Military Channel's SHARKS OF STEEL WEEK Chomps Down on the Competition

Trailing Shark Week with the best in stealth technology, Military Channel's SHARKS OF STEEL WEEK bubbles up seven days of submarine-themed programming that will have viewers training their periscopes on the television screen from Monday, August 8 to Friday, August 12.

In addition to a nightly lineup of special programming, SHARKS OF STEEL WEEK features the series premiere of PERISHER: DO OR DIE on Thursday, August 11 at 10 PM ET. Concluding the week is the U-Boat classic film MCKENZIE BREAK as part of Military Channel's AN OFFICER AND A MOVIE series helmed by Lou Diamond Phillips on Friday, August 12 at 8 PM ET.

ABOUT Perisher: Do or Die

New Episodes Premiere Thursdays at 10 PM (ET)

Being a submarine captain is a prestigious job that comes with good pay, heroism, anything but a dull moment, and a requirement of passing the ultimate test: a six-month long job interview from hell that culminates with four weeks of intense, sleep-deprived, non-stop naval warfare inside a nuclear attack submarine in the treacherous waters off Western Scotland.

In this docu-series, The Gamma Project embeds inside the world's toughest officer cut-down experience, the Royal Navy's Perisher It's the oldest, most highly esteemed and brutal naval experience on the planet. This year, five of the UK and USA's finest young officers have put their careers on the line to take part. The high flyers risk all to win the right to command a nuclear submarine, because Perisher is do or die for a candidate's naval career.

For four weeks they face 18-hour-daya of tests, drills and full-force warfare as thirty NATO ships, dozens of helicopters, fixed wing aircraft, and special operations troops line up to fight both with and against them. The candidates are pushed to their breaking points as they're put through every possible worst case scenario in an effort to become the next Perisher recruit.

For Your Eyes Only Premieres Thursday, August 11 at 10 PM ET

Meet the five young officers who are taking part in the Perisher Course as they begin the all-important sea phase. Four from the Royal Navy and one American from the US Navy who regular send one of their top officers on the course. Straight into the deep end they go as they face Eyes Only, one of the toughest training exercises ever devised. Using only a periscope and a stopwatch, they must play chicken with charging warships.

Lurking in the Shallows Premieres Thursday, August 18 at 10 PM ET

The five Perisher students take on a new challenge that is a crucial part of modern submarine operations. They'll be sneaking around in dangerously shallow waters conducting reconnaissance missions and dropping sensors across the mouths of harbors. The pressure ramps up even higher on the final day when a group of military top brass come onboard to gauge their progress, including two of Britain's highest ranking submariners who waste no time throwing spanners into the works. For one student the pressure gets too much and five Perishers are reduced to four.

Total War Premieres Thursday, August 25 at 10 PM ET

Three of the four remaining Perisher students face a new scenario as they take part in one of NATO's largest naval exercises, Joint Warrior, off the West coast of Scotland. Working under orders from flagship Ark Royal, the students must command HMS Triumph as she takes on deadly opponents in a series of classic sub-versus-sub duels. Then, the candidates put their pride on the line when they battle friends stationed on the HMS Turbulent, an almost identical Royal Navy submarine.

The Final Reckoning Premieres Thursday, September 1 at 10 PM ET

It's the final countdown as the remaining students face the toughest tests yet in their bid to become qualified commanders of their own nuclear submarine. Past precedent indicates that at least one student will fail at this final hurdle. Intense drama unfolds until the final moments of their test, when teacher Jim Perks makes his final decision and reveals who has passed the extraordinary challenge of the Perisher Course.