Delta Veteran John McPhee on Why Real Raids Avoid Gunfights

In this sit-down from Mike Ritland, retired Delta Force operator John "Shrek" McPhee breaks down why real tier-1 missions look nothing like the "cool guy" internet version of special operations. McPhee argues that the entire point of a well-run raid is to collapse on a target so fast that nobody gets a chance to shoot, not to chase a gunfight, and he says the squadrons that did this right rarely took casualties at all.

Key points

• Speed beats gunfights: McPhee says the goal of every raid was to move so fast and so cleanly that the enemy never got a shot off, calling that "simple math" for keeping his guys alive.
• No Purple Hearts under his watch: He claims no one under his direct leadership was ever wounded or worse, despite running what he says were hundreds of raids.
• The "soft enemy concept": McPhee argues years of fighting under-equipped fighters in Afghanistan and Iraq bred bad habits and ego-driven tactics that get sold online as real training.
• Toughest opponent named: He identifies the Zarqawi network, which became ISIS, as the hardest enemy of the entire campaign.
• Harsh verdict on the wars: McPhee calls both Iraq and Afghanistan a waste strategically, saying 20 years should have gone toward building schools instead.

Quick take

This is a blunt, unfiltered operator's view of what competence actually looks like downrange, and how it differs from the tactics people perform for social media. McPhee's opinions on the wars and on who counts as a "hard enemy" are his alone, but his read on mission execution is worth hearing straight from him.

Watch the full video: Mike Ritland