John Plaster

Major John L. Plaster

Major John L. Plaster (US Army-Ret.) is a former U.S. Army Special Forces soldier regarded as one of the leading sniper experts in the world. A decorated Vietnam War veteran who served in the covert Studies and Observations Group (SOG), Plaster co-founded a renowned sniper school that trains military and law enforcement personnel in highly specialized sniper tactics. He is also the author of The Ultimate Sniper: An Advanced Training Manual for Military and Police Snipers, The History of Sniping and Sharpshooting, and Secret Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines with the Elite Warriors of SOG a memoir of his 3 years of service with SOG.

Plaster was trained as a communications sergeant in the Special Forces. He served three combat tours in Vietnam as a member of SOG, leading intelligence-gathering and recon teams in North Vietnamese Army-controlled areas of Laos and Cambodia and along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. He was wounded once, and decorated four times, eventually receiving a field commission in recogniztion of his combat experience. He retired from the military at the rank of Major.

Plaster parlayed his military experience into becoming an expert sniping instructor to members of many U.S. governmental agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Customs Service, the United States Marshals, Navy SEALs and United States Marine Corps. Foreign units that have also attended the school include the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Spanish Foreign Legion.

Since 1993, Plaster has been a precision rifle instructor at the Gunsite Training Center in Paulden, Arizona. He was recently Chief of Competition for Autauga Arms's U.S. and European sniping championships.

Plaster holds a BA in Journalism.

Awards and decorations

• Presidential Unit Citation 2001 Studies and Observations Group

Published writings

• Author, The Ultimate Sniper: An Advanced Training Manual for Military and Police Snipers
• Author, SOG: The Secret Wars of America's Commandos in Vietnam
• Author, Secret Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines with the Elite Warriors of SOG
• Author, SOG: A Photo History of the Secret Wars
• Author, The History of Sniping and Sharpshooting
• Contributor, The FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, Tactical Edge, Soldier of Fortune and Guns & Ammo

External links

• John Plaster's website
• Paladin Press feature on John Plaster
• Gunsite Academy