Direct proof of use
The M2010 Enhanced Sniper Rifle was fielded to U.S. Army sniper teams operating in Afghanistan by June 2011. The Army described the fielding and new-equipment training as complete before the Taliban's 2011 summer offensive, after deployed sniper teams requested a rifle with more reach than the 7.62 mm M24 and M110 systems they already had in theater.
A separate U.S. Army image record documents an M2010-equipped sniper team leader providing security at Observation Post Mangol in the Nari district of Kunar province on February 8, 2012. That image ties the rifle to an identifiable Afghanistan location, unit context, and security role during the war.
Sources: Snipers Put Finishing Touches on the Last Sniper Rifle, M2010 at Observation Post Mangol
Timeline
The M2010 program moved from urgent Afghanistan fielding into wider Army release while the war continued. Initial operational fielding reached Army sniper teams in Afghanistan by June 2011, more than 1,400 systems had been fielded under urgent materiel release by September 2012, and the rifle reached Type Classification-Standard in July 2013 followed by Full Materiel Release in September 2013.
The April 2014 final-delivery ceremony marked completion of the production objective after the weapon had already been used in Afghanistan service.
Sources: Snipers Put Finishing Touches on the Last Sniper Rifle
Narrative
Afghanistan was the operational driver for the M2010. The Army rebuilt the M24 long-action rifle around .300 Winchester Magnum ammunition, a detachable magazine, updated optic, suppressor, and modern chassis to give sniper teams an official effective range of 1,200 meters. Army reporting linked that change to fights in which Taliban forces could engage from terrain beyond the practical reach of the M24 and M110.
In Afghanistan service, the rifle's documented role was small-unit sniper employment rather than mass issue: observation-post security, long-range overwatch, and precision fire by U.S. Army sniper teams on the coalition and Afghan-government side of the conflict. Public sources reviewed for this record identify U.S. Army use; they do not document Taliban, Afghan government, or other NATO use of the M2010.
Sources: CPE Ground M2010 Enhanced Sniper Rifle, Snipers Put Finishing Touches on the Last Sniper Rifle, M2010 at Observation Post Mangol
