Marcus Luttrell

Marcus Luttrell’s #1 New York Times best-selling book, “Lone Survivor,” tells the harrowing story of four Navy SEALs who journeyed into the mountainous border of Afghanistan and Pakistan on Operation Redwing. An unparalleled motivational story of survival, the book is also a moving tribute to the friends and teammates who did not make it off the mountain. A powerful testament to the courage, integrity, patriotism and community that forged these American heroes, Lone Survivor is an incredible account of teamwork, fortitude and modern warfare.

In January 2014, Luttrell’s amazing story made the leap to the big screen with the blockbuster film, Lone Survivor, directed by Peter Berg (Battleship, Hancock) and starring Mark Wahlberg (The Fighter, The Departed) as Luttrell. The film celebrated a historic open, earning the second biggest January debut of all time.

Operation Redwing’s mission was to gather intelligence on a Taliban leader with ties to Osama bin Laden. When the team encountered several goat herders, the SEALs questioned them and, after a debate about the rules of engagement, let them go. Shortly after a large Taliban force ambushed the four-man team on a remote ridge, Luttrell and his teammates valiantly fought for hours, displaying characteristic SEAL determination and bravery, refusing to retreat from the fight despite being heavily outnumbered. Hours later, after Luttrell had watched all three friends die and had literally been blown off the mountain by an RPG, a rescue helicopter carrying 16 special operation forces was shot down, killing all on board.

His face shredded, nose broken, rotator cuff torn, three vertebrae cracked, his body riddled with shrapnel and unable to stand, Luttrell began to crawl through the mountains in search of shelter. Help arrived by way of the Afghan villagers of Sabray. They took Luttrell in, cleaned up his wounds and, honoring their tribe’s custom, protected him from the Taliban at the risk of their own lives. As the Taliban circled the village and the threats intensified, the village elder sought help from the nearest Marine outpost. Five nights after the nightmare began, Luttrell was rescued.

In his new bestselling book “Service: A Navy SEAL at War,” Luttrell turns his focus from his own experiences as a combat-trained Navy SEAL to the nature of service on America’s battlefields and the soldiers who give their lives to defend their nation and each other.

Luttrell joined the U.S. Navy in March 1999 and became a combat-trained SEAL in January 2002. After serving in Iraq for two years, he was deployed to Afghanistan in the spring of 2005. As a SEAL, Luttrell was trained in weapons, demolition, and unarmed combat. He also served as Platoon medic.

After recuperating, he redeployed to Iraq for a second tour. In the spring of 2007, Petty Officer 1st Class Luttrell retired. He was awarded the Navy Cross for combat heroism in 2006 by President George W. Bush.

To honor his lost comrades from Operation Redwing, Luttrell established the Lone Survivor Foundation in 2010, dedicated to honoring and remembering American warriors by providing unique educational, rehabilitation, recovery, and wellness opportunities to U.S. Armed Forces service members and families.