- [Narrator] The hijacking
of an American freighter grabs the world's attention. - This morning off the coast of Somalia. - [Narrator] But when four pirates kidnap the American captain
and hold him for ransom, they get more than they bargained for. A top secret force of
Special Operations Navy SEALs train for one purpose. Locate and destroy terrorists
anywhere in the world. (dramatic music) These men are unknown to the public, but not their enemies. (guns firing) Among the most deadly killers
in the American arsenal, they are classified in
name, unit, and deed. The hijacking of the merchant
ship, Maersk Alabama, is their story. (gun firing) And for one brief moment,
our glimpse into their world. (gun firing) The day begins like any other. Around the world, Easter
weekend is approaching, and many people are
preparing to celebrate. For most, it's business as usual. In the Horn of Africa,
it's also business as usual for the Somali pirate gangs marauding the sea lanes
off the Gulf of Aden, hijacking foreign merchant ships, and holding their crews for ransom. Their success fuels
the kidnapping industry worth tens of millions
of dollars per year. When armed pirates
attack yet another ship, the merchant vessel Maersk Alabama, off the coast of Somalia, the vessel is identified
as an American freighter. The news captures the
attention of a global audience. - A high seas, high stakes drama is... - This morning off the coast of Somalia. - An American cargo ship
taken over by pirates. - [Narrator] Details are unclear. Reports are that the Maersk Alabama, a U.S. flagged cargo ship, is under attack by
pirates of unknown number, approximately 250 miles
off the coast of Somalia. The crew forces the pirates off the ship, but not before they
kidnap Richard Phillips, the American captain, and escape in one of the ship's motorized lifeboats. - [Man] There was four Somali pirates with AK-47s, but now
they've got our Captain in a lifeboat. Yeah, they got him hostage. - [Narrator] The story of the kidnapping ignites a political firestorm. - The media especially, cable television goes 24/7 Somali pirates. - We are bringing to bear a number of our assets, including... - [Peter] This put an
incredible amount of pressure on the Obama administration, with pundits out there demanding action, and the administration has
to come through and deliver. - And bring the pirates to justice. - Piracy off the coast of Somalia, both in the Gulf of Aden and
the western Indian Ocean, currently account for almost two thirds of attacks on commercial
shipping in the world today. It's a very sophisticated enterprise that generates incredible
amounts of revenue, especially in a country where the average family lives
on less than $600 a year. - Typically, pirates make
around $100,000 on a capture. A lot of the pirates are young. Most of the time between 15, 16, and 25. They come from fishing villages, and they have seen that piracy has become a big and lucrative business. - [Narrator] Inside the Pentagon, Colonel Rudy Atallah immediately contacts sources in Somalia, hoping to learn the pirates' identities. - We were huddling, trying to figure out who the pirates were. We were gonna take every measure and use every tool in our toolbox to take care of Captain Phillips and make sure that he arrived home safely. - [Narrator] The pirates are identified as Somali teenagers. The oldest 19, the youngest 17. - The four pirates that
had Captain Phillips were very young, one of them already a couple of successful
attacks under his belt. The other three were inexperienced, believed to be on their
first out to sea mission. All this came from the source who was talking directly to the elders. - [Narrator] The kidnappers
escaped from the Alabama in the ship's lifeboat, and with their hostage,
head for the Somali coast. Kidnappers or terrorists, their intentions remain unclear. - The biggest concern was that the pirates may have some affiliation to a group called Al-Shabaab, which was on our terrorism list, or potentially they would
turn Captain Phillips to this Al-Shabaab. Either way, we did not want
them to make it to shore. - [Narrator] The safety of the hostage being held by armed Muslims requires the White House
to balance attempts for a peaceful resolution, with a rescue attack which
might endanger Captain Phillips. - The political pressures
in this particular instant are pulling in opposite directions. On one hand, there's the
demand for resolute action, on the other hand, one doesn't want to look like one is shooting
fish in a bucket, so to speak. - [Narrator] When American naval warships finally intercept the kidnappers at sea, the pirates use their hostage as a shield against the surrounding ships. - You have four or five guys with a few AK-47s, and maybe an RPG, and they go up against a
Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, and we have a standoff
that lasts several days. - [Narrator] Rudy Atallah's contacts with Somali tribal
elders reveals the names of the pirates and their clans. - I discovered the names
of the four pirates, and then also got the names of the elders from the sub clan where they came from. We transmitted their
names over loudspeaker from the Bainbridge, and that got the pirates to slow down what they were doing. At that point, they got extremely nervous. - [Narrator] The pirates
refused to surrender. The Bainbridge and her flotilla, unable to use their superior firepower until they get approval from Washington, resort to aggressive physical maneuvers to cutoff the lifeboat's
escape towards land. - [Rudy] They try to make
a run for the shoreline. Water cannons were used
to fire at the lifeboat to kind of push it back out to sea. - [Man] In the window, in the window. - [Rudy] Bump the hull,
try to keep it from getting close to the shoreline. (catchy music)
(explosion booms) - [Narrator] Meanwhile, half a world away, a secret operation SEAL team goes about its daily regimen of training on a classified military base far from the glare of public scrutiny. - These are trained, highly
tuned killing machines, and I say that without
any disrespect intended, but this is what they're trained for. (guns firing) - These guys are the most experienced, and I would say the most
deadly predators on the planet. (guns firing) - These guys are doing stuff that would shock and blow people's minds if they actually knew what's going on overseas and around the world in the global war on terror. (guns firing) - [Narrator] These are
images of SEAL Team training, and they provide a detailed glimpse of how all SEALs prepare for war. The particular effectiveness of SEAL Teams lies in their gathering even the most tightly held information on their enemies, and then launching a
devastating attack in force. (guns firing) In Iraq, SEAL Team snipers help decimate the leadership in Al-Qaeda,
and other private militias, leaving them demoralized and ineffective. - These are top notch snipers. Many of them have
literally dozens of kills in their record. (gun fires) - You have teams of
snipers in the battlefield, people are dying all over the place, and they don't know what's happening. From a psychological
warfare point of view, it's devastating. (gun fires) (intense music) (guns firing) - One of the things that we've done in our fight against terrorism has been to take out
those key individuals. There are only so many who can make the terrorist machine work. You eliminate those cogs, and
the machine just collapses. (guns firing) - [Narrator] The effectiveness
of these SEAL operations makes the sniper the weapon of choice for any hostage rescue
attempt on the Maersk Alabama. (guns firing) - You have one of the most effective tools in a sniper that the battlefield commander has in his war chest. And with one bullet,
can take out one target. - [Narrator] One shot, one kill, means reducing possible collateral damage among innocent civilian populations, a modern political necessity, as low intensity conflicts
are often waged and won in the headlines, as
well as the battlefield. - As surgical in the more precise, and I think proper sense of that term, and it's increasingly
becoming an instrument of national policy. - [Newscaster] Breaking news. - It's all over the media. There's a hostage situation, and it's gonna elevate things politically. Who's gonna go deal with this situation while it's a maritime environment? In the SEAL Teams, we own
that maritime environment. - [Narrator] The outcome
of the hostage situation on the Bainbridge depends
entirely on the skill of SEAL snipers. One error could kill the hostage, and set off an inevitable political and media search for the guilty. The SEALs call this type of
after action investigation, "Who Shot Jack?" - You know, it's not a F18 launching a guided missile strike. You have to produce a kill shot, and you can't miss. So it's as simple as, a shot goes right, you're a hero, if it doesn't
go right, you're a zero. (gun fires) - [Narrator] Days after the pirates attack the merchant vessel, Maersk Alabama, Naval Special Warfare alerts
a small SEAL assault squadron, including the team commanding officer. Within hours, they depart on a flight for a high altitude, night parachute drop into the Gulf of Aden, and a rendezvous with the U.S.S. Bainbridge. - You have a group of
guys back in the U.S. that are on pagers, they get recalled, they have to show up
within 60 minutes or less, get briefed, have all their
equipment ready to go, get on a plane, and then
coordinate probably en route where they're gonna link up. - [Narrator] The flurry of
details and rapid deployment is nothing new for the seals. Their mood is relaxed. - This is a situation
where they just show up at the top of the food chain. It was on the water, you know, you got Navy SEALs, you have snipers, you can't get a better
environment for these guys. They're right where
they feel most at home. You know, I wouldn't be surprised if they back flipped out of the airplane on their way in. - The pirates on the lifeboat, they don't have night vision. So, you just come in, use
the cover of darkness, set up on the ship, and you know, when the sun rises, they have no idea that
these guys are in position. - [Narrator] Once on board the Bainbridge, the SEALs take up firing positions while the naval ships force the lifeboat away from shore. It's a calculated risk. No one knows the Captain's
physical condition, or what the pirates will do next. The team doesn't wait long for an answer. (guns firing) - [Man] Shots fired, shots fired! - The pirates were very scared. They were afraid for their lives, but at the same time, they
weren't listening to reason. They were very much focused on their goal, and irrational in their behavior. - [Narrator] But then, the
lifeboat runs out of fuel. The kidnappers allow the Bainbridge to take them under bow, believing they are headed to shore. Unbeknownst to the pirates, the Bainbrdige tows them back out to sea. The on board SEAL snipers now are less than 40 yards away. Later, mixed in with other sailors, the SEALs go alongside the lifeboat to deliver water and observe
the conditions on board. The pirates are showing signs of physical and psychological stress. - This hostage situation has been going on for several days, the situation's escalating. Once it elevates to a certain point, you have to do something about it. - [Narrator] Unreported by the media, the pirate's elders
deliver a second message over the ship's loudspeakers, asking the pirates to give up. The leader abruptly surrenders. Once on board the Bainbridge, he advises the three remaining hijackers to give themselves up as well. - Unfortunately, they said no, that their lives were in the hands of God. If they're gonna reach shore, it was up to God, if not, then they were prepared to die. When I relayed this information back to the elders, the reply back was, "We wash our hands from this situation." - [Narrator] SEAL snipers
have been in position since they arrived, but clearance to fire is withheld. The leadership aboard the Bainbridge is increasingly concerned
for Captain Phillips' safely, and the lack of a clear
direction from Washington. Time is running out. - Of course, these guys get impatient. They're waiting to hear from the top down if they have the go ahead, and you have that attack dog
on a leash, he wants off, so he can do his job. - To be fair to the administration, all these factors, the
political implications, the fallout from failure
have to be considered. There was a certain paralysis at the top. - [Narrator] Every SEAL
understands need for action, but with no order, they
can only watch and wait. - Any time you're in that situation, it's gonna produce frustration. These guys are there to do their job, and get it done, and go home. - [Narrator] As the evening approaches, the contrast between the
hunters and the hunted could not be more different. Inside the lifeboat, three seasick pirates are oblivious to their imminent danger and anxious to ransom their hostage. Onboard the Bainbridge, SEAL Team snipers maintain their poise. - Everyone thinks, okay,
these guys are there to kill someone, they're
there to do a mission, they're gonna be haircuts buzzed tight, uniform, every like that, but they're there to perform. They're not there to be popular, and they're not there to fit any image that the public might put on them. They're there purely to perform, and that's what they're gonna do. But it was probably a very
casual, relaxed atmosphere. - Put them on a Navy ship where they've got hot coffee, Redbull, essentially it's like a Club Med vacation for these snipers, and the pirates are sitting ducks, I mean it's like shooting fish
in a barrel for these guys. - It doesn't matter who
we're having to target, we have a dial, and that
dial you can be at zero, where I'm talking to you right now, and you're at 10, where
you're having to kill someone from the back of a ship. - [Narrator] Snipers monitor the situation by glassing the target, observing their subjects
while in a firing position. Their first technical concern is the fact that they both are moving. - There's probably some movement because they're on an ocean, but then they also have a target ship, which is unpredictable. If someone steps on the
other side of the boat or weight shifts, you can move the boat a
foot in either direction, and these guys are taking
simultaneous kill shots, so the chances of these guys taking all the terrorists down at the same time, the odds would be incredible, but they put the odds in their favor because of all their training. - [Narrator] SEAL
snipers train by shooting thousands of rounds per week under every imaginable combat scenario. (guns firing) (yelling) For experienced senior enlisted men, the success of this operation is not a matter of if, but when. (guns firing) - This is just another day at the office, you know, you're talking very low threat. You're not going into a village in the middle of the night, and have a lot of unknown factors. These guys are going to a known location, they know the threat, they know the number of pirates on board, and they have a mission to do. - It's kind of like bringing a
professional football team in to play a bunch of high
school, junior varsity team. They're gonna come in and do their thing because they're so well trained compared to everyone else. - [Narrator] All SEAL training involves what is termed "mental management". Years of instruction and preparation that allows each sniper to keep himself in emotional balance, and
ready to kill in seconds. - When guys are put in that situation, we have trained it into
them so many times. It's just like watching Cirque Du Soleil, where you're seeing this
incredible performance. They've done it so many
times, it's just autopilot. They're not thinking
about what's coming next, they're just going through
a mechanical process that they've been through
a thousand times before. (gun fires) - [Narrator] This high speed film demonstrates how performance is the rule, rather than the exception
for all SEAL Team snipers. From 400 yards, a 50 caliber round penetrates a steel safe. (gun fires) Seconds later, a second
round is literally shot through the same hole. - You have to become a master of yourself and your environment. And by being able to do that, you're able to do things that other people see as impossible. - [Narrator] All SEALs are volunteers, and candidates are selected after being tested for
a predator's instincts, and a warrior's discipline. - We don't just train
them to pull triggers or to stalk. These guys are like renaissance men. They're well educated,
they're well thought out, they know what's going on. They understand why they're
there and their purpose, and it's a greater good. - There's three types
of people in this world. There's sheep, sheepdogs, and wolves. Wolves are the psychopaths of the world, they're the terrorists, the criminals, the rapists that prey on the sheep. They're driven by violence and fear. (guns firing) (yelling) Then you have the sheepdogs, and the sheepdogs look
very similar to the wolves, and generally the sheep
are made uncomfortable by the presence of sheepdogs because it reminds them that
there are wolves out there. (guns firing) The defining difference is the fact that sheepdogs are driven to protect the flock, to protect the sheep. (guns firing) - [Narrator] SEAL Teams do
not announce their presence, and shun publicity. (guns firing) - We're used to blending in, and just becoming part
of wherever we're at. We come in quietly and professionally, we do our thing, people
support us, we support them, and then we're gone. - [Narrator] 70 years of training to fight provides the ultimate insight into the SEAL combat philosophy. Like the sea, SEALs are unpredictable, and can kill without hesitation. - I once heard a general tell me one of his problems he
had with using SEAL Teams is SEALs don't stick to the plan. And I kind of smirked, or I chuckled a little
bit when he said that, because as a SEAL, that's our advantage. It's not that we're cowboys
and we go off the plan, but the whole intent,
the purpose of what we do is to be somewhere that
nobody's gonna expect. - It's gonna take a
pirate to catch a pirate, it does take someone
with a different mindset. The mindset is key, and
that's what BUD/S is for. BUD/S is there to forge the mindset. (chanting) (guns firing) - [Narrator] All SEALs
first graduated from BUD/S, Basic Underwater
Demolition Seals training. It's a 30 week course that
combines peer pressure with physical and emotional stress to test a man's commitment
to group loyalty, and ability to function under pain. - You're in my program. You're not in your own program. Do you understand me, Sloan? - Boo yah, sir, Captain. - Eight, nine, 30! - I'm talking to you, Francis. - EI, start the count. - What are you gonna do to make sure that you're not gonna talk anymore? Do I have to isolate you for the rest of the class? - Negative, sir, Captain. - Do I have to pour sand down your mouth? - I showed up at BUD/S,
and I was not the person that I am today. And I had question as to my capability what I could and couldn't do, what was possible, and
what was not possible. And going through the training, I now have a complete confidence that if it's humanly
possible, then I can do it. - I don't want to hear no whining and moaning and groaning, boys. Get it up! Get it up! - You know, you always hear
it's 90% mental, 10% physical. You need to really be able
to turn off your brain in a certain way where you can ignore just all the pain and discomfort. If you can turn that off, then you're gonna be good in BUD/S, and you're gonna be able to
keep going day after day. - What's your problem, Mr. Nole? Hell week is simulating combat scenario, and you're failing. We put you in a real situation, you're gonna kill people. You do not want to be a team player, you got not only one thing, but two things wrong, and that's why they're
dropped down right now, and they are waiting on you, Phillip. Paying the penalty for you. Now, as soon as you're ready, you go ahead and take the time, Phillip. - [Narrator] On average,
seven out of 10 students fail to pass BUD/s training, one of the highest drop out
rates in the U.S. military. - Need me a winner! - Up! Get it up! Get this boat up! Get it up! - We'll push whatever button
we need to push to stress them. I don't want to society is not used to being uncomfortable anymore, but we've become a society of comfort, and there's still men on the Earth who will put their comfort aside, and they base their life on we before me. These guys can put
themselves in situations that their target just can't conceive. (guns firing) - [Narrator] After graduating BUD/s, many SEALs apply for
SEAL Team sniper school. A classified, three month course that not everyone passes. - I've had students go
through sniper school and say they'd rather go
through BUD/s three times, because we produce such a high
level of stress in training to make sure these guys
are mentally prepared. - A SEAL sniper school
is so much more difficult really than any other
sniper school in the world. I practically had a nervous breakdown going through sniper training. One bad day, and you're on your way back, you're going home, and you have to look all your boys in the face,
and be like, "I failed." - [Narrator] The sniper's
mentality requires instinct, and a willingness to
overcome physical conditions for hours and maybe days. It's not for everyone. - A Navy SEAL in general,
I mean a SEAL sniper, they're gonna operate
and dwell on the space between reality and fantasy. So they're gonna be in that space that nobody's brain
would even take 'em to. They're not gonna expect us to be up on the hill
for the past three days. They're not gonna expect us to be dug in in pure pain. - And we'll do that
because we know we can, and others won't. They'll give up. That's what makes a difference between the winners and the losers. - [Narrator] Part of the sniper's job involves hunting his prey. (gun fires) But it's not simply following tracks. (gun fires) It's about setting up the kill. - Stalking for us is a art. It's a natural predatory instinct. We all have it, but it's
just frowned upon nowadays. And basically, what we work to do is take him from a regular man to somebody that goes to any situation, any environment, and make
him so he notices everything. His foreground, his
background, his movement, where he is in relationship to his target, so we just completely reinsert
the predatory mindset. - [Narrator] For every sniper, stalking requires knowing
how to blend into the scenery to avoid detection. (gun fires) - It's essential that the Navy SEAL sniper master the art of
camouflage and concealment. To them, it's a matter of life and death. Right now, I look like a hiker, but I'm gonna go behind this bush and turn myself into a sniper and see if you can find me. Okay, I can see you. But you could only see
me because I let you. In just a couple of minutes, I went from hiker to a SEAL
sniper behind the bush. What are don't see are there
are two other SEAL snipers, and they have you in their sights. You'd be dead right now, and you would never know what hit you. (catchy music) - [Narrator] Regular SEAL platoons perform different missions. For Special Operations requirements, each candidates undergoes a process of relentless live fire scenarios intended to weed out
any who are unprepared to function safely in a
24/7 operational cycle. (gun firing) - A tier one unit has to maintain a constant state of readiness, so they're constantly training and firing a tremendous amount of shots, and typically those guys
maintain a higher degree of readiness and preparation
just by their nature. - [Narrator] SEAL snipers
with their grueling training and mental toughness, are the obvious choice
for a White House in need of a fast deployment, and
with a surgical response to the hijacking of the
merchant vessel, Maersk Alabama. - They don't bring in SEALs to negotiate, they don't bring us in to be fair. They don't bring us in for
any other reason but to win. (gun firing) It's not a self help group. We are there to take
over and tilt the odds back in the favor of America. (gun firing) - [Narrator] For the past four days, the story of Somali pirates kidnapping an American freighter captain makes headlines around the world. Political leaders in Washington continue to search for
a peaceful resolution, as four armed Muslim hijackers continue to defy all
requests for surrender. - One of the things that the
pirates exploit in situations is the value that modern democracy places on the individual life. A man holding a gun of any sort to the head of a hostage
exercises far greater power than a naval vessel
with thousands of times as much firepower. - [Narrator] Onboard
the U.S.S. Bainbridge, there is no political apprehension. The SEALs calibrate every pirate movement, every ocean swell. Ready to fire at any moment. But the order to fire doesn't arrive. (tense music) Having run out of fuel, the pirates remain tied to the Bainbridge, unaware their hunters are concealed, watching their every move and waiting. - You have a situation
where the administration is gonna want to resolve
this without any casualties. But eventually it gets to a point where, hey, this isn't working, we're not gonna produce a situation here outside of taking these guys out. (gun firing) - [Narrator] Many of the circumstances surrounding the incident remain unclear. But Brandon Webb, a former
SEAL sniper instructor, offers insight as to how multiple snipers might prepare for this situation. - If this is a hostage situation, the shots are very close, it's nighttime, you have these moving
platforms and you can't miss. And it has to be simultaneous, take out three targets, like cutting the strings of a puppet. - [Narrator] For SEALS,
training to kill their enemies takes more than instinct. It takes practice under
strenuous conditions. - When I train these guys
in the sniper course, you know, I want to put them in the most critical situations
that you can replicate outside of being in theater. Creating a tremendous
amount of peer pressure because you have an
alpha male type situation where all these guys are
trying to outdo one another. - All right, ready? Go! - [Narrator] Eric and Glen
are former SEAL snipers. Larry, a SEAL platoon commander. They will compete against
the clock and each other over a simple stress course. This sort of demonstration
is a simple illustration of how peer pressure is
employed to train SEALs to overcome any and everything they might encounter in combat. - You know, it's not two rocking ships in the middle of the night. But what you do in training, is you put these guys
in adverse situations, and then you dial up the pressure on 'em. - [Narrator] Pressure can destroy a man's effectiveness in combat as quickly as any bullet. Lesson one for every SEAL, is expect the unexpected. - So we do that intentionally
just so we can see who has the fortitude to push through those adverse situations
and come out on top. - [Narrator] In this test, each competitor is given a rifle he
has never fired before. - You know, what these guys don't have and what snipers usually have is a tailored suite of weapons. Each weapon is customized to
their particular body type, the distance from their eye to the scope. - Hit. Hit. In this situation, they
have an unfamiliar gun. It's hot, it's dusty. We're putting a lot of
rounds through the rifles, so what happens intentionally is we get a lot of dust in the bolt, so the chances that you're gonna get a malfunction is likely, which just adds complexity
to the shot process. Hit. - [Narrator] As Webb
anticipates, there is a misfire. Adapting in the face
of changing conditions is the oldest survival
lesson in the SEAL playbook. - We all have over a decade
worth of training between us, so something like this
might look easy for us, but it's taken years to get to this level. (gun fires) - [Brandon] Hit, time. - [Narrator] Peer pressure
and the drive to win cannot be underrated. The fear of losing, of not being the best, or failing your teammates
in a combat situation keeps people alive when others might quit. - Did you even count those? - He did seven.
- There's no way. Any time we do anything, if it's two guys going
out for a "friendly jog", it turns into a race,
it's always a competition. - [Larry] With us, it's life
and death no matter what. Doesn't matter if it's shooting for real or if it's shooting for competition. We do everything 100%. - Guys don't gravitate to
these types of positions to be second best, so guys are constantly training and trying to one up each other, it's a very competitive environment. (gun fires) - Hit. (gun fires) Hit. (gun fires)
Hit. - And he's cheating already. - [Narrator] Eric is a
former sniper instructor. As he zeroes in on his targets, his ability to control his breathing reflects an ingrained mental
management of his stress. (tense music) (gun fires) - [Brandon] Hit. (gun fires) - No, I don't think so. I didn't miss that one. Are you sure you're
watching the right target? Are you sure? - [Narrator] When Eric misses by shooting a target out of sequence, his protest is a sign
of a competitive nature found in many men who strive to be the very best they can be, and for whom failure
is difficult to accept. - That was good shooting though. - Yeah, thanks. (gun firing) - It just shows you the difference between slowing down a little bit, taking a little bit more time, but he had a very accurate run, he only dropped one shot. I mean, at the end of the day, that's what it comes down to is hitting the target every time. - [Narrator] Glen is a
former military sniper, and current expert at Wind Zero. Watching him do his pushups, there can be no doubt he intends to win. But using an unfamiliar
weapon is a great equalizer. (catchy music) - With a scope, your eye is
not the exact right distance from the front of a scope, so you get what's called vignetting, meaning you have a bunch of black around what is actually
focus that you can see, and that'll move around depending on where your head is, so getting that cheek
position is what he's doing to get it and getting it centered so he's getting a good sight picture. - I knocked my pushups out, sprinted up to the car
feeling completely confident, and I just could not
get good sight picture. I was flailing at trying to get that proper eye relief to the scope, and to eliminate the scope shadow and get a clear sight picture. (catchy music) - [Narrator] This competition
is only a demonstration, but physical stress mixed in
with the pressure of the clock and peer pressure are all necessary to make the action of killing
as routine as possible. (gun firing) - Hit. - 2:47, all hits. - They have to perform and
overcome those mental challenges, like you saw Glen on the hood of the truck in that stress course, you could tell he's getting
a little frustrated, but he powered through
it, got the shots off, and then picked up the
time on the other target. - How many did you miss? - Two. - No misses. - None? - I think we heard a couple misses. - We heard a miss on that last set. - All hits, two minutes, 47 seconds. - Head shots. It's always a competition. Yeah, we might talk a lot of smack and have a good time, but when it's three, two, one, go. Yeah, we like to win. - That was smooth. - That was fast. - [Narrator] Accuracy may seem obvious, but like everything that goes into a sniper taking his shot, it cannot be taken for granted. In the Alabama incident, the weather and wind conditions could affect a marksman's accuracy. - Okay, go ahead and... As a sniper, you want to control everything that you can control. All your environmental
conditions are accounted for. The barometric pressure, you know, the outside temperature, the
temperature inside the chamber. Because those environmental factors can mean the difference between inches. - It's a matter of taking all the factors that are involved. Deep breath, exhale, respiratory pause, squeeze, squeeze, squeeze,
surprise trigger break, follow through, get ready
for your second shot. - Hold on to left target. - Left target. - All right, center for elevation. Give me three minutes left, and send it when you're ready. (gun fires) - [Narrator] Traditional sniper teams operate with two men. The shooter and a spotter, who can assess the
environmental conditions, and provide adjustments
to the shooter's aim. At 100 yards, Webb accounts for the environmental conditions to help Glen zero in his weapon. - We're getting a strong full value wind, left to right at 15 gusting to 30, and then down there at the target, it's left, it's right, it's up, it's down, so to be honest, his job is a lot harder. As the shooter, my job is
strictly to break a clean shot. - [Narrator] Breaking a shot
means squeezing the trigger until the weapon fires, which is called a surprise break. - The reason you ask for the shot break is because if I'm telling
him to aim center mass, right in the chest, and he breaks here, and he tells me he breaks
here, and he hits here, I know his dope on the weapon is dead on. (gun fires) Okay, that's dead center. Good shot. (gun fires) - It's like the second that
you have that surprise break that your gun goes "boom"! You take a mental picture, like a flash goes off in your brain, and you take a picture of exactly where your cross hairs are, and even just a little
up or a little down. That feedback to him
is going to provide him everything that he needs to adjust as far as wind conditions and bullet path. - [Narrator] The snipers on the Bainbridge will coordinate a common firing solution to optimize their rifles
by using databases of ballistic and environmental conditions from the Arabian Sea, all without ever firing a shot. (catchy music) - [Brandon] The chronograph
here measures in feet per second the speed of the bullet
as it leaves the barrel. - [Narrator] Every operational
environment is different, and will affect accuracy. - We tick all the
environmental conditions, like how hot it is out
here, we added five degrees for the temperature of the bullet itself, and accounted for the barometric pressure, plugged it into the software program, came out with the firing solution. - [Narrator] On the Bainbridge, environmental conditions
are critical for accuracy. Because the pirates and the hostage are crammed together in
the small lifeboat cabin, accuracy requires hitting the targets as well as avoiding hitting the hostage. These high speed images of bullet impacts and their low pressure
shock waves on soft tissue show how the bullet exits
in a tumbling motion, moving with full kinetic force, and without deflection. The danger for the snipers
is if a bullet deflects after hitting a pirate, and hits Captain Phillips. - Each guy has to be
responsible for his shot and the bullet path after the exit, where that bullet's going
after it exits the target. You have to really think about that. - [Narrator] There was another problem. The pirates are moving around, and it's apparent a shot
might have to be made through the plexiglass
windshield in the wheelhouse. This means knowing the
position of the hostage as well as the hijackers at all times. - You have a guy sitting
at the helm station for most of the time, and these guys are gonna
have to take a shot through the plexiglass here, and this guy sitting in this helm position essentially just becomes
a very easy target, and is essentially a sitting duck. - [Narrator] Terminal
ballistics is the measurement of force and trajectory of
impact of the projectile, and the low pressure
wave following behind. That pressure wave is what causes severe muscle and organ collapse
away from the entry point. The following demonstration
offers evidence of the killing power of newer ammunition and the specialty designs different combat situations require. - Left edge. (gun fires) Call. (gun fires) - The first shot we took on the left clay was with our standard
300 winmag match grade, Full Metal Jacket. This impacted over here on the left edge, and you know, if this
was tissue obviously, this wave and this pressure wave is enough to do serious damage, especially on a headshot. (gun fires) So this is the land warfare round, so this is gonna provide
maximum penetration with maximum kinetic energy and momentum. (gun fires) And it just melted and disintegrated the entire top half of this
25 pound block of clay. - I've never seen anything like that with the special blend. (laughs) - [Narrator] But ammunition is only one of the many factors affecting the success or failure of a sniper's shot. All factors must be considered. The SEALs aboard the Bainbridge
leave nothing to chance. - It's a close shot, but it's at night, you have a hostage involved, you have a bobbing
platform in the lifeboat. The ship would've been semi-stable, but it's still moving around. And then you have all the factors that go into that individual
shooter's firing solution. (gun fires) - [Narrator] By late
afternoon of the fourth day, the SEALs are in firing position. The pirates unaware the snipers lurk less than 40 yards away, hidden inside the superstructure
of the Bainbridge, ready to shoot. - The pirates have no night vision, so they probably had absolutely no idea that an element was set up like that and waiting for the right opportunity. The right opportunity presents itself when the three pirates
appear concurrently, then shooters will confirm the hostage is out of the line of fire, and execute a simultaneous
volley on command. This is called a countdown. - We gotta make sure we're all on the same sheet of music right here, 'cause we're about to do
something extremely surgical. - Once that opportunity presents itself, you have a very quick,
coordinated activity that has to occur. You know, three, two, one, execute, and the shots are taken, and the targets are neutralized. - [Narrator] The shooting position taken by SEAL snipers is unverified, but the prone position
ensures the greatest accuracy. (gun fires) From the stern of the Bainbridge, it's only 40 yards, but there is wind, ship motion, and
unpredictable moving targets, all to be coordinated
in the blink of an eye. In addition, the hostage must
be out of the line of fire. - To simulate, put some
movement into the shot, we put these guys up on a knee, so you know, it's not the
same as a moving ship, but it does add a little more
complexity to the situation. There is movement, the sights
are moving ever so slightly. - You know, shooting prone
is the most stable position, and we're all shooting one knee up. We are using rests, so I
mean, our weapons are braced, but the fact is, laying down, shooting off a bipod or a
structure in a prone position is the most stable. - [Narrator] The biggest
difference between working alone and working in a team is adapting to a group dynamic. Left alone, a solo sniper
shoots when he's ready. Firing in a coordinated volley, all the snipers must shoot simultaneously. - It's not when they're essentially ready. They have to be prepared, and get themselves ready like that, because they know they're
getting a command fire. - When we have to go on command, that means we gotta hold
our sights really tight, and we hold our respiratory
pause ever so slightly while he's counting down, so just that margin of
error is incredibly small. So we all have the mental picture, three, two, one, click for us. He'll be saying execute, but we're gonna think "click". - [Narrator] Unifying a countdown at sea, at night, on live targets is never easy, even for combat veterans. But this dry fire practice will demonstrate a trigger break, the moment when all three snipers must pull the trigger in unison. A failure to do so might
leave a pirate alive and a threat to the hostage. (tense music) - Another complexity in
this particular setup is that we're all
shooting different weapons that have different trigger setups that break at different times, and we don't know the weapon, so it's going to take a lot of effort to make sure that we break the shots at the exact same time. - [Narrator] It's called a surprise break, when the trigger squeeze
causes the weapon to fire. Snipers use the same weapon for years, but learning the gun takes time. - There's a long break on that one. - That one you gotta
worry about a little bit, 'cause I gotta take the slack out, and it goes twice before the shot, and that's what I'm... - [Brandon] Shot in
three, two, one, execute. - [Eric] It almost
feels like it's rubbing. - Yeah. - So you gotta just... - Rub, rub, rub, rub, rub, and then snap. - [Narrator] Waiting to take the shot fatigues even the most experienced sniper. For this reason, SEALs on the Bainbridge constantly rotate their shooters every hour or less to keep them alert. - The difficulty of staying on your gun, having a proper gun position, your cheek on the well of the gun, trigger position, body
position, all those pieces, what happens is, we're human beings. Our biology will start to break down, muscles will get tired,
muscles will cramp. - All right, line's hot, lock and load. All right, make sure
you get on your target. Snipers, snipers, this is Echo One. Check in when you have
your target acquired. - Sniper One ready. - Sniper Two ready. - Sniper Three ready. - All right, this is
Echo One, I have control. Shot in three, two, one... (guns firing) - Oh, that was awful. - [Brandon] Eric! - Eric! - [Brandon] Punishment, do it again. - [Narrator] Eric breaks his shot late. The mistiming may not seem critical, but even a slightly delay
in the real situation could leave a pirate alive and the hostage in danger. - Shot in three, two, one, execute. (guns firing) That's perfect. - [Narrator] Coordinating three individual simultaneous headshots is problematic. Head shots ensure an instant kill, but with the Bainbridge, the lifeboat, and the human targets all
moving without predictability, the challenge is obvious. - When you look at a headshot, on a human being, the
head bobs back and forth, and moves around. Essentially we have
suspended three pumpkins, basically to simulate a moving head. You can see just standing here that a little bit of wind blowing, how these pumpkins are moving around, and that's really what
we want to simulate. On top is we put an apple on there, and what we want to demonstrate is just how surgical these guys can be. Snipers, Echo One. I have control. Shot in three, two, one, execute. (guns firing) - If I know that from 75 or 100 yards that I can drill a spinning apple, a head is gonna seem enormous. It's just part of that whole
mental management system where you're projecting victory before you even enter the battle. (guns firing) - [Narrator] 40 yards separate
the hunters and the hunted. To trained shooters, the
pirates are easy targets, many times larger than an apple. As the pirates continued to rebuff all demands for surrender, they are observed to be growing more threatening towards the hostage. - They're essentially entombed
in this little lifeboat, and they're cooped up, they're
hungry, they're thirsty, it's just a matter of time
before these guys are done. - It's like a lion out in the Serengeti. I mean, all that's sitting out there is a little tiny lamb. (guns firing) - [Narrator] As evening
approaches on the fourth day of the kidnapping, all negotiations between the pirates and the American negotiators are over. The pirates reject every
offer to surrender, even from their own tribal elders. - In their statements, when
we sent a message to them, was that they were putting all their lives into the hands of God. When I relayed this
information back to the elders, the reply back was, "We wash our hands from this situation." - They're in a small lifeboat staring at huge U.S. naval vessel, you know, they're like deers
in headlights at that point. - [Narrator] The lifeboat
containing the three pirates and their American hostage remained secured by a towline tied to the U.S.S. Bainbridge. SEAL Team snipers continue
to glass their targets, ready to fire, waiting for
the order from Washington. - What I think must've been
really hard for those shooters was the 18 plus hours they
spent on board the boat waiting to get green-lighted. - That ambiguity, that tension between whether to shoot or whether to negotiate really isn't there. These guys are trained snipers, and now they're waiting for the signal or authority to do so. - [Narrator] Without clearance to shoot, the snipers must wait. Officials in Washington
continue to strategize. The White House, the
National Security Council, the State Department,
the Defense Department, and other agencies are
in a flurry of activity and communication, looking at all the possible ramifications. - You get a lot of frustration
in those situations because you have a guy back in the U.S., sitting behind a desk, making those decisions
that have never been in that environment before, and then you have actual
guys in the ground that know, hey, I've been here 20-30 times, I know there's only one way
to resolve this situation. - [Narrator] Observing
numerous physical threats toward Captain Phillips, the on scene commander receives permission in the event of danger to the hostage. The pirates' fate is now sealed. The snipers have the advantage
with their night vision. The mood among the SEALs
is professional, relaxed. - After we exhausted
everything in our playbook to try to get the pirates to give themselves up, we saw that the situation was getting a little bit dire. - They're going to end this the only way that such a situation can be ended. - On scene commander realizes that okay, there's no way to peacefully resolve this without casualties, make a decision, as soon as the sun goes down, these guys are gonna get taken out. - At that split moment, when you get the green light to shoot, it's like flicking a switch. You just snap in, and
it's all about business. Everything falls back to your training and the routine. - [Narrator] Shortly after dark, the pirates present a simultaneous target, and the countdown begins. - [Echo One] Snipers,
snipers, this is Echo One. Check in when you have
your target acquired. - [Narrator] A mistake now may cost Captain Phillips his life. (tense music) - There's no second
take, there's no editing, there's no turning off the camera. That guy says "I have
control, I have control", that means he has control
of that Captain's life, he has control of the
future of those snipers and their career, he's got control of that entire world. - Sniper One, ready. - Sniper Two, ready. - Sniper Three, ready. - [Echo One] All right, this is Echo One, I have control. Shots in three, two, one, execute. (guns firing) - The first people I want
to thank are the SEALs, they're the superheroes,
they're the titans, they're the impossible men
doing an impossible job, and they did the impossible with me. - [Narrator] Seven months later, the Maersk Alabama is attacked
near the same location, but evades capture. The pirates of Somalia
continue to hijack ships, and hold them for ransom at a record pace. The majority of SEAL
team combat operations remains classified.
