Situation Critical: Al Qaeda's Ambush (Videos)

[XxNinjaSinXx]

Six months after 9/11, the “War on Terror” is well underway as US military forces occupy Afghanistan. In March 2002, a group of elite navy SEALs attempt to land on a mountain peak in Afghanistan as part of Operation Anaconda. Intelligence tells them the area is clear but their Chinook helicopter immediately comes under heavy fire. In the confusion, navy SEAL Neil Roberts falls from the helicopter and is left on the mountain. His comrades return to rescue him but are overwhelmed by the strong Al-Qaeda opposition. They retreat and call in an Army Quick Reaction Force consisting of highly trained rangers in two Chinook helicopters, Razor I and II. Razor I unknowingly flies straight into the hot zone. The Chinook is immediately shot out of the sky and four men are soon killed. The rangers onboard Razor II are forced to land lower down the mountain and face a perilous two-hour hike through thigh-deep snow and mortar fire to reach their ravaged comrades. Over the next day, the rangers face a desperate struggle for survival against a well-armed Al-Qaeda force.

Situation Critical (also known as Critical Situation) is a documentary televisionprogram. Produced in conjunction with the National Geographic Channel, the series examines various disasters or violent incidents.




- Part 1 -

YouTube Video

- Part 2 -

YouTube Video

- Part 3 -

YouTube Video

- Part 4 -

YouTube Video

- Part 5 -

YouTube Video

[[R-PUB]Viper5]

Also a couple books on the battle:

Roberts Ridge

Not a Good Day to Die

[XxNinjaSinXx]

Well, I made a mistake of posting this videos on a video game website.

[Outlawz]

LOL I watched that on TV

[Brummy]

Moved to News from the Frontlines & Political Debate

[Anderson29]

well ninja, i enjoyed it....thx

[nicoliani]

This is humiliating to watch. Really not impressed by the US strategies.

[combatwombat]

IMO this kind of debacle could not happen without an over-reliance on technology. I realize I am writing this from the comfort of my desk chair, but had the SEALs not put so much faith in the initial flyby scan with thermal vision, they might have landed a little farther from the mountain top, and perhaps could have been able to disengage without losing anybody and reevaluate the situation. But instead they chose to land right on the peak, "in the middle of the hornets nest" as they put it. Did they not know that the enemy was able to dig fortifications like these and that they could be hidden from thermal scans? Or were they aware of this possibility but decided to take the risk?

This story is full of instances of our technology failing us: the IR scan doesn't reveal the heavy fortifications of the enemy; the F15's bombs miss not once but twice; weapons jam in the snow; the first SEAL isn't able to call for help because his radio is out of range, etc. It was not until one of our sophisticated weapons worked (the predator hit with the hellfire missles) that the battle started to turn around.

Like the squad leader says towards the end, "when it doesn't work, relying on technology that is supposed to provide an advantage is actually a disadvantage." I was a little surprised when the Maj. General at the end said the battle was a success - seemed more like a Pyrrhic victory to me given all the loss of life that might not have happened had they been more conservative in their decision making in the begging.