The 7 Deadliest Snipers of World War II

1. Simo Häyhä

Simo Häyhä is a Finnish sniper, and the most successful sniper in all military history, let alone just World War 2. He is more commonly known by his nickname “The White Death”, which is beyond appropriate for this man’s military career. He has 542 confirmed kills on Soviet soldiers, all during a 100-day battle known as the Winter War. That means on average, Simo Häyhä was killing 5.5 Soviets per day! One of the most impressive things about Häyhä is that he didn’t even use a scope, preferring iron sights.

2. Vasilij Kvachantiradze

This legendary sniper has a confirmed 534 kills, which means he is the single most deadly sniper in all Soviet history. Vasilij is well known for stopping a German attack on Shumilino practically alone. He held the area down with a combination of deadly sniper fire and booby traps, all without revealing his location a single time, and single handedly killing at least 60 German soldiers.

3. Ivan Sidorenko

Ivan Sidorenko is another one of the Soviet Union’s legendary snipers, with a confirmed kill count of at least 500. It is speculated he killed more than 500, but there’s no way to confirm anything higher than that. While his kill count places him as “only” the 2nd most deadly sniper in Soviet history, he was one of the most successful career wise. He attained the rank of Major, became a sniper trainer, and trained more than 250 snipers.

4. Ivan Kulbertinov

Not much is known about Ivan Kulbertinov, but what is known is that he has a confirmed kill count of 489! This places him solidly as the 4th deadliest sniper in history, and the 3rd deadliest soviet sniper.

5. Bruno Sutkus

Bruno Sutkus is the deadliest Lithuanian sniper from World War 2, and one history’s deadliest snipers. He served the German army and racked up an impressive 209 kills during his short 2-year service.

6. Matthäus Hetzenauer

Matthäus Hetzenauer is the deadliest German sniper from World War 2. He has a confirmed kill count of 345, and one of the longest confirmed kills from World War 2, at 1,100 meters (3600 feet).

7. Lyudmila Pavlichenko

Lyudmila Pavlichenko is famous as the most successful female sniper in all of history, let alone World War 2. She is also known by her nickname “Lady Death”, which seems befitting of her confirmed 309 kills. Pavlichenko eventually earned the rank of Major, and trained snipers until the end of World War 2.