Sniper Elite: One-Way Trip

PROLOGUE

Sitting with a couple of SEAL Team buddies at Danny’s Bar in Coronado, I was introduced to an individual that both of them described as one of the most badass SEALs they knew. I thought to myself: The two guys I’m drinking with are probably the baddest-ass characters I know, so if they think this guy is badass, he must be.

About twenty-five years old, 5'8" and roughly 170 pounds, a guy who I will call “Gil” is introduced to me. The conversation starts calmly, as I am introduced as the coauthor of the book American Sniper, etc. We have a couple of beers and I am “vetted” by Gil through his subtle yet insightful questioning of my motive. I then found out why Gil was “badass.”

Gil was shot more than fifteen times in a single battle somewhere outside the wire. After several more drinks, Gil proceeded to show me the entry and exit wounds that literally covered his body from his legs to his neck. These were not flesh wounds in any sense, but direct hits from 7.62X39-AK-47 rounds. What struck me from the discussion was not that Gil was “proud” of his battle scars, but instead he was proud that he stayed in the fight the entire time before being evac’d for medical attention.

This book is dedicated to the warriors of the SEAL Teams that are always in the fight, even when dealt serious injuries and overwhelming odds. The fictional accounts are based on actual Black Ops missions.

Scott McEwen