Re: LONE SURVIVOR - Weapon maintained POI after extreme abuse
I read the book Lone Survivor last summer, and then saw the movie yesterday. The book is better than the movie. The movie doesn't script the events as they actually occurred.
After having read the book, I kept asking myself how the weapon Marcus Luttrell carried was able to maintain its point of impact after all the abuse suffered in multiple free-fall tumbles down the mountain face. I've never owned a rifle that would do that. Following three terrible free falls down the mountain, Luttrell miraculously ends up locating and recovering his rifle time and again. And then he snipes two Taliban on an opposing hill side from where he's hiding out in a protected cut on the mountain face. He aims and hits the first guy in the forehead and watches him free-fall off the mountainside into mid-air. Then that guys partner walks over to figure out what happened to his buddy, and Luttrell shoots the second guy in the chest a couple of times. I was dumbfounded that his weapon was still zeroed following those free falls down the mountain. Luttrell didn't provide any distance estimate for these shots. Only that the bad guys were on the opposing mountainside. I got the feeling these shots were at least 300 yards away and likely farther, but again he doesn't provide the distance. I couldn't believe he hit the guy in the forehead after his scoped weapon had left his grip two or three times and tumbled on down the mountainside.
I was also impressed that the suppressor on the end of his barrel wasn't bent to the point it was contacting the bullets upon exit.
The book doesn't describe the equipment in great detail, as I recall. I don't remember any mention of NightForce optics in the book. I think (or perhaps recall), Trijicon ACOGs? I remember one of the four seals carried a larger weapon, for more distant shots, but I believe Luttrell was shooting AR15 5.56mm.
If you liked the movie, I recommend the book much more so. The first half of the book covers Navy Seal school/tryouts and preparation. What I envision to be like a Navy Seal boot camp. The second half covers the firefight and the rescue mission.
