In 1993, two U.S. Black Hawk helicopters were shot down over Mogadishu, resulting in an 18-hour battle that killed 18 American soldiers and over 300 Somalis

The Netflix docu-series Surviving Black Hawk Down looks at the most devastating moments of the Battle of Mogadishu

Ridley Scott’s 2001 film Black Hawk Down was a technically superb blockbuster bristling with thunderous action sequences and famous actors, though its gung-ho depiction of the heroics of American special forces during the appalling Somalian civil war always felt a little uncomfortable.

Surviving Black Hawk Down tells the famous story of the Battle of Mogadishu, but it only scratches the surface of one of its most important figures.