Chris Kyle Age, Death, Wife, Family, Biography & More

Some Lesser Known Facts About Chris Kyle

• Chris Kyle was a former member of the United States Navy SEALs, social activist, and author. He is accredited with 160 confirmed kills, earning him the distinction of being the deadliest sniper in the history of the United States. His exceptional bravery led to him being honoured with the Silver Star, four Bronze Star Medals with valour designations represented by “V” devices, and a Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal with a valour device. While deployed in Iraq, insurgents referred to him as Shaitain Ar-Ramadi (Devil of Ramadi). He authored a book titled American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History (2012), which inspired the 2014 Hollywood film American Sniper.

• At the age of eight, Chris Kyle’s father bought him a .30-06 Springfield rifle and a shotgun, which he used to go hunting for deer, pheasant, and quail.
  

  Chris with his father firing a double-barrel shotgun

• He participated in numerous national-level baseball and soccer championships while studying in school.

• During his time in college, Kyle began a career as a bronco rider. However, he left Bronco riding after suffering a spinal cord injury.
  

  A photo of Chris taken during his Bronco riding days

• After dropping out of college in 1994, Kyle worked as a farmer and a cowboy at his family’s ranch in Texas.

• Subsequently, Kyle took up employment as a farm labourer and cattle handler on a ranch located in Hood County.

• In 1996, Kyle went to a military recruitment centre intending to join the US Army. However, during his visit, a US Navy officer approached him and suggested that he should contemplate joining the Navy and applying for the US Navy SEALs. He followed the officer’s advice and applied for the Navy on 5 August 1998.

• On 10 February 1999, he commenced his training in the United States Navy at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center in Chicago, Illinois. He joined the US Navy as a sailor after completing his military training in April of the same year.

• From April and July 1999, he received additional training as an Intelligence Specialist at NMITC Dam Neck, Virginia.

• In August 1999, he arrived at NPC Millington in Tennessee. There, he finished the rest of his Intelligence Specialist training.
  

  Chris Kyle (right) with a colleague from the US Navy

• In 1999, Kyle sought to join the United States Navy SEALs. His initial application was turned down because of the pins in his arms from a previous injury during his days of Bronco riding. However, he was invited to join Class 233 of the Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) school in November 1999.

• After finishing his BUD/S training in March 2001, he proceeded to attend the United States Army Airborne School, also known as Jump School, located in Fort Moore, Georgia. There, he underwent basic training in military parachuting.
  

  A photo of Chris Kyle taken during his early career days

• He participated in the 26-week-long SEAL Qualification Training (SQT) at Naval Amphibious Base (NAB) Coronado from May 2001 to August 2001.

• Thereafter, he attended the SEAL Sniper school in Indiana to receive specialized training as a marksman.

• Proficient in the use of various long-range rifles such as the 7.62 NATO Mk 11 sniper rifle, the 5.56 NATO Mk 12 Designated Marksman Rifle, and the Remington 700/300, Chris Kyle showcased his expertise as a skilled marksman.

• Following the completion of his training, Chris Kyle was sent on his first overseas deployment to Iraq, where he became a member of SEAL Team 3’s sniper unit, also known as Platoon “Charlie” and later nicknamed “Cadillac.” His team played an essential role in the success of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
  

  Chris Kyle with a Polish GROM operative in Iraq

• In 2004, after the overthrow of the Iraqi government led by Saddam Hussein, Kyle was given the task of supporting the US Forces in eradicating the pockets of resistance from the Iraqi forces and insurgents.

• Kyle sniped a target for the first time in 2004. His target was an Iraqi woman who posed a serious threat, as she carried a Russian-made RKG hand grenade. In an interview, he recollected the event, revealing that he had to act swiftly to prevent the woman from carrying out a suicide bombing against the US Marines who were on patrol. Talking about it, he said,
  

  I pushed my finger against the trigger. The bullet leapt out. I shot. The grenade dropped. I fired again as the grenade blew up. It was the first time I’d killed anyone while I was on the sniper rifle. And the first time in Iraq—and the only time—I killed anyone other than a male combatant.”

  

  Chris with other American troops in Ramadi, Iraq

• According to CNN’s report, the woman was found with a hand holding a live grenade while also cradling a toddler in her other arm. ^[12]CNN

• Kyle, during his time in Iraq, earned recognition for taking down 160 enemy combatants. He gained notoriety among the Iraqi rebels who nicknamed him the Shaitain Ar-Ramadi (Devil of Ramadi) and offered a $20,000 reward for his capture. Moreover, he was reputed to have eliminated a notorious terrorist known as “The Butcher,” responsible for horrifically mutilating innocent civilians by amputating their hands using a drilling machine.
  

  A photo of Chris Kyle taken while he was in Iraq

• In 2008, near Sadr City, Kyle achieved his farthest confirmed long-distance shot. He identified an enemy combatant moving closer to an American convoy while carrying a rocket launcher, and from a distance of 2,100 yards, he successfully neutralized the threat. In his book, he talked about the incident and wrote,
  

  At some point I saw a one-story house with someone moving on the roof. It was about 2,100 yards away, and even with a twenty-five power scope, I couldn’t make out much more than an outline. I studied the person, but at that point, he didn’t seem to have a weapon, or at least he wasn’t showing it. His back was to me, so I could watch him, but he couldn’t see me. I thought he was suspicious, but he wasn’t doing anything dangerous, so I let him be. A little while later an Army convoy came down the road beyond theother village, heading in the direction of the COP we had staged out of. Asit got closer, the man on the roof raised a weapon to his shoulder. Now theoutline was clear: he had a rocket launcher, and he was aiming it at Americans.”

  

  Chris posing for a photo with his sniper rifle

• In his book “American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History,” Chris Kyle talked about a man named Mustafa, an Iraqi sniper distinguished for his Olympic-level marksmanship, who attacked both American and Iraqi forces operating with NATO. Contrary to the cinematic portrayal in the 2014 Hollywood film “American Sniper,” where Kyle successfully neutralizes Mustafa, Chris Kyle’s real-life experience did not involve a direct encounter with the Iraqi sniper. Instead, he gained knowledge about Mustafa through accounts shared by fellow U.S. and Iraqi service members.

• Kyle endured two gunshot wounds and emerged alive from six explosive attacks while serving in Iraq. In recognition of his courage on the battlefield, he received a Silver Star and four Bronze Stars.

• While deployed in combat missions, Chris Kyle gained recognition among his team members for wearing a bulletproof vest embellished with a spray-painted emblem of Punisher, a character from Marvel comics.
  

  A photo of Chris Kyle taken wearing the bulletproof jacket with the iconic Punisher logo

• In 2009, Kyle retired from the US Navy as Chief Petty Officer.

• Following his retirement from the US Navy, Kyle and his family relocated to Midlothian, Texas.

• Later, he assumed the role of president at Craft International, a Dallas-headquartered company specializing in providing tactical training to entities such as the U.S. military and law enforcement agencies.

• On 2 January 2012, Kyle’s first book, American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History, was published. Kyle’s book stayed on The New York Times bestseller list for 37 weeks and made him famous all over the country. Some news stories raised doubts about a couple of Kyle’s stories after the book came out, but most people still believed the main parts of his story.
  

  Chris Kyle signing his book during the book’s launch event

• Afterwards, Kyle and his younger brother teamed up with a non-profit group called FITCO Cares Foundation to provide gymming gear for free to veterans in the US. While giving an interview, he talked about working with FITCO and said,
  

  A majority of the veterans, who have served in Iraq or Afghanistan, come home with a severe case of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). I believe that the root cause can be eliminated if they indulge in frequent workouts. So we have been working together to give charge free gym equipment to the veterans to help them cope with PTSD.”

• In August 2012, Kyle appeared along with actor Dean Cain on the TV show Stars Earn Stripes in which he taught Dean how to use weapons and use combat strategies.
  

  Chris with Dean on the sets of Stars Earn Stripes

• In 2013, he published his second book American Gun: A History of the U.S. in Ten Firearms.

• The film American Sniper, released in 2014, was adapted from Chris Kyle’s 2012 memoir, American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Deadliest Sniper in U.S. Military History. Bradley Cooper took on Chris’ role in the film.
  

  Bradley Cooper in a still from the 2014 Hollywood film American Sniper

• A retired US Marine Corps soldier named Eddie Routh shot Chris and his military friend Chad Littlefield at the Rough Creek Ranch-Lodge-Resort shooting range in Erath County, Texas, on 2 February 2013. According to sources, Routh, who had served in the Iraq War, experienced both PTSD and paranoid schizophrenia. On the day of Chris’s death, he accompanied Chris and Chad to a shooting range to engage in target practice. Allegedly, Routh’s mother had requested Chris’s assistance in helping her son manage his PTSD and schizophrenia. Chris sustained six gunshot wounds from a .45 calibre pistol, whereas Chad was struck by seven bullets from a 9mm pistol. Talking about murdering Chris and Chad, Eddy said,
  

  I was just riding in the back seat of the truck, and nobody would talk to me. They were just taking me to the range, so I shot them. I feel bad about it, but they wouldn’t talk to me. I’m sure they’ve forgiven me.” ^[13]The Washington Post

  

  Chris’ Navy SEALs colleagues carry his coffin during his last rites

  On 12 February 2013, Chris was laid to rest at the Texas State Cemetery located in Austin.

  

  A photo of Chris Kyle’s tombstone