Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win

automatic gunfire erupted from the rear of the patrol. Insurgent fighters
had followed us and heavily engaged us with AK-47s and PKC belt-fed
machine guns, and rounds smashed into nearby walls and kicked up dust
in the street right at our feet.
Immediately, we responded with withering gunfire of our own. Our
SEAL machine gunners were an awesome sight to behold, fearlessly
laying down fire with deadly accuracy, even as enemy rounds impacted
all around them. Like a well-oiled machine, we executed a “center peel”
maneuver: a coordinated tactic where two columns systematically
alternate shooting at the enemy and moving away in a safe direction
until able to break contact. I lobbed a few 40mm grenades over the heads
of our patrol and onto enemy positions to help keep their heads down as
we bounded back. Our overwhelming fire quickly repulsed the enemy
attack, and we continued to a street corner that provided additional
cover, moving in a hurry toward COP Falcon. Those courageous SEAL
machine gunners had provided the cover fire that enabled us to move
safely through the maelstrom. Within minutes, we covered the remaining
distance to the COP and made our way past the Abrams tank guarding
the entrance. We pushed past the concertina wire and concrete barriers
into the relative safety of the U.S. Army combat outpost. We were
breathing hard after running and gunning in the late morning heat with
heavy gear. But we had all survived without a scratch. The LPO and I
smiled and laughed at each other. We had just gotten ourselves into a
solid gunfight on the street, hammered the enemy, and brought everyone
back unscathed. It was awesome. We were fired up.
But already back at COP Falcon was our platoon chief. He had been
with the cordon and search force and had returned earlier with Jocko and
the rest of our small team of SEALs and the Iraqi soldiers. Chief wasn’t