"Narrator:" "The U.S. Military's elite schools turn soldiers into razor-sharp weapons." "[Machine-gun fire]" "To become the best of the best, these men go to hell and back." "Get lower!" "[Groans]" "I can't see!" "Aah!" "We're trying to push them to the breaking point." "Instructor:" "This is your life now." "You're hard-core!" "Let's go!" "Narrator:" "Army Ranger school is considered the hardest combat course on the planet." "Keep your face in the mud!" "[Grunting]" "To find out who has what it takes, soldiers are forced to their breaking point and beyond." "Aah!" "Aah!" "To earn the coveted Ranger Tab, these men must perform at their very best..." "Instructor:" "Nobody else is gonna help you, Ranger." "In the very worst of conditions." "Feel like a giant piece of toilet paper." "Most will fail." "Do... you... quit?" "We're still here." "That's all that matters." "One in three will survive the cut." "[Indistinct shouting]" "Narrator:" "Army Ranger school has a single mission... train the Army's combat leaders." "From these ranks will come America's most effective warriors." "Any unit whose mission is to engage in close combat can send their best men here." "Already, they're the cream of the crop, in the best shape of their lives." "They've trained hard, and they think they know what's coming." "But they're wrong." "Instructor:" "Fall out." "[All shouting]" "Narrator:" "Day 1 of Ranger school." "338 soldiers report to the Ranger Training Brigade at Fort Benning, Georgia." "Pass or fail, these men will not be the same when they leave." "Over the next 8 1/2 weeks, most will lose 20 or more pounds." "Some will gain a small patch that means everything." "Flohr:" "Ranger school really is a unique experience for any soldier to come to." "It is a brotherhood within the Army." "It's a culture within itself." "All:" "A-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a!" "Ranger!" "Flohr:" "Less than 1% of the United States Army is Ranger-qualified, so it's a pretty exclusive group." "Narrator:" "The Ranger Tab earns a soldier elite status in the Army." "It can make or break his career." "I'll stay as long as it takes, and I'll do whatever it takes to pass." "And to me, to pass and to graduate would mean everything to me." "It'd probably be the biggest accomplishment in my military career so far and one of the biggest accomplishments of my life." "Narrator:" "Ranger school starts fast and hard." "The first three days are called the assessment phase." "It has one ugly purpose." "Instructor:" "All right, full speed... execute." "Narrator:" "Weed out those soldiers not fully prepared for the fight of their lives." "Okay." "Let's go." "Narrator:" "It starts in the fight pit, with hand-to-hand combat." "Take your opponent to the ground with maximum aggression." "Then do it again." "And again." "[Indistinct shouting]" "Narrator:" "After each round of fighting, soldiers must carry each other 100 yards around the pit." "From the start, they learn a sacred pledge... a Ranger never leaves a man behind." "[Indistinct shouting]" "Next comes the bear crawl..." "And then more of everything." "Instructor:" "Let's go!" "Nonstop for hours on end." "Soldier:" "Watch out!" "Coming through!" "Five hours in." "Night falls, and the agony continues." "Bear crawl, Ranger!" "Bear crawl!" "Where's your Ranger buddy?" "!" "Where's your Ranger buddy?" "!" "Got that double underarm." "Go for that takedown." "Narrator:" "It looks like torture, but actually, it's a carefully orchestrated set of demands meant to wear the men down and shake their confidence." "You're just not going through it just to go through it." "It's for a reason, Ranger." "Narrator:" "Every moment, instructors are looking for signs of weakness." "They pounce on anything short of full commitment." "Number 128 is preserving his energy, just going through the motions." "All right, Ranger, stop." "It's a mistake he will pay for." "The moment you give up... the moment, the instant that you give up... how are you gonna explain that to your lower subordinates when you get to your unit?" "You're already stamped a leader when you come here." "I want to see you execute." "You understand?" "Right, Sergeant." "Narrator:" "The ability to stay committed despite physical depletion is a key trait of a Ranger." "Anything short of that in battle means men will die." "Ranger school is not for everybody." "You have to decide whether or not it's for you." "You positive?" "You're absolutely positive?" "You're 100%?" "[Grunts]" "Recover, Ranger." "Get back there with your company." "Hurry up." "This is only the first day, so..." "Interviewer:" "One day at a time." " One day at a time." "Just trying to keep stretched, keep your muscles from getting too sore." "So it's not too bad." "Interviewer:" "60 more days, right?" "Well... oh, 60 more." "60 more days, yeah." "Narrator:" "The men have already been awake for 20 hours." "They're exhausted and hurting." "But the night is young." "Instructor:" "Go, go, go!" "[Indistinct shouting]" "It's a 3-mile run to the next event... something they've all heard about... the legendary Army Ranger obstacle course." "Place your camo bags on top of your weapon so you can identify them when you're done with the obstacle course." "Pick it up!" "Move it out!" "Narrator:" "Paired off with a Ranger buddy, each 2-man team must move over 10 obstacles as quickly as they can." "Grab his belt when he comes up and throw him over." "Let's go!" "Let's go!" "It drives home teamwork." "Elevate your Ranger buddy, Ranger." "A Ranger always takes care of the man next to him." "Your buddy fails, and you fail, too." "Let's get up the pole!" "Get lower!" "Get lower!" "Exhaustion, discomfort, and nonstop shouting are all part of the course." "Ranger, why are you not over yet?" "!" "You two at the top, you should be going over by now!" "Get over the net!" "Hurry up!" "Ranger, do you not know your left from your right?" "I said "left side," Ranger!" "Push to your left!" "Ranger, where are you going?" "!" "Over here." "Flohr:" "In this phase, the instructors are in the student's face quite a bit." "He's gonna do a lot of yelling." "He's gonna tell the student what to do a good bit of the time." "Ranger, what are you doing?" "Why?" "Why are you waiting on your battle buddy?" "Okay, why are you waiting on..." "with the obstacle?" "Ranger, get your ass over here and get on this [bleep] portion of the obstacle right now." "Yes, Sergeant." "Narrator:" "This is leadership training." "Rangers are responsible for each other at all times, just as they are in battle." "The soldier who's in it only for himself will not earn the Ranger Tab." "Get in the water, start high-crawling." "You two, roll left!" "Narrator:" "By now, the students are completely wiped out physically." "But by far, the hardest struggle is psychological." "None of the 338 soldiers are dropping out yet, but they are thinking about it." "Carty:" "You won't see a lot of the Ranger students quit while they're out here." "They have pride." "They don't want to be shown up in front of their peers." "But once they get back to the room, they realize how cold, wet they were out here." "That's when we'll see them start to quit." "Come on." "I'm good, brother." "I'm good, brother." "Dean:" "A lot of things will make them want to quit." "I had a guy earlier saying that he wanted to quit because he feels like he wasn't gonna pass an event tomorrow." "And he's not even there yet." "You start worrying about it now, then you're never gonna make it." "[Indistinct shouting]" "Instructor:" "Make sure you get a good grip." "Narrator:" "It's 56 degrees and falling." "Freezing muddy water makes gripping the monkey bars nearly impossible." "Get across or start over till you do." "Keep going, keep going!" "Come on!" "Two more!" "Ranger." "Come on, keep going!" "Grab hard!" "Is that your third time?" "[Bleep]" "[Bleep]" "[Thud] Soldier:" "Ooh!" "You all right?" "Narrator:" "Number 27 comes down hard on a pole." "Can you stand up?" "Soldier:" "My buddy fell, Sergeant." "Hey, get back on." "Narrator:" "Checked out by the medic, he sucks it up and drives on." "Good?" "Low crawl." "Stay low, men." "Low crawl." "Let's go." "Stay low, Rangers!" "Get your head down, or you're gonna hit the wire!" "Once again, Rangers, I said low crawl, not high crawl." "Put your face in the mud!" "Move back to the beginning and do it again." "Narrator:" "One message becomes abundantly clear... do it right or do it again." "You're going the wrong way!" "You two on the far right, get up and move back to the beginning and do it again!" "Hurry up!" "Come here!" "On your feet!" "Move back to the barracks and take a shower." "Wash your nasty little bodies." "You understand?" "Both:" "Roger, Sergeant." "Narrator:" "They've been up for almost 24 hours." "At 3:00 a.m., the class heads for the showers and three hours of authorized sleep." "Day 1 in hell is finally over." "Anything worth getting's always hard." "338 men head for bed." "But just how many will show up for Day 2?" "Get your face in the mud!" "Narrator:" "Day 1 of Army Ranger school was hell." "Day 2 begins with a grim discovery." "Of the original 338 students, 39 have packed up and shipped home during the night." "Instructor:" "Is Cower here?" "299 soldiers are back for more even though they know what's coming." "Heads up!" "Combat water survival will eliminate anyone not completely at home in the water and expose any phobia of heights or drowning." "[Bleep] cold." "The men have had three hours' sleep and just one meal in 24 hours." "It's all part of the plan." "Mutchie:" "The sleep and food deprivation is starting to set in now." "They're having to get through being mentally and physically tired." "A lot of Ranger students are able to push through that, and that's what we're looking for." "Narrator:" "First up, students must climb to a 50-foot-high balance beam, then walk calmly over an obstacle, crawl to a 20-foot rope line, touch a Ranger Tab, drop into the frigid water, and swim 25 yards to the finish line." "Sword:" "Which is a display of confidence." "That way, they can cross over a stream or a creek at a high altitude." "[Coughs]" "So this kind of eliminates some of the students who might quit in further operations." "That's the whole purpose of the test, just to weed them out." "Instructor:" "Either walk or quit!" "Let's go!" "Instructor ♪2:" "Start walking!" "Tambo:" "We have students come through, and they'll get to the fence up there, and they won't even attempt to go across the log." "They'll come down and just quit right here." "Instructor:" "Start walking!" "If a Ranger freezes up, he'll be dropped from the course." "Let go of the fence!" "Narrator:" "In battle, a Ranger will lead others through some of the most hostile environments on earth." "He must show no fear." "Either walk or quit." "Let's go!" "You're holding up training!" "Come here." "You quit?" "What?" "Give your vest up." "Narrator:" "Another man down." "Ranger, it said "walk natural."" "You don't walk down the street like that, do you?" "Let's go." "Or you're gonna do it again." "Narrator:" "Today, the water is a brisk 55 degrees." "One missed step means an uncontrolled plunge into the icy cold." "So, do you quit?" "Do... you... quit?" " I do." " You quit." " Yes." " All right." "Hey, Silk, other one." "Take your gear off." "Roger, sir." "Narrator:" "Water testing hits the group hard." "Just two hours in, and they're dropping like flies." "[Splash]" "Instructor:" "Rotate!" "That's why you get a briefing." "So you know what you're supposed to do." " Is it broken?" " No, sir." "Well, hold that on there and go change your clothes." "Get out of your wet uniform." "Move out." "Narrator:" "Fear weeds out some." "Cold and exhaustion take others." "I'll take the cold." "We're still here." "That's all that matters." "Narrator:" "One final trial remains..." "a cold-water swim test." "Stop panicking and swim." "Each soldier must jump in and quickly ditch his combat gear." "Now he has to swim 25 yards, fully dressed, in the frigid water and without flotation." "Sword:" "In this event, they're gonna have their life jacket off, so your true weak swimmers come out." "Good luck to you." "Narrator:" "For number 225, it's literally sink or swim." "He's failed once already." "This is his last try." "[Panting]" "Cold water robs the body of heat 30 times faster than cold air." "Don't quit." "Sudden immersion causes panic, impaired breathing, and numbness." "Instructor:" "Kick your feet, Ranger." "Kick your feet." "Don't quit, man." "Narrator:" "Hands become useless and thinking clouded." "Okay." "Let's go, right here." "Let's go." "For number 225, it's the end of the road." "You get dropped from the course." "Roster ♪225:" "I went underwater, tried to hold my breath and swim, but that disqualified me from the event, so..." "Disappointed 'cause I came very far." "At least I came far for myself." "To get disqualified for that is very disappointing." "Narrator:" "The students have been up for 16 hours and had only one meal." "Now they head out on a 15-mile forced march with 60 pounds of combat equipment." "Keep pace, or you're out." "Wade:" "We're looking for heart, just trying to make sure that they want to be here, they have what it takes, mentally, to stay in the course." "It's a drop event, so if he doesn't make it, he's out of the course." "Instructor:" "If you cannot keep up with the man in front of you, pull off to the side and bring up the rear." "Narrator: 5 miles down, 10 to go." "So far, no dropouts." "They've marched through the night into Day 3 of Ranger school." "They've been on the go for over 50 hours." "Hilling:" "These next, really, about 4 to 6 miles are gonna be pretty intense." "The terrain now, we've gone from a hard, concrete, rock-top road." "Now we're walking on dirt." "Lot of ditches out there, and we're also gonna be going up some hills, so they're gonna really start to feel it now during this part of the course, and so we're gonna really see who has the heart" "and who wants to be part of Ranger school." "Narrator:" "The forced march is one of the few individual events at Ranger school." "Teamwork is usually a hallmark, but this is sheer endurance." "Every man has to stand up to the punishment alone, and he gets just one chance." "Soldiers want to help if a man falls back, but falling back with him gets you kicked out." "Suck it up." "Stand up straight." "There you are." "Narrator:" "The Ranger instructors do what they can to motivate the men." "Fall out, buddy, and you're gonna regret it." "You're gonna hate yourself for it." "Correa:" "Doing the buddy run, doing the obstacle course here the other day, their legs are very fatigued." "Some of these guys are sweating." "Probably didn't drink enough water, so their calories are burning up pretty quick here." "Some of these guys are seriously giving themselves a gut check at this point." "Narrator:" "The temperature is 48 degrees and dropping." "Soon, so will some of the men." "They're fighting exhaustion, physical pain, and the worst enemy of all..." "self-doubt." "8 miles in." "Number 324 hits his breaking point." "Instructor:" "He was hurting probably about mile 7." "He kept trying." "Finally fell more than 25 meters behind the rear of the formation, so we had to pull him and put him on the truck." "If they're gonna quit on themselves and quit on their buddies in this event just to walk out the camp, their mind's not in the game to want to push themselves or their friends or their Ranger buddies when the time is necessary." "Narrator:" "In battle, not giving up could be the difference between life and death for an entire platoon." "Just before sunrise, 232 soldiers finish the 15-mile night march." "Three days of Ranger assessment have forced out 106 men... almost 1/3 of the class." "The attrition rate is right where the instructors want it." "Bring it in tight, man." "Bring it in tight." "Over the past three days, you guys have been tested physically and mentally." "Roger that?" "All:" "Roger, Sergeant." "I think we've weeded out some weak and faint-hearted individuals, right?" "All:" "Roger, sir!" "So I see only men standing before me." "Hoo-ah?" "All:" "Hoo-ah!" "Congratulations." "Now Ranger school starts." "It begins." "Narrator:" "For the 232 Ranger students who made it through the grueling assessment phase, the next few weeks are spent in Camp Darby, a woodland area within Fort Benning." "Go with the maneuver element, P.L., 'cause that's where you [bleep] belong!" "Narrator:" "Here, they'll learn specific skills in the art of war." "Hey, is somebody gonna pull security on that dead guy?" "'Cause you don't know if he's dead or not." "[Bomb whistling] Incoming!" "[Explosions]" "Narrator:" "Students run combat missions 20 hours a day and receive just enough calories to keep from passing out." "Roster ♪94:" "It's been a little tough, overall." "Just getting legs conditioned with Darby, taking some food away from us and lack of nutrition." "Stone:" "We limit their amount of food, we limit their amount of sleep, so you'll see they're falling asleep on their feet while they're going through this course." "Narrator:" "It's an ongoing endurance test, but students know some tricks of the trade for staying awake." "Some chew coffee grounds." "Others go to extremes." "Some people put Tabasco sauce in their eyes." "I haven't tried that yet." "Narrator:" "After 20 days at Camp Darby, another 91 soldiers have been removed or quit." "Instructor:" "Heads up." "Keep your heads up." "Narrator: 141 out of the original 338 students move on to the next phase... 20 days at Camp Merrill in the remote mountains of north Georgia." "The terrain is torturous and brings on an entirely new form of stress." "Nearly every war in history has included mountain operations." "Preston:" "The purpose here is to conduct combat operations in mountainous terrain... the skills that they would need to conduct combat operations in a mountainous environment, such as Afghanistan." "Narrator:" "Rangers must be comfortable in steep terrain, even with a heavy load." "Roster ♪18:" "I got a 27.6" " Pound weapon on my front, probably another 65, 70 pounds on my back, and maybe about 180 pounds with myself, so..." "Narrator:" "Before combat operations begin, students get a crash course in military mountaineering." "Each soldier must rappel 100 feet down a wet, vertical cliff carrying an 80-pound pack." "Instructor:" "Hey!" "Underneath your ass." "So bring your feet down." "Narrator:" "Roster number 108 is fighting the laws of gravity..." "And losing." "Yep." "Push up, Ranger." "Push up." "You got to get out." "Ain't nobody else gonna help you right now." "You got to do it yourself." "Nobody else is gonna help you, Ranger." "Nobody else is gonna help you right now." "You got to help yourself." "Stand up." "Come on, Ranger." "Come on, Ranger." "You got to stand up." "You have to." "Stand up." "Stand up." "There you go." "You did it." "I slipped off the rock, and my ruck pulled my weight backwards and I fell off-balance." "Instructor:" "Get your knees off the rock!" "Roster ♪64:" "One of the more scarier parts, at the top, you got to trust your buddy to belay you down as you walk backwards down a vertical cliff." "Instructor:" "Get your hands off the rope, Lane 7!" "Hands off the rope!" "Lean back, you!" "Narrator:" "In combat, your best asset is the man next to you." "If Ranger school slams home one point, it's that your buddy will be there for you and you better be there for him." "Just got to trust your Ranger buddy, so..." "I do." "I trust my Ranger buddy." "Barbine:" "Once they realize they don't have to think about it, it makes it easier on them, they gain confidence, and that confidence carries over to other events." "Narrator:" "Day 26." "Eight more men have dropped out." "133 tired, hungry soldiers are still in Ranger school." "Instructor:" "Hey, where's security at?" " Right here." " Let's go." "Narrator:" "The instruction phase is over." "Now combat operations begin." "Over the next 10 days, each student will be put in charge of an operation." "Mission success is graded "go" or "no go."" "Too many "no gos," and you're out of Ranger school." "First up," "Sergeant Eric Josephson is placed in command of a patrol." "It's his turn in the hot seat." "We rehearsed it a bunch of times, and, uh..." "I don't know." "Hopefully, it turns out well." "Narrator:" "At 4:00 a.m. A Humvee will drive down a dirt road." "The platoon must get in position and then ambush the vehicle using a precise set of tactics." "It sounds simple, but a single missed step, and the wrong people get killed." "We try to re-create as much confusion... which, in the military, we call "the fog of war"... to put the students in a state of uncertainty where they still have to make a decision in a stressful environment," "accomplish a mission, and take care of the soldiers." "Narrator:" "Night falls, and the team gets ready." "No." "Just like that." "Make sure you are not seen on the objective." "You're gonna have to take the long way around." "Narrator:" "Sergeant Josephson briefs his squad and moves out." "Who's our medic?" "Narrator:" "The mission is on." "In short order, they find the road and the ambush location." "You guys flank to the right and then engage." "Narrator:" "So far, so good." "Josephson has all his men in place." "Josephson:" "Place them." "All right, okay, we got to make sure it's a good support by the fire position for you guys, too, okay?" "Narrator:" "The vehicle approaches the kill zone." "On Josephson's signal, they attack." "[Machine-gun fire]" "The Ranger instructor watches every detail through his night-vision device." "When he doesn't like what he sees, he gives Josephson an earful." "Instructor:" "Somebody better suppress the enemy!" "[Gunfire]" "Rangers, you better get aggressive!" "Narrator:" "This is the moment of truth." "The instructor wants to see a clear command, and Josephson steps up." "Josephson:" "Let's go, men!" "Let's go!" "Hurry up, men!" "Move forward!" "Narrator:" "The squad has to move with precise coordination to avoid hitting each other with friendly fire." "In a matter of seconds, the enemy is neutralized." "The ambush is successful, but it's not over." "Josephson has to move his men out of the kill zone as quickly as he can." "Enemy are in the area." "Safely back in the woods," "Josephson accounts for his men." "And something is very wrong." "How many people did you count, platoon sergeant?" "What's going on?" "I didn't get a good count." "Narrator:" "It's a Ranger's worst nightmare... the count is wrong." "Day 44 of Army Ranger school..." "the mountain phase." "After running a successful ambush, mission leader Sergeant Josephson is in hot water." "His head count doesn't add up." "Josephson:" "There should be six total." "You're on one side, Alpha team leader's on the other." "Narrator:" "Nobody knows for sure how many men they started with." "Yeah, it should be just six guys." "Man:" "Now we can't figure out what happened amongst ourselves." "There was confusion about how many one squad leader was supposed to bring with him." "I told them a certain number, and he ended up bringing one extra guy, so when we left the wire, we had one extra person." "He had 14 Rangers as opposed to 13, he thought." "That's sort of a big boo-boo." "That's a real serious thing we take here." "So, what you're telling me is that if you went out here and you'd lost a man or we'd hit an I.E.D." "Or got into a massive fire fight, you could have lost one man, went back, did a head count, been missing a guy here, and not know it?" "Then next thing you know, the guy's on CNN or, even worse, Al Jazeera getting his damn head cut off." "You're not eating right." "Some nights, you're gonna sleep no more than 15 minutes a night." "You're hungry." "It sucks." "We've all been through this same course, or we wouldn't be here where we're at now today, roger?" "All:" "Roger, Sergeant!" "Check it out." "Head counts, going outside the wire not knowing how many people you [bleep] got with you... that's not acceptable under any circumstances." "Narrator:" "It's a serious failure, and Josephson's grade will take a serious hit." "We could have done a little bit better, but I think being that this is the first time we've really operated in the field, you know, under these types of conditions," "I think we got some of the growing pains out." "Narrator:" "Sergeant Josephson has to tough out nine more days of combat patrols before he finds out if he has failed the entire mountain phase." "If so, he'll repeat it until he passes or quits." "Day 50." "Just 11 days of Ranger school to go." "Of the 338 who started, only 123 men remain." "They're airborne over western Florida, about to drop into the dense coastal swamps for their final round of missions." "Instructor:" "You bust it in the butt." "You do your job, okay?" "We don't want the false motivation, pompom, hoo-ah Ranger type stuff." "We want to find it, fix it, kill it, and do our job on that objective." "You got it?" "All:" "Got it." "Team leaders, do your job." "Squad leaders, do your job." "Hoo-ah?" "All:" "Hoo-ah!" "Narrator:" "First to lead a mission is Lieutenant Tim Jennings." "Jennings:" "My stress level's through the roof already." "It's huge." "I'm confident about it..." "just got to do the right thing the rest of the time, help everybody else out." "Narrator:" "Jennings' mission is to move a 49-man unit several miles through near-impossible terrain and then take out a heavily defended drug lab." "The grueling reality of the swamp sinks in right away." "Just getting from "A" to "B" is agony." "And the clock is running." "War is hell, and so is Ranger school." "[Grunts]" "Schultz:" "They start trying to stay dry and pick their way around and stuff like that, it always backfires on them, and they end up way worse off than they started." "Narrator:" "There is no getting around the swamps." "They suck whatever energy is left out of every man." "The deeper they go, the nastier it gets." "Jennings' men are only halfway to the target, and they're way behind schedule." "It'd be good if we make it out of here before dark." "You can see the snakes in the daylight." "Narrator:" "After 4 hours, Jennings' men have only gone 2 miles." "Darkness has them down to a crawl." "The men are so spent, they're barely moving." "It's Jennings' job to somehow motivate his men and make up some time." "It's a lot tougher in the dark, so I just try to motivate them, get them on through, 'cause they're suffering right now." "Let's go." "Feel like a giant piece of toilet paper." "Narrator:" "It's just half a mile to the target, but it seems like an eternity." "But Ranger school, like combat, is never predictable." "It just changed over, the student chain of command, so we got a new P.L..." "Platoon leader... and new platoon sergeant." "Narrator:" "Without warning," "Lieutenant Jennings is relieved of command, and Specialist Adam Peloquin is named platoon leader." "He is the youngest and lowest-ranking man in the squad." "To simulate the chaos of war, instructors change command at the worst possible moment." "They want to see if Peloquin can rise to the occasion." "The smart money is against him." "Schultz:" "Just starting off right out of the bat, bam, you're the P.L. And you're in charge of everything." "He's snowballing a little bit right now." "If he doesn't have all his control measures in place, he could lose it real fast." "It was real quick, the handover, so there's a lot that I missed on it." "You're not sitting in on orders, so you don't know everything that's going on." "Narrator:" "The platoon's mission... locate and attack a well-defended drug lab." "It won't be easy." "After 10 hours in a swamp, the men are literally asleep on their feet... a condition they call droning." "Peloquin:" "Seemed like everybody just was out of it." "Everybody was just droning, tired, not moving." "Everybody's falling asleep while they're moving." "And that made it a lot tougher." "Narrator:" "Peloquin tries to take command, but his team is in complete disarray." "We've been going at this for like 50 days, and everyone's getting tired of getting told what to do by other people." "No one wants to follow." "Narrator:" "The instructor cranks up the heat on Peloquin." "P.L." "Right here." "What the [bleep] Are we doing?" "R.B." "Explain to me how we're exerting [bleep] right now." "How many guys you got in this platoon?" " 49." " 49 Rangers." "Why can I see every single one of them?" "We're trying to put security out right now." "You're not trying to do [bleep]" "But [bleep] sit here and have a [bleep] conversation." "Narrator:" "Peloquin's platoon has lost discipline." "Soldiers are huddled together out in the open." "A single artillery round could take out the entire patrol." "Instructor:" "Tell you what." "I'm gonna start my watch." "Five minutes, this [bleep] Better be spread out." "Narrator:" "Peloquin rallies." "He gets the unit spread out and moving." "He locates the drug lab and launches the attack." "[Gunfire]" "The men have been awake for almost 48 hours." "Exhausted, their movement is slow and chaotic... a recipe for disaster." "Soldier:" "Hey, I got a casualty!" "I got a casualty!" "Narrator:" "The Ranger instructor is looking for a well-coordinated assault with strong momentum." "He doesn't see it." "Tierney:" "This is not good." "He lost all control." "No supervision whatsoever." "He'll be a no-go." "Narrator:" "Peloquin has failed his mission." "Peloquin:" "Everything went pretty decent up until the initial assault." "That's basically what it was that got me a no-go." "Narrator:" "Specialist Peloquin may have just lost his chance for a Ranger Tab." "All he can do now is try to raise his score before the end of Ranger school." "Day 60." "Just 24 hours remain at Ranger school." "They are about to launch their final mission." "The entire class will work together on one last operation..." "in the Gulf of Mexico." "Taylor:" "They come here physically drained, but the mental challenge here is extremely stressful, and some of these guys just can't pull it together." "Narrator:" "The men are all operating on fumes." "But pushing through exhaustion is a key part of the training." "It's a skill that could keep you alive in combat." "Here's the slit..." "the firing slit of the bunker." "Narrator:" "Lieutenant Tom Stauffer is placed in charge of the final mission." "They all know it won't be easy." "They say this is the hardest movement we'll do, so... we'll see." "Narrator:" "The mission..." "locate and extract an enemy agent who has vital information." "Stauffer's unit will helicopter to a landing zone, then go a mile on foot to a remote compound." "Here, they'll join the other teams for a full-scale assault." "It's the last mission and the last chance to boost their scores." "It's pretty much the next six hours determine whether I go home in six days or six weeks." "Narrator:" "Countless Ranger Tabs hang in the balance as the class heads out." "We're gonna air-assault in, get dropped off as we do real-world, and they're gonna go hit these buildings." "So it's a big deal." "Narrator: 123 students, 22 hours, one final mission." "The stress level could not be higher... just the way Ranger school likes it." "Stauffer:" "Let's go!" "Stauffer hits the ground and moves his unit out with purpose." "The mission is on." "They push hard one mile to the attack site." "Stauffer:" "Come on, men!" "300 meters means we're moving!" "Doesn't mean we're walking!" "Let's go!" "Narrator:" "Stauffer is right on time, with all 22 of his men." "The attack is set up perfectly." "But it won't go exactly as planned." "For most, after 61 days of hell, success depends on the next few minutes." "Sunset." "Strike time." "Stauffer:" "1-4, 1-6... engage." "[Machine-gun fire]" "Narrator:" "A barrage of fire initiates the attack." "[Indistinct shouting]" "Key defensive positions are taken out first." "They're gonna assault." "Roger." "Suppress the Humvee with the 240." "Narrator:" "Stauffer's team moves in and attempts to locate their target building." "Move behind the building!" "Watch out." "Move, move, move." "[Indistinct shouting]" "Narrator:" "When instructors see leaders making tactical mistakes, they move in and tag soldiers as killed or wounded." "Instructor:" "We have a casualty at the first building." "Narrator:" "Stauffer is taking heavy casualties, and his attack slows." "Taylor:" "That's where they really got bogged down." "It's kind of hard to recover from just losing soldier after soldier and not being able to see what the problem is." "We're at the first building to the left when you enter." "Over." "Narrator:" "Stauffer's unit is taking heavy fire, and they're pinned down, unable to advance." "Taylor:" "Where they fail is they get caught up in everybody getting in a room or everybody staying stacked on a building and no one giving them any guidance." "Stauffer:" "Let's go, Bravo!" "Narrator:" "Stauffer sees the problem and acts." "Bravo, lead man!" "Hey, there's a door right up here on the left." "Go [bleep] Stack on it now!" "Go!" "Narrator:" "He moves the squad out of the kill zone and gains the momentum to push forward." "I got the outside door." "Hey, you guys, hold." "Narrator:" "The unit enters their target building to search for their hostage." "The building is packed with fighters in padded suits." "[Man screaming]" "Hand-to-hand combat adds to the chaos." "Get a second." "Get a second." "Get a second." "All right, let me get another guy on him!" "Narrator:" "The enemy is subdued, and the search continues." "Keep pushing." "Against the wall." "Get down on your knees." "Face the wall!" "I need security set up right outside this building here, too." "What we're gonna do..." "Narrator:" "Target located." "Time to move out." "Stauffer:" "Hey, guys, we got to get off this objective." "Narrator:" "The strike force loads up and heads back to base." "Mission accomplished." "All 123 students head back to the barracks with one burning question in their minds." ""Did I perform well enough to earn a Ranger Tab, or will I be going through Ranger school all over again?"" "Beyond exhaustion, they stumble into camp like zombies." "But there's truly no rest for the weary." "Soldiers have one final task." "Peer evaluation." "Soldiers who go to hell and back together learn what each man is made of." "Instructor:" "Don't take too much time, Rangers." "Write what's inside your heart." "Narrator:" "The instructors want their honest opinion." "Every soldier rates each man in his squad." "Stauffer:" "You answer questions..." "would you go to war with him?" "Would you be willing to share a fo xhole with him?" "If you peer below a certain percentage, then you either get moved to another platoon or dropped from the course or recycled." "Narrator:" "Students find out if they made it when they stand at graduation." "Man:" "Hurry up!" "Narrator: 61 days ago, 338 soldiers from units all over the country began the hardest combat-training course in the Army." "103 made it to this final day." "Man:" "These men will assume responsibility of wearing the Ranger Tab for the rest of their lives." "Narrator:" "Despite a bad head count as platoon leader," "Sergeant Josephson gets enough gos to pass." "Lieutenant Jennings earned excellent marks throughout Ranger school." "He passes." "Jennings:" "I just remember certain instances." "No one will understand, but you'll remember it for the rest of your life." "Narrator:" "Despite a no-go in the swamp," "Specialist Peloquin has enough gos to pass." "Met a lot of good guys in here, so I got a lot of new friends." "Narrator:" "By performing well and stepping up on his final mission," "Lieutenant Stauffer also passes." "Stauffer:" "I was definitely very nervous about getting a go and graduating." "Going into that third mission, last day, still waiting to get my go, and got it." "Narrator:" "Only a chosen few ever know what this patch really means." "Right here." "That's what it's all about." "Man:" "Remember that you got to live to a higher standard, to the Ranger Creed, every single day of your life." "Live up to the honor and prestige of the Ranger Tab." "All:" "A-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a!" "Ranger!"