What Rifle Made the Longest Recorded Sniper Kill?

Modern military history is filled with feats that seem almost impossible, but few are as astonishing as the world’s longest recorded sniper kill. Achieving a sniper shot requires extraordinary precision, patience, and a rare combination of advanced technology and elite skill. An assortment of factors must be taken into consideration by snipers, including weather conditions, bullet drop, wind drift, and curvature of the Earth. Long-distance sniper shots push the absolute limits of what firearms and human capability can accomplish on the battlefield.

This article explores the rifle behind the longest confirmed sniper kill on record, examining how advancements in weapon design, optics, and ammunition made such a distance achievable. Beyond the technical marvel, the story also reveals how modern gun warfare has transformed. At one time, guns were almost solely fired at relatively close-range. Long-distance snipers reshaped strategy, risk, and the very nature of combat precision.

Ukrainian sniper Viacheslav Kovalskyi broke the world record for sniper kills during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. According to an interview with Kovalskyi in the Wall Street Journal, the longest kill shot was from a distance of 3,800 meters or 4,156 yards. 24/7 Wall St. took a look into the weapon Kovalskyi used.

This post was updated on November 23, 2025 to provide a brief history of snipers, along with how snipers changed warfare.

#1 Kovalskyi’s identity

The invasion of Ukraine.

Typically, countries prefer to keep the identity of active service members secret when it comes to important military engagements. However, given much of the conflict in Ukraine can be influenced by public opinion, it makes sense why the Ukrainian government chose to reveal Kovalskyi’s identity.

#2 Horizon’s Lord

A Marine sniper.

Kovalskyi used a Volodar Obriyu (Володар Обрію), which means Horizon’s Lord. It is a single-shot bolt-action anti-materiel rifle.

#3 Weapon History

A M40A6.

The Horizon’s Lord is a relatively new rifle designed by Ukrainian MAYAK arms manufacturer. It was created to bridge the gap between anti-materiel weapons and sniper rifles but maintain a longer range than rifles that use a .50 BMG round.

#4 Ammunition

.50 BMG.

Instead, the Horizon’s Lord uses a new kind of ammunition, a .50 caliber, 12.7x114HL cartridge designed specifically for this weapon. It is a .50 BMG bullet that has been adapted and compressed to fit the weapon.

#5 Round Capabilities

A sniper event.

The new 12.7x114HL cartridge has a flatter trajectory, extended supersonic range, retains energy more effectively, and isn’t affected by wind as much. It also generates 30% less recoil than the standard 14.5x114mm.

#6 Weapon Design

A sniper team.

The Horizon’s Lord was designed to be lighter and shorter than other large sniper rifles, staying around 33 pounds in weight and 63 inches in length. The model that Kovalskyi used was around 36 pounds and 71 inches long.  

#7 Adaptability

A sniper and his spotter.

The Horizon’s Lord can be changed to use different caliber and size bullets simply by easily detaching the barrel and bolt head. It can fit .416 Barrett, .460 Steyr, .50 BMG, and 12.7x108mm caliber rounds and 14.5x114mm and 23x115mm size rounds.

#8 Ukrainian Service

The War in Ukraine.

Kovalskyi is a new sniper, and one of the first in-field operators of the Horizon’s Lord, with Ukraine’s counterintelligence unit of its Ukrainian Security Service (SBU).

#9 The Record Kill

Soldiers in Ukraine.

On November 18, Kovalskyi and his partner identified a Russian officer instructing soldiers and decided to make a kill. He made one test shot to determine the true wind speed and immediately took the second kill shot.

#10 Kill Specifics

Ukrainian soldier.

It took the bullet around nine seconds to hit the Russian officer, and since the round is supersonic, the man was dead long before the other soldiers heard the shot. The Horizon’s Lord works similarly to an artillery cannon, in that the bullet fired traveled vertically to about 100 meters above the target before falling and hitting the officer.

#11 Impact of the Hit

Ukrainian soldiers.

Kovalskyi said that the bullet hit the officer’s chest and that the bullet was so large and traveling so fast that it is impossible to survive a hit like that.