Allegiance China Died 2007, China Battles and wars Korean War | Battles/wars Korean War Name Zhang Taofang | |
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Unit 8th company, 214th Regiment, 24th Corps Awards Combat Hero (2nd Class) | ||
Service/branch People's Volunteer Army Years of service January 11, 1953 – | ||
Zhang Taofang, (Chinese: 張桃芳; Wade–Giles: Zhang Tao-fang; 1931 – April 29, 2007) was a Chinese sniper during the Korean War. He is said to have 214 confirmed kills in 32 days without the aid of a telescopic sight.
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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 rounds, which surpassed the ratio of many experienced snipers. He achieved a total of 214 confirmed kills in 32 days.
Media
In 2003, Zhang was the topic of a China Central Television documentary.