Navy SEAL Nathanael Roberti, AKA “Lalo,” graduated BUD/S Class 247 at Coronado, attended SQT (SEAL Qualified Training) and Army Airborne School and was then assigned to SEAL Team 10 in Little Creek, Virginia. Since leaving active service he’s held a few jobs but his work on the new Lalo Tactical footwear line is quite interesting.

He participated in Operation Red Wings and this is his recollection, and only his, of events that occurred starting on June 28th, 2005 and the days that followed.

FEBRUARY 15TH, 2014
Each one of us has moments in life that define who we are, helps shape our existence, and in most cases, gives us a purpose in life.

I have amazing parents. They supported my three brothers and I in whatever we chose to do. They instilled strong values in us and still guide us to this day. Two of us decided to enter the Navy, specifically going into the Special Warfare group after completing SEAL preparatory training. I was 18 years old at the
time.

By the time I was 20, the United States was involved in a war in Iraq and Afghanistan, I had graduated BUD/s Class 247 and was completing my last phase of Seal Qualified Training – SQT. When we were given the opportunity to deploy, about twenty of us volunteered to join the fight.

SEAL Team 10 became my new family of brothers, and little did I know at the time my assignment to Team 10 and the relationship with my teammates would shape the rest of my life. My experiences give me motivation every day to honor my fallen brothers, to live a life they would be proud of seeing me live.

I am a 30-year old Combat Veteran.
I suffer from combat PTSD.
I am beating it, everyday.

This brings me to Operation Red Wings. It is only in the last few months that I have been able to tell my version of this mission to kill or capture Ahmad Shah and my role within the Quick Reaction Force.

This is my recollection, and only mine, of events that occurred starting on June 28th, 2005 and the days that followed. I was 21 at the time. I was young, tough, and a warrior. I tell this story respecting the families of my fallen brothers.

JUNE 28, 2005 · MORNING
Camp Ouellette – Mike Murphy has made contact with the TOC (Tactical Operations Command), at Bagram Airbase, where he has requested assistance and immediate support for his team, which includes Matt Axelson, Danny Dietz and Marcus Luttrell.

I woke up the morning of June 28, 2005 with my game face on. I knew we had boys out in the field and we were slated to assault the target and capture or kill Ahmad Shah, the leader of the guerilla group, “Mountain Tigers.” Shah was a terrorist who aligned himself with the Taliban.

I remember our LPO (Lead Petty Officer), JT coming into the birthing[sic] area, where we slept and saying, “Get it on boys – our guys are in contact. Be ready in 30 min.” He then walked over to me and said, “Brady, you’re humping pig.” The boys called me Brady. I guess they thought I had a certain likeness to Greg in “The Brady Bunch.” People still call me Brady.

The “pig” is the MK-48; a 25lb belt-fed automatic weapon, the heaviest weapon we SEALs carry on foot. We had 30 minutes from the time we got the call to be on the truck at Steel Beach, the landing pad for the helicopters. We all got kitted up and the boys and I hopped on the flatbed on our way to the chopper.

Right then and there, my friend and comrade “Super Seal,” said he knew something was going down. As I looked around at the troops, I noticed everyone was eerily quiet. This was unusual because our platoon was known for being somewhat cocky, yet squared away. The general consensus among us was that we were about to get into some serious shit.

Super Seal approached the priest on base, which was odd because he wasn’t religious and had never spoken to the priest before. He told Father that he had done many bad things in his life and it had been a long time since he had been to confession, but that he’d like to confess his sins. I remember looking at him, looking at the ground, and thinking, “Oh, shit. This is not good.”

We loaded up and as we headed out, Father splashed holy water on the trucks, blessing the platoon and our mission. I knew this was one of those moments in life where I would need to soak up as much of what was going on around me as possible because I might not live through it.

To be continued….

To read the rest of his serialized account visit lalotactical.com/lalo-orw-story-1