Seal team six admiral william mcraven says that president obama is a fantastic president. Six littleknown stories about secretive joint special. Mcraven led the planning for the seal team 6 raid that killed osama bin laden. It is the strike that made seal team six, a covert special operations unit, a household name. William harry mcraven born november 6, 1955 is a retired united states navy fourstar. When i was a teenage sailor serving aboard an aircraft carrier during the vietnam war, sea stories was a pejorative term, meaning an embellished tale of braggadocio, as in, oh, no, davis is telling sea stories again. Mcraven, 61, has taken the genesis of what he learned during seal training and his nearly four decades in navy special operations into a thin, powerful book titled, make your bed. The commando served in the elite seal team 6 before he was fired by. Mcraven retired would command countless missions, including the raid on the pakistan compound of osama bin laden. Now, the navy veteran chronicles his 37year military career in a new book, sea stories. For each of the case studies, he provides political and military context, a meticulous reconstruction of the mission itself and an analysis of the operation in relation to his six principles.
The raid serves as the pinnacle of an illustrious career. Members of seal team 6 and other units parachute from a plane near the. Mcraven was not just by the book, he literally wrote the book on. Navy seal admiral reveals his biggest fear during the bin laden. This article is more than 4 years old the us navys seal team 6 took down osama bin laden. Fbi hostage rescue team, seal team 6 admiral honored. In 1982, as a junior officer, mcraven was assigned to seal team six under the command of cdr richard marcinko. William mcraven oversaw the covert special operations team that stormed a compound in pakistan in 2011 and killed osama bin laden. The man who planned and commanded the raid, admiral william mcraven, is a veteran leader who served at every level of the seals and who literally wrote the book on special operations.
At the time team 6, officially known as naval special warfare development group or devgru, was under the operational leadership of adm. During an interview to promote his latest book, sea stories. Ut chief, bin laden raid architect recounts seal training. Navy seal admiral reveals his biggest fear during the bin. As a navy seal officer, mcraven was deployed to the philippines.
Behind the heroic narratives of seal team 6 is a darker, more. Bin laden raid spawned a cottage industry of books and documentaries. In 1982, as a junior officer, mcraven was assigned to seal team six under the command of cdr richard marcinko but was removed one year later due to mcravens concerns about military discipline, and difficulties in keeping his sailors in line. It is a book to discuss with your executive leadership team as a spur to meeting. Admiral mcraven, a veteran of the covert world who had written a book on american special operations, spent. Friday, may 6, 2011, at campbell army airfield in fort campbell, ky. A big new investigative report reveals the full extent of their global mission.
William mcraven shares anecdotes from his life and military career. Seal william mcraven, who slammed trump, eyed for spot on. Mcraven became the first navy seal to lead jsoc and was already. For navy seal team 6, a huge loss for a small unit. Drama and politics surround stealth helicopters used on. When the navy decided that it needed a special unit to lead direct action operations against a rising terrorist threat, they called on navy seal richard marcinko. Id like to know more about that story, and what he thought of the largerthanlife cmdr. For navy seal team 6, a huge loss for a small unit just three months ago, navy seal team 6 scored a monumental triumph with the raid that killed osama bin laden. Navy seal teampinpoints six essential principles of spec ops success. Rob oneill branded a liar by fellow seal team six members. Beheadings, mutilations and a twisted sense of celebrity.
The seal team six member who was named as the man who shot osama bin laden dead is facing a whispering campaign from other seals. Richard marcinko fired the 27yearold mcraven in 1983. Marcinko was the founder of seal team 6, and went on to become a popular author and public speaker. The real and ongoing story of seal team 6 on point. Admiral william mcraven has more to talk about than. Seal team six sources rail against mcraven in several chapters of naylors book. In sea stories, missions and mythmaking from a former navy seal. Cenk uygur and ana kasparian, hosts of the young turks, break it down. The athletic mcraven took to the exacting demands of seal training. Dick marcinko as the face of seal team six in the eyes of the general public. Mcraven pinehurst, north carolina, 6 november 1955 is. How seal team 6 committed war crimes across iraq and.
Bill mcraven oversaw the raid and knew the navy seals would make it. They stormed a compound in pakistan, killing osama bin laden, in 2011. William mcraven on the raid that killed osama bin laden pbs. Later in 2008, he took over as head of the joint special operations command, which oversees the militarys elite commando units such as the armys delta force and the navys seal team 6. The aircraft used were two of a kind at a time, but unstable when used in training, one seal team 6 member said, according to the book. Special ops, helicopter support, seal team six, and the deadliest day of the us war in afghanistan by ed darack, john pruden, et al. Red team, known as the redmen, employed a native american warrior as a mascot. A secret history of quiet killings and blurred lines. Drama and politics surround stealth helicopters used on obl mission. William mcravens stories contain, rightly, great pride in the seals. Seal team 6 was the united states naval special warfare development group and was part of a team that took down alqaeda leader osama bin laden after the 911 terrorist attacks. The prevailing narrative about seal team 6 in news coverage, bestselling books, and hollywood movies is unambiguously heroic.
Mcraven is also credited with establishing natos special operations headquarters and served on the elite seal team six. When the navy seals were established in 1962, mcraven was 6 years old and to all appearances already in training for the special operations force. Addressing the airman heritage museum and enlisted character development centers profiles in leadership lecture. When seal team 6 first deployed to afghanistan in january 2002, the command had three assault teams, red, blue, and gold, each with a mascot. Blue team, known as the pirates, wore the jolly roger. Mcraven was not just by the book, he literally wrote the book on special.
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