CNN) -- In the end, it was a single moment that brought the hostage crisis to its dramatic finish.
Three gunshots. All three fatal. Fired in the dark by three specially trained U.S. Navy SEALs as the pirates' boat rocked in the water off Somalia.
"Phenomenal shots -- 75 feet away," said Navy Vice Adm. Bill Gortney, who oversees the region.
A senior defense official told CNN that each was a shot to the head.
