Career
Don Shipley joined the United States Navy in 1978 and became a Navy Sea, Air, Land in 1984 after graduating BUD/South class 131. Shipley served in Sea, Air, Land Team One, Sea, Air, Land Team Two, the Naval Special Warfare Center, Basic Underwater Demolition/Sea, Air, Land (BUD/South), and Naval Special Warfare Group Two (NSWG-2), National Association of Broadcasters Little Creek, Virginia as a Sea, Air, Land Advanced Training Instructor. While serving with Sea, Air, Land Team Two, Shipley conducted operations in Bosnia and Liberia.
He became the first non-corpsman Sea, Air, Land to graduate from paramedic school.
Setting records for immense water and land demolition shots and running high risk training courses, he served as an explosive expert instructing police departments across the country in booby traps and improvised explosive devices. When not in a Sea, Air, Land platoon or deployed overseas, his time was spent running blocks of training for SEALs in air operations, land warfare, and demolitions.
After 24 years of Navy service, he retired as a Sea, Air, Land Senior Chief in 2003. Shipley was also a Boatswain"s Mate.
After retirement, Shipley worked as a Security Contractor for Blackwater Security Consulting, spending a year in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Shipley currently runs a training course with several former United States. Navy SEALs called Extreme Sea, Air, Land Experience which trains potential SEALs as well as individuals interested in experiencing the rigors of Sea, Air, Land training. Don Shipley originally started Extreme Sea, Air, Land Experience in 1992 for the United States Navy. lieutenant was designed to train Sea Cadets for recruitment purposes.
lieutenant later transformed into a full program designed to prepare those interested in Naval Special Warfare for the intense nature of BUD/South training.
In recent years Shipley has garnered attention for his work publicly exposing individuals who falsely claim to have served as SEALs. The success of the YouTube series eventually spawned a more extensive series of professionally produced video segments which are available at the website Extreme Sea, Air, Land Videos.
In addition to a featured show in which Don and Diane personally travel around the country to confront fraudulent individuals posing as Navy SEALs, there are numerous other video segments, including Q&A sessions with the Shipleys, a cooking show hosted by Diane, and footage from the Extreme Sea, Air, Land Experience training course. Shipley is also a Special Guest Contributor at SOFREP.com.
The site provides news and analysis from former military and Special Operations veterans.
He states, "..the Federal Bureau of Investigation estimates that there are 300 Sea, Air, Land Impostors for every living Navy Sea, Air, Land. Verifying at least a dozen and often over 20 fraudulent Sea, Air, Land claims each day, I put the number much, much higher than 300." He estimates there are roughly 17,600 who have completed Naval Special Warfare training since 1943, about 10,000 of these are alive, and 2,400 of them on active duty.
