<i>[heartbeat thumping]</i> <i>[rock music]</i> <i>male narrator: They are</i> <i>America's elite
fighting force.</i> <i>- We have
the toughest, strongest</i> <i>warriors </i> on the planet. <i>narrator: They are
the US Navy SEALs.</i> - The movies get it wrong. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: These are
the true stories of their</i> <i>most dangerous
combat operations.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> - Taking the easy route is one
of the quickest ways <i>to get yourself killed.</i> - Man down! <i>Narrator:
Told in their own words.</i> <i>- I got my ass behind cover.</i> I almost got it,
but I didn't. - I will never quit.
I will never give up. <i>I will go until I die
or until I win.</i> <i>Narrator: This is
"Navy SEALs: Deadly Marksmen."</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Afghanistan.</i> <i>Iraq.</i> <i>Africa.</i> <i>US Navy SEALs are protecting
America's interests</i> <i>in every combat zone
around the world.</i> <i>And in this elite brotherhood</i> <i>is a special class of warrior:</i> <i>sharpshooters, capable of
incredible marksmanship</i> <i>under every
conceivable condition.</i> [gunshot] <i>Men like American sniper
Chris Kyle,</i> <i>lone survivor Marcus Luttrell,</i> <i>and the unsung heroes who
freed Captain Richard Phillips</i> <i>on the high seas.</i> - Thank you very much. - I don't think anybody would
argue that the SEAL snipers are some of the top snipers
in the world. I mean, they've got the track
record to prove it. And I'm not bragging
when I say that. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: Whether on recon,
hiding in plain sight,</i> <i>on the hunt for
an enemy target,</i> <i>or in the heat of combat,</i> <i>SEAL snipers are disciplined
and deadly.</i> - When things get critical, you do things ten times better
than anybody else. [rifle fires] [shell clanging] <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: Summer, 2006.</i> <i>Ramadi, Iraq is the center of
an al Qaeda-backed insurgency.</i> [shouting] <i>- Ramadi at the time
was the wild West.</i> It was considered the most
dangerous operating environment in the world globally
for US personnel. <i>Narrator: SEALs have been
ordered there to help</i> <i>conventional forces struggling
to defeat a tenacious enemy</i> <i>that controls large parts
of the city.</i> [shouting] <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Snipers from SEAL Team 3
are providing what is called</i> <i>overwatch for a Marine
Security patrol.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> - They can see where the
teammates are going, what buildings they're going
in and out of, and where there might be
a potential enemy. <i>Or maybe a guy running around
corner with an AK.</i> <i>narrator: This particular
platoon includes the legendary</i> <i>Chris Kyle, whose deadly
marksmanship inspired the book</i> <i>and Hollywood blockbuster
"American Sniper."</i> <i>Alongside Kyle on overwatch,
fellow SEAL sniper Kevin Lacz.</i> - Chris obviously
was the epitome. I know there are other snipers
that have put out, like, numbers of kills that they had,
but, you know, it just pales in comparison
to Chris. <i>Chris is the ultimate sniper.</i> <i>You know, fortunately he's a
team guy</i> and I think we're all very
lucky he was in our platoon-- our task unit. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: So far, the patrol
has been uneventful.</i> <i>But something suspicious
catches Kyle's trained eye.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Two men on a moped begin
heading down the street.</i> - You see that moped up there? <i>♪ ♪♪</i> - You know, he nudged me. He's like, "Did you see that?"
I was like, "What?" You know, I look up,
and there's this moped coming. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>[gunshot]</i> <i>[helicopter blades whirring]</i> <i>narrator: Since arriving
in Ramadi,</i> <i>SEAL snipers have proven
to be an effective weapon</i> <i>against the insurgency.</i> - We had quantifiable success
on the battlefield. We're reducing enemy activity <i>based in part
on the sniper operations.</i> <i>narrator: Operations that
rely on more than the SEAL's</i> <i>shooting talents.</i> - One of the big misconceptions
about being a sniper is that all you do is take
long-range shots, keep a head count,
you know. That's all the sexy stuff. The biggest thing
about being a sniper, though, <i>is being a trained observer.</i> <i>You're able to notice stuff
that typical people</i> <i>wouldn't have noticed.</i> <i>- Snipers can get eyes
on that target,</i> and they're gonna give you
awareness of the atmosphere. So, what's going on,
who's moving on target, if they can see anybody. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: On the overwatch
mission in Ramadi,</i> <i>Kyle and Lacz provide critical
cover for Marines on patrol.</i> <i>The Marines are there to earn
the goodwill of the locals,</i> <i>but they can't be sure who's
a friend and who's a foe.</i> - There's enemy activity
in and around there. It's an easy place to stage and
bury weapons and IEDs. <i>And just
overall nefarious areas.</i> <i>Our job was to overwatch those
surrounding roads because</i> <i>they were heavily IED'd,</i> and our job was to interdict
those IED placers. <i>narrator: The Marines are
in good hands.</i> <i>Kyle is one of the most
prolific snipers</i> <i>in US military history,</i> <i>notching 160 confirmed
enemy kills.</i> - He loved being a SEAL
and a sniper. <i>narrator: Kyle's fellow SEALs
call him The Legend.</i> <i>But the enemy gives him
another name--</i> <i>The Devil of Ramadi--
for ruthlessly decimating</i> <i>their ranks.</i> <i>- He wasn't
a really good shot.</i> <i>He just always found
the right place, right time.</i> Every time he went out,
he's, like, killing seven to eight guys. And everybody's like,
"God, how can you do that?" <i>- Now, that's one thing
Chris Kyle really taught me,</i> was patience. And, I mean,
he could sit there forever and just stay on the gun. <i>We'd be on the guns for six,
eight hours at a pop.</i> <i>It's exhausting,
but then all of a sudden,</i> you start to notice things
and you kind of zero in on what may be
a potential threat. <i>narrator: Snipers will remain
on high alert behind a gun</i> <i>for hours--even days--
while observing the target.</i> <i>- Sniper is a special breed.</i> <i>These guys are able
to sit scoped,</i> <i>like, in very uncomfortable
conditions.</i> Hot,
bugs crawling all over you. But just the discipline
to stay there <i>and systematically look around
the battlefield for targets.</i> And most people don't have
that kind of patience. <i>- You can have mental fatigue,
psychological fatigue,</i> start second guessing,
"Hey, was this even "a good idea?
How good was the intel that put me in this spot
that's got me here for days?" <i>narrator:
During the long hours</i> <i>of staring through a scope,</i> <i>a sniper must stay aware
of the smallest details--</i> <i>both the enemies and his own.</i> <i>- On a sniper overwatch,
there's, you know,</i> <i>some elements that you need
to keep in line,</i> and you gotta know the
difference between your water bottle,
your piss bottle, and your Copenhagen
spit bottle. And the last thing you want to
do is mess that up when you're on target and
it's 110 degrees at night and you get up to take
a sip of water, and you do not pick
the right bottle. I can say that's
a bad decision. Um, it's happened
to many team guys, whether they want to
admit it or not. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: From their position,
Kyle and Lacz continue</i> <i>to track the Marine patrol
closely.</i> <i>Kyle not only uses his intense
sniper training,</i> <i>he relies on his growing
wartime experience</i> <i>to help him spot anything
out of the ordinary.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Kyle takes notice when the two
men on the moped</i> <i>begin driving down the street.</i> <i>These men could just be
passing by,</i> <i>or could be planning
an attack.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>As Kyle slowly tracks
the moped,</i> <i>he tells Lacz the passenger
has dropped a bag in the road.</i> <i>Kyle and Lacz immediately
suspect the men</i> <i>are insurgents and the bag
holds an IED--</i> <i>a bomb that is now dangerously
close to the Marine patrol.</i> <i>But the SEALs have only
seconds to decide</i> <i>whether or not the men
are insurgents</i> <i>with hostile intent--</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Or innocent civilians.</i> <i>If hostile,
the rules of engagement</i> <i>allow Kyle to shoot.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>One of a sniper's greatest
fears is making a mistake</i> <i>and killing an
innocent person.</i> - In an urban battleground,
you gotta be in somewhere long enough to be familiar with
the environment-- with the buildings,
with the streets, with the layout,
with the people. <i>Who can be trusted,
who can't be trusted.</i> <i>Safe way in,
safe way out.</i> What the enemy's
reaction time is. Being a sniper in an urban
environment, to me, is the hardest type of
snipering to do. - It's hostile. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> - All right, it's on. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>- The enemy tactics had
reflected that they were</i> <i>using mopeds to deliver IEDs.</i> This was hostile intent,
clear and simple. - Seven.
650. Take him at 300,
maybe 150. <i>narrator:
It's a high stakes shot.</i> <i>A moving target.
A possible IED.</i> <i>Friendly troops and civilians
close by.</i> <i>And only one chance
to get it right.</i> <i>[heartbeat thumping]</i> - When a sniper goes
in the theater, I call them the 13-X factor. <i>They have the capability
of being 13 times stronger</i> <i>in combat--</i>
- Hit it. <i>- Than another soldier
because of their skill</i> <i>and their training.</i> <i>They can hide and they can
shoot a really long distance.</i> <i>The impact of hitting somebody
at 1,200 yards--</i> - Ooh! <i>- Is terrible on the enemy.</i> <i>- If you dropped a bomb
or a lot of Army soldiers,</i> or Marines came in
and shot up the village. That's not happening
with a sniper. <i>A sniper, you have a couple
men up on a building,</i> <i>and they're only taking out
the threats--</i> <i>the terrorist--
the militant.</i> <i>They don't miss,
and they don't shoot</i> <i>innocents by mistake.</i> And they're so effective. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>- Well, we made a difference.</i> <i>That's all I know.</i> The psychological impact was
190 grains of bullet going between their eyes. There's their impact. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: In Ramadi, Iraq,
one of America's</i> <i>most deadly snipers
is on high alert.</i> <i>SEAL Team 3's Chris Kyle
is tracking two men</i> <i>on a moped...</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>When he reports the passenger
has dropped a mysterious bag</i> <i>close to a Marine patrol.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Kyle and fellow sniper
Kevin Lacz suspect the men</i> <i>are insurgents and inside
the bag is a bomb.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Kyle has seconds to decide
whether to shoot the men</i> <i>or let them go.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> - 550.
450. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>- You shoot the
wrong person once,</i> <i>at least ten people
are gonna hate you.</i> You're gonna fuel
the insurgency. You know, we have the moral
high ground in these type of fights,
and we have to maintain that moral high ground. <i>narrator: If the men
are insurgents</i> <i>and Kyle lets them live,</i> <i>they could trigger the bomb
remotely and take out</i> <i>the entire Marine patrol.</i> <i>If they are not insurgents
and Kyle pulls the trigger,</i> <i>he is killing two
innocent civilians.</i> - Our actions,
if they go wrong, they're gonna be on CNN
International tomorrow morning. <i>They're gonna affect
international public opinion.</i> So the responsibility as
delicate as sniper is pretty serious. - 450. 400. Take him at 200,
maybe 150. 350. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> 300. 250. 200. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> [gunshot] <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>- It was a clear impact.</i> You know, you kind of see the
first one slump forward. You know, the back guy
slumps down as well. And then you see that
pink mist just-- [mimics explosion] Blow out, you know,
kind of just like, uh-- Kind of somebody just threw,
like, you know, red paint into
a really fast fan. Just like--
[mimics whooshing sound] All mist. <i>They did land on this
intersection street</i> <i>where the Marine
unit was watching.</i> And all they see are two guys
on the moped fall and they're both dead. <i>Stone dead.</i> <i>narrator: Kyle has killed
both men with a single bullet.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>The Marines quickly secure the
area and search the bodies.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>- Radio over,
and they report seeing</i> <i>no weapons on them,
nothing that would require</i> <i>us to shoot them.</i> <i>So after talking
to our comms guy,</i> <i>they plan on sending,
you know,</i> a little team over to
look at that and then also to look at where we said
we saw an IED placement. <i>narrator: A search is made,
but no IED is found</i> <i>in the immediate area.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Lacz believes the bomb
was recovered</i> <i>by a third insurgent.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> - By the time the Marines sent,
you know, their big conventional search
and whatever unit, <i>some guy picked up a IED
and walked off with it.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator:
In Iraq, insurgents are not</i> <i>the only ones placing IEDs.</i> <i>Local civilians--often
desperate for money</i> <i>in the war-ravaged country--
are paid by Al-Qaeda</i> <i>to target US troops.</i> [explosion] - Get up!
Get up! - And the going rate back then
was you get 200 bucks US dollar to go ahead
and plant an IED. So it'd be safe to assume that
that was picked up to be used another day. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: According
to Kyle and Lacz,</i> <i>a military investigation
concludes that Chris Kyle</i> <i>reacted within the rules
of engagement.</i> - I heard Chris say that he's
prepared to meet God and answer for every shot
he ever took. You know what?
God bless him, because I'm convinced he saved
a lot of lives. Better to be judged by 12
than carried by 6. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> [gunshot] <i>narrator: Kyle's shot</i> <i>underscores
the immense challenges</i> <i>snipers face in combat.</i> - When do you shoot?
That seems to be always the question that people ask <i>that aren't there
in the moment.</i> <i>- Our job is to protect the
people we're working with,</i> <i>and our job ultimately
is to kill terrorists.</i> And when we do that,
you know, we feel pretty justified. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> - Life itself is a value. <i>And true warriors honor that.</i> <i>I think one of the things
that make a--</i> makes a SEAL a really good
sniper is, you know, they are well trained,
but they're disciplined. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: Training and
discipline, that's the product</i> <i>of their own internal
sniper school.</i> - Probably the most difficult
sniper training in the world. - Everything is 1,000%,
balls to the wall, all the way,
all the time. <i>- It's difficult.
You know, they do it</i> <i>in different environments.</i> <i>You know,
there's a lot of standards.</i> <i>People wash out.
They just aren't that good</i> <i>a shooter or not
that disciplined.</i> <i>You know,
a lot of it's stalking.</i> <i>You know, being able to
control your movement</i> and terrain and be very patient
with your shots. How to follow just
all the disciplines. <i>narrator: Those who make the
cut</i> <i>join the ranks of the world's</i> <i>most elite marksmen,</i> <i>men whose lethal precision
on the battlefield</i> <i>is the difference
between life and death.</i> [gunshot] <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> [gunfire] <i>narrator: By the early 1990s,
US Navy SEAL teams</i> <i>are numbered one
through seven.</i> [gunfire] <i>But it's SEAL Team 6 that
is considered the elite</i> <i>of the elite.</i> [gunfire] <i>The most secret,
specialized,</i> <i>sought after operators
in the world.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> [gunshot] <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>- It's just hard to believe
that there's an organization</i> out there that has performed
at that high a level <i>for as long as they have.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: In August of 1993,
snipers from Team 6</i> <i>are ordered to Somalia--
a violent and lawless country</i> <i>on the eastern horn
of Africa.</i> [gunfire] <i>The government has collapsed.</i> <i>Civil war has erupted.</i> <i>And a massive famine has
killed more than 200,000.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>The SEALs are part
of Task Force Ranger--</i> <i>a covert US operation
to capture Somalia's</i> <i>most dangerous warlord.</i> - [speaking Somali] <i>narrator:
Mohamed Farrah Aidid.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Aidid's soldiers have been
seizing humanitarian aid</i> <i>and food shipments,</i> <i>shelling the local US base,</i> <i>and murdering UN
peacekeeping troops.</i> - We had a list of names
from one to ten and, uh, Aidid obviously
was number one. <i>narrator: SEAL Team 6
snipers, including veterans</i> <i>Rick Kaiser and Howard Wasdin
will play a vital role</i> <i>in hunting Aidid down.</i> <i>- We had no, you know,
inhibitions</i> <i>that this wasn't dangerous.</i> So we were ready to,
if possible, die in that situation. <i>Everybody was willing
to make that sacrifice</i> <i>to find this one evil bastard.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>[helicopter blades whirring]</i> <i>narrator: In the fall of 1993,</i> <i>Mohamed Farrah Aidid was
the most feared man</i> <i>in Mogadishu.</i> <i>He's also a hard man
for US Intelligence to find.</i> <i>- He knew to keep moving.</i> <i>That's how bad guys
keep from getting caught.</i> <i>They've gotta be
constantly moving</i> <i>and going from place
to place.</i> That's even more important than
having a lot of security. <i>narrator: Among the other
targets</i> <i>on Task Force Ranger's
hit list,</i> <i>one of Aidid's most trusted
lieutenants--</i> <i>his financier,
Osman Hassan Ali,</i> <i>also known as Osman Atto.</i> <i>Atto allegedly used his income
from drugs, kidnapping,</i> <i>and arms trafficking
to fund Aidid's militia.</i> - Osman Atto arguably was more
important that Aidid because he was
the purse strings. <i>He's the one that
had the money.</i> <i>So we made it a priority
to get him.</i> <i>narrator: The SEALs set up
an observation tower</i> <i>at a United Nations compound
in western Mogadishu.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>From there, they can see
Atto's house</i> <i>and an open air garage
he owns nearby.</i> <i>Soon they have a possible
sighting of the man himself.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>- We observed him
all day long.</i> <i>I mean, it would have been
an easy shot.</i> But the headquarters said, "No,
we're gonna come capture him." - They don't want him shot.
They want him taken alive. Which, you know, that's fine. <i>narrator: The SEALs decide to
wait for a more opportune time</i> <i>to grab Atto.</i> <i>Just a few days later,
they get their chance.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>A local paid informant for
the CIA reveals that Atto</i> <i>will be attending a meeting
at his garage</i> <i>the next morning.</i> <i>- This was the agent that
we had inside.</i> This was one of the--one of
the guys that we paid. He's taking CIA money
to give us intel. <i>narrator: The informant agrees
to point out Atto to Wasdin</i> <i>and another Team 6 sniper
who are in position</i> <i>above the area.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>- Any time you're
hitting a target,</i> you want as many resources
as you can. You want signals. You want to verify at least
two or three times that that is the right person. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: Soon after the SEALs</i> <i>and the informant
are in place,</i> <i>a man arrives
with armed security.</i> <i>Wasdin looks to the informant,
waiting for the agreed-upon</i> <i>signal to confirm the man
is Osman Atto.</i> <i>The sign is a simple tip
of his kufi cap.</i> <i>- Supposed to, like,
take off his hat.</i> <i>And then I turn toward him,
and I remember the guy</i> <i>just being so over the top.</i> He takes his hat off
like this. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> And I remember saying,
"Man, I'm surprised they're not shooting you
right now." - What is he doing? <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: Incredibly, Atto's
bodyguards do not notice.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Now it's up to Wasdin
to decide whether to launch</i> <i>a raid of the building
to capture Atto.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Certain Atto is
at the target location,</i> <i>Wasdin calls the US military
base and gives the okay</i> <i>to set the raid in motion.</i> <i>Within minutes, Black Hawk and
Little Bird helicopters</i> <i>take off filled with
special operators</i> <i>from Task Force Ranger.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>- They come flying in
to fast-rope in and get him.</i> And then my job at that point
is to cover the assaulters as they're coming in. [gunfire] <i>narrator: As the American
helicopters approach,</i> <i>the assault force comes
under heavy ground fire.</i> [gunfire] <i>It's up to Wasdin
to eliminate the threat.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> [gunfire] <i>Aiming through his Leupold 10
power scope,</i> <i>Wasdin begins taking out
the Somali militia.</i> [gunshot] [screaming] - Twelve o'clock.
Set this. - I got it. [gunfire] - Nice shot. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> Nine o'clock. [gunfire] <i>narrator: A man jumps out
with a rocket-propelled</i> <i>grenade launcher--
or RPG.</i> <i>Wasdin must neutralize
the Somali fighter</i> <i>before he can fire the RPG
at an approaching helicopter</i> <i>carrying American soldiers.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Wasdin has little time
to get the shot off.</i> - What is that, three to five
seconds to be in your scope, another two seconds to aim,
another two seconds to shoot. <i>And if you miss that shot,
possibly a whole helicopter</i> <i>full of people are killed.</i> I mean, there's no pressure
there, right? <i>With no time to think,
Wasdin's training kicks in.</i> <i>He dials in the distance
on the scope,</i> <i>aims, and fires.</i> [gunshot] [explosion] <i>The Somali fighter is hit,
pulling the trigger</i> <i>on the RPG as he falls.</i> - He actually fired the RPG
down into the street below him. <i>narrator: Wasdin's single
round saves the lives</i> <i>of everyone onboard
the Black Hawk.</i> - Definitely the sexiest shot
I've ever taken. You know, that's the one I got
the most high fives about. [shouting] <i>narrator: More than a dozen</i> <i>Somali militiamen
are taken prisoner.</i> <i>But in the chaos of the raid,</i> <i>the target, alleged financier
Osman Atto escapes.</i> <i>- Atto went out the side door
of the garage,</i> <i>changed shirts--
because we were looking</i> <i>for him to come out--
and the minute he changed</i> <i>shirts and blended in
with the crowd,</i> no way to tell who he was. <i>narrator: Atto's luck
does not last.</i> <i>After a few days on the run,
he is captured</i> <i>in a second raid.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Just 12 days later,</i> <i>luck will turn for
the US forces, too.</i> <i>Wasdin and other American
soldiers in Mogadishu</i> <i>endure one of the darkest days
in US military history.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Members of Task Force Ranger
raid a building</i> <i>in the center of Mogadishu,</i> <i>capturing two of
Mohamed Aidid's lieutenants.</i> <i>But during the operation,
two Black Hawk helicopters</i> <i>are shot down by RPGs.</i> <i>Three others are damaged.</i> <i>Hundreds of Aidid's soldiers
converge on the crash sites.</i> <i>Soon, graphic images
are broadcast</i> <i>of a dead US soldier being
dragged through the streets.</i> <i>In all, 18 service members
are killed.</i> <i>73 wounded.</i> <i>Among them, Howard Wasdin,
shot three times</i> <i>in the same leg.</i> <i>Aidid himself remains at large
for nearly three more years,</i> <i>until he dies from
complications after a shootout</i> <i>with rival warlords.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>The Battle of Mogadishu leads
President Clinton</i> <i>to withdraw US forces
from Somalia.</i> - All American troops will be
out of Somalia no later than March the 31st,
except for a few hundred support personnel
in non-combat roles. <i>narrator: A decision
that still bothers</i> <i>some of the SEALs
who survived that day.</i> - Everything we had done,
everything we'd accomplished, <i>all the sacrifices we made,
the 18 killed that day--</i> <i>we saw President Clinton
pulling us out of that</i> as a slap in the face. <i>- I wish we would have went
back in there</i> <i>and pulled out our Killed In
Action that were being</i> <i>desecrated by the locals.</i> Because that would have sent
a message to these guys that, you know,
if you're gonna mess with us-- yeah, we might take
some casualties, but we're not going to stop. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> [gunfire] <i>narrator: High in the
mountains</i> <i>of southern Afghanistan,</i> <i>members of the Army's Elite
5th Special Forces</i> <i>trapped in a valley,
trading fire</i> <i>with Taliban fighters.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> - Our brothers from the 5th
Special Forces group were conducting a mission
deep in a mountain region. And they had been pinned down. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: Within two hours,
platoon chief Thom Shea</i> <i>and snipers from SEAL Team 7
are on a high priority mission</i> <i>to help save them.</i> <i>The SEALs must reach the
valley where the 5th</i> <i>Special Forces are trapped,</i> <i>then eliminate the Taliban
threat in preparation</i> <i>for a planned
helicopter rescue.</i> <i>- Every footstep in some
of those places feels like</i> <i>just feels like you're walking
on eggshells</i> <i>and breaking them.</i> And so the movements that you
have to make in getting from point A to point B
are so slow and so methodical. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: A few hours
before dawn,</i> <i>SEALs reach the valley
undetected.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Quickly, without a sound,
they spend the remaining</i> <i>hours of darkness setting up
their sniper positions</i> <i>and prepping for
the fight ahead.</i> - To be a great sniper
in my mind <i>is you have to want to hunt.</i> <i>The shooting is not what makes
a good sniper.</i> You have to be extremely
okay with killing. <i>[gunfire]</i> [helicopter blades whirring] <i>narrator: By morning, SEAL
Team 7 platoon chief Thom Shea</i> <i>and his snipers are
in position on a ridge line</i> <i>above the valley.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Below, the Army's 5th Special
Forces group is still</i> <i>pinned down by the enemy after
a night of heavy fighting.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>The plan is to airlift them
out by helicopter,</i> <i>but not until the SEAL snipers
can eliminate</i> <i>the Taliban threat.</i> - We're there to prevent any
other Taliban movement onto the 5th Special Forces
guys. <i>narrator: A daunting task
as the enemy</i> <i>prepares to attack again.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>From their spot
above the valley,</i> <i>platoon chief Shea and his
snipers waste no time</i> <i>eliminating the enemy below.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> [gunshot] <i>♪ ♪♪</i> - The role of a sniper
on a battlefield is a game changer.
You know? It makes the enemy think twice
about extra movements <i>And if they know you're there,
it's gonna force them</i> <i>to stay, you know,
back in the shadows</i> <i>a little bit more, um,
and not work with</i> <i>free reign to do
whatever they want.</i> [gunshot] <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: By midday,
Shea and his snipers</i> <i>have killed more
than a dozen Taliban</i> <i>while protecting the Special
Forces group.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> [gunshot] <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>But one of the enemy
remains elusive--</i> <i>a well-hidden Taliban
sniper positioned</i> <i>on an opposite ridge.</i> - The 5th group guy said
somebody had shot at them <i>from the top of that ridge.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>All my other guys were like,
"Ah, he couldn't be there.</i> <i>"It's too far.
It's too high up</i> <i>in the mountains."</i> But as I was looking at it,
I'm like, "That's where I would be." <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: Shea trains his
scope</i> <i>on the area where he suspects</i> <i>the sniper to be.</i> <i>Patiently, he waits in the
130-degree heat for his rival</i> <i>to reveal himself.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>For hours, Shea scans the
ridge through his scope.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>As the sun begins to set,</i> <i>the US Army
helicopters appear,</i> <i>arriving to rescue the trapped
Special Forces team.</i> - Can't go home
without the helo. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>You can hear the echoing
of the rotors.</i> And they're probably
six to seven minutes out. So as the helo sounded,
I'm like, "He's gotta come out now." <i>- Finally, Shea's patience
pays off.</i> <i>After hours staring through
his scope,</i> <i>he spots the enemy sniper.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>His gun raised to fire.</i> <i>- I see him and I'm like,</i> "Okay, I'm gonna take
the shot now." <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: Shea has
just one chance.</i> <i>The enemy sniper
is 1,200 yards away</i> <i>from Shea's position--</i> <i>the length of 12 football
fields end to end.</i> <i>There's also a strong
westerly breeze</i> <i>blowing through the valley
that has to be factored in.</i> - Wind has a massive impact
on the bullet. And it will just push
the bullet the direction that the wind's going. And the key to sniping
is seeing the wind. <i>narrator: Shea is able to</i> <i>calculate the bullet's
trajectory.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>But before Shea fires,
he must listen to his heart,</i> <i>literally.</i> - Breathing impacts
where the bullet hits. <i>You'll notice your heart rate,
your heartbeat.</i> <i>You'll see it beating
in your skull.</i> <i>You'll see the scope jumping.</i> <i>Once the scope jumps,</i> <i>then you can squeeze
the trigger.</i> - Once you go to shoot,
breathing is the most-- It's like, everything should be
out of your head. Nothing--nothing matters
but the shot. <i>[heartbeat thumping]</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> [gunshot] <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>- When I squeeze the trigger,</i> you can actually see
the bullet trace. And I could see
the bullet flying. - All that I saw was it impact
the side of his-- it looked like in this
left shoulder region. And then a lot of blood
on the rocks behind him. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: The Taliban sniper
is dead.</i> <i>The threat eliminated,</i> <i>US helicopters extract the
Army Special Forces unit</i> <i>from the valley safely.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>A job well done for Shea
and his platoon.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>But it is just one of their
many dangerous missions.</i> <i>Snipers face a special risk
because their unique skills</i> <i>make them a high value target.</i> <i>The enemy will often place
bounties on their heads.</i> - Historically when snipers
are caught, uh, they're executed. <i>narrator: A risk even
greater, Shea and his men</i> <i>take the fight to the Taliban,</i> <i>in the enemy's own backyard.</i> - We had pinned down where the
Taliban were really training. It was deep in the northern
mountains of Afghanistan. <i>The regular army
could not get there</i> <i>because of the mountains.</i> <i>narrator: Shea and SEALs from
Team 7 are airlifted into</i> <i>the remote area.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>After marching for miles,
Shea and his platoon</i> <i>reach the suspected
training area.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>They are immediately engaged
by Taliban fighters.</i> [gunfire] <i>For the next 48 hours,
the SEALs battle</i> <i>a resilient enemy,
but are able to clear</i> <i>several compounds of fighters.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>After two days
of continuous combat,</i> <i>the SEALs call for extraction
at a predetermined location.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Shea removes his body armor
and weapon.</i> <i>With helicopters
still hours away,</i> <i>the exhausted SEALs are eager
to get some rest.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>- We're dropping our guard.</i> Not everybody's
being attentive. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>- One of the things that,
over time,</i> <i>when you're in, you know,
a combat environment</i> <i>like that, you have to guard
against complacency.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> And the longer you're
in a combat zone, you can start to become--
almost feel immune. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> [gunfire] <i>- At that moment,
I just realized,</i> "Hey, we're taking fire." [gunfire] <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>It was the most out of control
thing I've ever</i> experienced in my life. [gunfire] <i>We were hit from 14
different directions.</i> [shouting] <i>narrator: Shea is caught
without</i> <i>his weapon and
his body armor.</i> - There was a room that was
very close to where I was that had an open window. And my gun and my body armor
were in that room. So, I--the only quickest way
into that room was right through the window, which at that point was about
six feet away from me. So I ran as quick as I could. - RPG!
RPG! - And that's when the RPG
outside exploded right where I was. [explosion] <i>And blew me to the back
of the room.</i> <i>Narrator: Shea somehow
survives only to take fire</i> <i>through the window.</i> - I remember watching bullets
strike off the wall. And there were bullets landing
in front of my face. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> And I realized that everything
was going south. <i>Narrator: Shea is
in the crosshairs</i> <i>of a Taliban sniper.</i> <i>- I wanted to know
where the sniper was.</i> And the only way to figure out
where somebody is is to have them shoot, <i>which is a scary proposition.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>Narrator: The veteran SEAL
improvises</i> <i>by grabbing a nearby pot.</i> <i>- I slowly push it,
you know,</i> <i>from the bottom of the window
frame up into the window.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> [gunshot]
[clanks] <i>narrator: The shot gives
Shea a rough idea</i> <i>where the Taliban sniper
is shooting from.</i> - Then it was game on. I have a blanket over me
'cause I want to afford myself <i>as much opportunity as I can
to not be seen.</i> <i>I moved into the light.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>I see his head.</i> <i>And I squeeze the trigger.</i> [gunshot] <i>narrator: The Taliban sniper</i> <i>returns fire nearly
simultaneously.</i> - The bullet goes right
through the blanket, and I thought it hit me,
'cause it hit my helmet. And a bullet going supersonic,
trust me, it feels like it hit. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: But Shea is unhurt.</i> <i>Unsure if his foe
is still alive,</i> <i>he must shoot a second time.</i> - I had to do it again. 'Cause that's the only
place in the room <i>that I could see him.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> [gunshot] <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>That was the scariest thing
that I had ever done,</i> is do it a second time. So doing it the second time,
I realized once I saw <i>that same head again,</i> <i>I'd hit him on
the first round.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator:
Shea has won the duel,</i> <i>but other Taliban still
surround the building.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>The SEALs order an air strike
on the Taliban</i> <i>from a B-1 bomber.</i> [explosion] <i>♪ ♪♪</i> - At the end of it,
none of us had an injury. [gunfire] <i>And I have no idea how
it happened other than</i> <i>we just decided we were gonna
fight till we're dead.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> <i>narrator: An ethos shared by
the entire SEAL community,</i> <i>especially among snipers.</i> [gunshot] - Nice shot. <i>narrator: Highly trained,
highly specialized warriors</i> <i>whose lethal marksmanship
is unparalleled</i> <i>and has changed the face
of modern warfare.</i> <i>- When you look
at what we've done,</i> American snipers have really
taken that ball and we run with it. <i>♪ ♪♪</i> - People don't talk
like this anymore, but it's all
for God and country. At the expense of your life,
if necessary. <i>You've gotta have an
extraordinary man</i> <i>with extraordinary resolve who
basically you have to cut up</i> <i>in little pieces to stop.</i> <i>♪ ♪♪</i> [gunshot]