Kenyan snipers are trained to be masters of camouflage, serving as spies rather than solely focused on making kills. Their primary objective is to save lives, not to flaunt confirmed kills.
A sniper team consists of a shooter and a spotter. The shooter takes the shot, while the spotter protects the shooter, guides them, and follows the bullet to confirm the target's status. This duo operates in challenging environments, often behind enemy lines with limited support, leaving no room for mistakes.
“There’s no second guessing stuff, and I mean you could be miles deep within enemy territory – that’s not where you want to make mistakes because if that happens, rescue won’t be coming quite easily,” Byron explained.
Before taking a shot, snipers consider various factors, including distance, wind speed, and target movement. An experienced spotter can track a bullet's trajectory by observing the distortion it leaves in the air.
Snipers focus on the centre of mass (chest area) rather than the head, as there are more vital organs in the chest. This approach increases the probability of a successful shot.
Kenyan snipers are trained to be mentally sound, as they often operate in teams of two, making split-second decisions. They are also trained to make accurate calculations in Physics and Math under pressure, despite the minimum entry requirement for Kenyan soldiers being a D grade.
Byron emphasized that the KDF training is designed to select only the best soldiers, with a rigorous process that pushes candidates to their limits. He explained, “We don’t select anybody. It’s more of a question of you guys selecting yourselves. We give you the standards and you rise above them.”
