Simo Häyhä, a legendarily effective sniper who operated on the Kollaa front. Nicknamed ‘White Death’ by the Red Army, Häyhä racked up 505 kills using his 7.62mm M/28-30 rifle (with open, not telescopic sights) and 7.62mm Suomi KP/31 SMG before he was wounded in the closing weeks of the war. The ‘cuckoo’, or Finnish sniper, was a constant worry for Red Army men wherever they were, with personal reminiscences of the war often mentioning the casualties they caused and the fear they inspired. The Soviets were convinced that the forests were full of such ‘cuckoos’ and would regularly spray the branches of the enemy treeline with machine-gun fire, often to the bemusement of the Finns who insisted that no sniper would put himself or herself in a position from which they could not readily escape. Nevertheless, there are first-hand Soviet accounts of Finnish snipers in the trees causing considerable carnage. One possible explanation is that such ‘snipers’ were being confused with Finnish artillery observers, who did on occasion use observation nests constructed in tree branches. (SA-kuva)
Photo and caption featured in Osprey Combat 21 Finnish Soldier vs Soviet Soldier Winter War 1939–40 by David Campbell
