Major John L. Plaster

Maj. John L. Plaster USA (Ret.) served three tours in the top-secret unconventional warfare group, Studies and Observations Group, in Vietnam. As a long-range reconnaissance leader, he led tiny intelligence-gathering teams behind enemy lines in Laos and Cambodia before leaving SOG in late 1971. He was decorated for heroism four times and retired from the U.S. Army as a major. He is the author of The Ultimate Sniper (book and videos), The History of Sniping and Sharpshooting, Sharpshooting in the Civil War and two books on SOG.

Rob Furlong, a former Canadian soldier, held the world record for the longest.50-caliber sniper kill. While on Operation Anaconda in Afghanistan in 2002, he was credited with dispatching a Taliban fighter at 2,700 yards – or 1 1/2 miles. A veteran of Canada's Princess Patricia Light Infantry Regiment, today Rob is a police officer in Edmonton, Alberta.

Sergeant First Class Jim Gilliland, U.S. Army, is credited with the longest conventional sniper rifle (7.62mm) kill in the Iraq conflict, having eliminated an insurgent sniper at a confirmed distance of 1,367 yards. A qualified Airborne-Ranger, Jim and his "Shadow Sniper Team" were featured in a USA Today article in which the team was credited with more than 200 kills. A career soldier, Gilliland was an instructor at the U.S. Army Ranger School and is now the NCOIC at the Soldier Requirment Division, Small Arms Branch.

Steve Reichert, a former U.S. Marine sniper, is credited with the longest confirmed kill during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Steve spent eight years with the Marine Corps, serving as an infantryman, infantry platoon commander and platoon sergeant, precision weapons instructor and Marine diplomatic security guard and detachment commander, and was the driving force in implementing the DARPA countersniper and XM rifle programs in the Marine Corps. After leaving the Corps, Steve founded Long Range Services, Tier 1 Group (T1G) and High Caliber Training (HTC). T1G is a defense-related company that provides specialized services and training to the U.S. government and other agencies.