The "Lone Survivor" Myth

Why the truth about one of the darkest days in Naval Special Warfare history still matters

I recently spoke with Eric Deming, a retired Navy SEAL who spent some time walking me through Operation Red Wings, better known to the American public as the events depicted in Lone Survivor, a No. 1 New York Times best-selling book that became a blockbuster movie starring Mark Wahlberg.

Lone Survivor tells the story of former Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell, the only surviving member of a group of four Frogmen who were ambushed in 2005 in the mountains of Afghanistan. Eight more SEALs and eight Army aviators who rushed to rescue Luttrell and his teammates were killed when their helicopter was shot down. At the time, Operation Red Wings was the single largest loss of life for Naval Special Warfare since World War II.

Interest in Operation Red Wings has spiked since Deming appeared in March on The Antihero Podcast, which is popular in law enforcement and military circles, and raised questions about Luttrell’s account. Clips of the podcast have gone viral on TikTok, which has come as a welcome …