United States special operations forces

United States Special Operations Forces under United States Special Operations Command are active and reserve component forces of U.S. Military. They are designated by the United States Secretary of Defense, and are specifically trained to conduct operations in an area under enemy or unfriendly control or politically sensitive environments to achieve military, diplomatic, and informational objectives of the United States.

When in the Continental United States (CONUS), most special operations forces (SOF) answer to the administration of their assigned branch of the military.

List of United States Special Operations Forces

Main article: United States Special Operations Command

Special Mission Units (SMUs)

• 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta ("Delta Force/ACE/CAG") (United States Army)
• Intelligence Support Activity ("The Activity") (United States Army)
• United States Naval Special Warfare Development Group ("DEVGRU/SEAL Team Six") (United States Navy)
• 24th Special Tactics Squadron ("24th STS") (United States Air Force)

United States Army

• United States Army Special Forces ("Green Berets")
• 75th Ranger Regiment ("Rangers")
• 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment ("Night Stalkers"/"SOAR")
• 4th Military Information Support Group
• 8th Military Information Support Group
• 95th Civil Affairs Brigade
• 528th Sustainment Brigade

United States Marine Corps

• Marine Special Operations Regiment
• United States Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance

United States Navy

• United States Navy SEALs
• Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen (SWCC)

United States Air Force

• United States Air Force Combat Control Team
• United States Air Force Pararescue
• Air Force Special Operations Weather Technician
• US Air Force Tactical Air Control Party

United States Coast Guard

• Coast Guard Deployable Operations Group

Intelligence Community Special Units

• Special Activities Division (CIA)

Disbanded and inactive units

Main article: Former United States special operations 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.

U.S. special operations centers, schools, and courses

• Joint Special Operations University – Hurlburt Field
• Ranger School – Fort Benning
• Small Unit Ranger Tactics (SURT) – Fort Benning
• Ranger Assessment and Selection Program (RASP 1/ RASP 2) – Fort Benning
• John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School – Fort Bragg
• Naval Special Warfare Center – Coronado, California
• USAF Special Operations School – Hurlburt Field
• Marine Special Operations School – Camp Lejeune
  • Marine Corps Special Operations Training Group
• Marine Corps – Basic Reconnaissance Course (Camp Pendleton, CA)

Commands

• United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM)
  • United States Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC)
  • United States Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC)
  • United States Army Special Operations Command (USASOC)
  • United States Naval Special Warfare Command (SPECWARCOM, NAVSOC, or NSW)

• Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC)
• Special Operations Command South (SOCSOUTH)
• Special Operations Command Korea (SOCKOR)

See also

• List of special forces units
• Counter-insurgency
• Counter-terrorism
• Guerrilla warfare
• Hostage Rescue Team (FBI)
• Light infantry
• Special reconnaissance
• Unconventional warfare
• Urban warfare

References

• United States Department of Defense (5 June 2003). "US DOD Dictionary of Military Terms". United States Department of Defense. United States of America. http://www.dtic.mil/doctrine/jel/doddict/. Retrieved 11 January 2004. 
• United States Department of Defense (5 June 2003). "US DOD Dictionary of Military Terms: Joint Acronyms and Abbreviations". United States Department of Defense. United States of America. http://www.dtic.mil/doctrine/jel/doddict/. Retrieved 11 January 2004. 
• CSM Eric Haney (retired, former Delta Force operator and founding member). Inside Delta Force: The Story of America's Elite Counterterrorist Unit. Delacorte Press. ISBN 0-385-33603-9. 
• Linda Robinson (2004). Masters of Chaos: The Secret History of the Special Forces. PublicAffairs. ISBN 1-58648-249-1. 
• Mark Bowden (1999). Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern Warfare. Atlantic Monthly Press. ISBN 0-87113-738-0. 
• Sean Naylor (2005). Not a Good Day to Die: The Untold Story of Operation Anaconda. The Berkeley Publishing Group. ISBN 0-425-19609-7. 
• "Special Forces Units". http://www.specwarnet.net/sf.htm. Retrieved 8 October 2006. 

External links

• US Special Operation Forces – 2009 SOCOM Factbook
• Special Operations Community Website
• Learning to Fight a War