An Interview with the Soldiers Who Inspired “13 Hours”
Rachel 04.26.18
Kris “Tanto” Paronto and Dave “Boon” Benton, former CIA Contractors and subjects of the book and feature film, 13 HOURS: THE SECRET SOLDIERS OF BENGHAZI, will be attending the NRA Convention and Expo in Dallas, TX on May 4th and May 5th.
We’ll be interviewing Tanto and Boon at NRA and are looking for the questions you’d like to hear us ask. Use the comments section below and let us know.
Tanto and Boon will be at the Maxim Defense Industries Booth #2711 for a Meet & Greet/Book Signing. Stop by the booth to see new products from Maxim Defense and learn more about Tanto AND Boon’s new company, Battleline Tactical, a mobile training company currently touring the U.S. (Autographed Books will be available for purchase.)
BACKGROUND:
The Battle of Benghazi is that infamous night of September 11, 2012 when our men were left surrounded by hordes of armed members from the Islamic militant group Ansar al_Sharia. With nowhere to run and no promise of help from the outside, six American security contractors readily put their lives on the line to rescue and protect Americans stationed in Benghazi saving more than twenty lives. The security team fought for over 13 hours under heavy machine gun, rocket and mortar fire. Their acts of heroism and
self-sacrifice that night were captured in the book and Hollywood movie, “13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi”.
LEAD INSTRUCTOR – KRIS “TANTO” PARONTO
*KRIS “TANTO” PARONTO* is a former Army Ranger from 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, and private security contractor who has deployed throughout South America, Central America, the Middle East, and North Africa. He has worked with the US government’s Global Response Staff, the US State Department Diplomatic Security High Threat Protection Program, and Blackwater Security Consulting conducting low profile security in high-threat environments throughout the world.
He is the coauthor of the book 13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi, describing his experience responding to the 2012 terrorist attack on the US Special Mission in Benghazi, Libya, with Mitchell Zuckoff and the five surviving security team members. Tanto has started his own Tactical Training company along with Dave “Boon” Benton called Battleline Tactical Training.
Kris speaks regularly throughout the United States on leadership, faith, and motivation and can be seen regularly on Fox News and other national broadcasts. His new book, THE RANGER WAY, was released on May 23rd and is a USA Today Best Seller.
LEAD INSTRUCTOR – DAVE “BOON” BENTON
*Dave “Boon” Benton* is a Marine Veteran and trained sniper. He has a combined 24 years of service in specialized teams and leadership roles in the military, law enforcement, protective security, and intelligence community. He has held many positions on various teams from assaulter, sniper, breacher, tactical medic, team leader, and instructor positions from explosive entry to SWAT. Boon is coauthor of 13 HOURS: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi. He remained anonymous until just a few months ago while he was actively training others. Tanto and Boon have remained close friends and have worked together for more than 10 years and look forward to working together again at Battleline Tactical as they train people around the country.
ABOUT LEAD INSTRUCTORS:
Among the six security contractors were Kris Paronto and Dave Benton, also known as Tanto and Boon, respectively. They quickly gained fame as national heroes after the media filled our country with the details of the Battle of Benghazi, but they were American heroes long before then. Mr. Paronto and Mr. Benton have diligently served our country for many years and have become some of the most talented, well-crafted fighters and defenders our country has known.
Now that both men are no longer doing government work, they’re using their advanced knowledge and skillsets in combat and weaponry to train others at the company they started called Battleline Tactical. Battleline Tactical is also available for Research and Development consulting for the Defense Industry and also consults for the Movie Industry.
Don’t forget to leave your questions in the comments section below. We’ll ask them during our interview at NRA next week and post the results.
