UNITED STATES SPECIAL OPERATIONS FORCES

The 'United States Special Operations Forces' is the official category which the United States Department of Defense lists the U.S. military units that have a training specialization in unconventional warfare and special operations.
The Department refers to such units (and similar foreign organizations) as Special Operations Forces (SOF).

Contents
General information
List of United States Special Operations Forces
Counter-Terrorist Units
Special Operation Forces
Disbanded or Inactive Units
U.S. Special Operations Centers, Schools, and Courses
Federal Law Enforcement Special Units
Foreign Exchange Units
Australia
Canada
United Kingdom
Germany
Israel
See also
References
External links

General information


While in the continental U.S., most SOF units fall administratively under their assigned branch of the military, but organizationally under U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM). Operational control of deployed units falls under the respective COCOM and its Special Operations Command structure. However, the Secretary of Defense can place all Special Operations Forces, as well as U.S. Navy SEAL units, selected units of the U.S. Air Force, and other units under the direct control of the SOCOM, usually in time of active hostilities.
U.S. SOF units have the same basic role in warfare as the special forces of most other countries, supplying small, elite units that can operate far behind enemy lines on sabotage, reconnaissance, counter-insurgency and other missions. Most have extensive airborne training.

List of United States Special Operations Forces


Counter-Terrorist Units


1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (SFOD-D) "Delta Force" (United States Army)

Navy Special Warfare Development Group "DEVGRU" (United States Navy) (formerly SEAL TEAM 6)

24th Special Tactics Squadron - United States Air Force

Hostage Rescue Team - Federal Bureau of Investigation (responible for domestic counter-terror actions)
Special Operation Forces

United States Army



Intelligence Support Activity (known under various codenames since 1989, including Centra Spike, Torn Victor and Gray Fox) (United States Army)

Special Forces ("Green Berets")

75th Ranger Regiment ("Rangers")

160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) "Night Stalkers" [160th SOAR (A)]

4th Psychological Operations Group (Airborne)

95th Civil Affairs Brigade (Airborne)

United States Navy



SEALs (SEa, Air, Land)

SEAL Delivery Vehicle (SDV) Teams

★ Naval Special Clearance Team

EOD (Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Units)

Harbour Clearance Unit

Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen (SWCC "Swics", Special Boat Teams)

United States Air Force



1st Special Operations Wing which includes


★ 6th Special Operations Squadron - Green Beret equivalent in the Air Force.


★ 4th and 16th Special Operations Squadrons - the only AC-130 Gunship squadrons


★ Various other support aircraft including the CV-22, C-130, MC-130E/H/W, MH-53J/M, UH-1N/H, CN-235-100, An-26, U-28A, CASA 212, MQ-1A/B Predator, and Mi-8.

352d Special Operations Group

353d Special Operations Group

720th Special Tactics Group which includes


Air Force Special Tactics members consisting of all Pararescuemen, Combat Controllers, and Combat Weathermen.

United States Marine Corps



FAST (Fleet Anti-terrorism Security Team)

Marine Force Reconnaissance (Reconnaissance and Direct Action)

MARSOC (United States Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command - Formed from Force Recon units)

Radio Reconnaissance Platoon

United States Coast Guard



Port Security Units (overseas port security for U.S. Navy and allied civilian installations)

Law Enforcement Detachments

Maritime Safety and Security Teams (MSST)

Intelligence Community Special Units



Strategic Support Branch (SSB, DIA)

Special Activities Division (CIA)

Special Collections Service (SCS, joint NSA - CIA)

Proactive and Preemptive Operations Group (P2OG, DoD)
Disbanded or Inactive Units

In the modern U.S. military structure since World War II, dozens of special operations units have been formed and later disbanded. Many were created for a specific, limited objective (such as Task Force 11), or for a specific conflict. In some cases, a special operations unit is reconstituted under a different name, usually for reasons of security, or evolves from a pilot project into a more permanent force. See Former United States special operations units.

U.S. Special Operations Centers, Schools, and Courses



Ranger School and Course - Fort Benning

John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School - Fort Bragg

Marine Corps Combatant Diver Course - Naval Diving and Salvage Training Center

Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL Training - Naval Special Warfare Center

Air Force Special Operations School - Hurlburt Field

Special Missions Training Center (USCG) - Camp Lejeune

Federal Law Enforcement Special Units



Special Response Teams - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Special Operations Group - United States Marshals Service

Hostage Rescue Team - Federal Bureau of Investigation

Mobile Enforcement Teams - Drug Enforcement Administration

Special Response Teams - Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives

Mobile Security Division - Department of State

United States Border Patrol - U.S. Border Patrol

Counter Assault Team - U.S. Secret Service

Foreign Exchange Units


Australia


Australian Special Air Service Regiment
Canada


Joint Task Force 2

Canadian Special Operations Regiment
United Kingdom


Special Air Service

Special Boat Service

Special Reconnaissance Regiment

Special Forces Support Group

Royal Marines

Parachute Regiment
Germany


Kampfschwimmer

KSK (Kommando Spezialkräfte)

Grenzschutzgruppe 9
Israel


Sayeret

Sayeret Matkal

Sayeret Yahalom

Shayetet 13

See also



United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM)

Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC)

List of special forces units

References



US DOD Dictionary of Military Terms USDOD

US DOD Dictionary of Military Terms: Joint Acronyms and Abbreviations USDOD

Inside Delta Force: The Story of America's Elite Counterterrorist Unit, CSM Eric Haney (retired, former Delta Force operator and founding member, , , Delacorte Press, , ISBN 0-385-33603-9

Masters of Chaos: The Secret History of the Special Forces, Linda Robinson, , , PublicAffairs, , ISBN 1-58648-249-1

Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern Warfare, Mark Bowden, , , Atlantic Monthly Press, , ISBN 0-87113-738-0

Not a Good Day to Die : The Untold Story of Operation Anaconda, Sean Naylor, , , The Berkeley Publishing Group, , ISBN 0-425-19609-7

United States Special Operations

Special Forces Units

External links



[1] Special Operations Community Website

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