In 1973, he joined the U.S. Merchant Marine Military Sealift Command, beginning a series of adventures that would later appear in his non-fiction pieces and fictional works. In 1977, he volunteered for the Israel Defense Forces Airborne Corps, serving first as a paratrooper and later in a Special Operations branch of Israeli Military Intelligence. He subsequently spent 13 more years as a reservist in the IDF, and currently serves as an officer in the New York Guard.He is the former Editor-In-Chief of Special Operations Report, a professional journal on military and law enforcement special tactics. His works are recommended readings by the U.S. Army War College.