Rangers vs Special Forces: Hostage Rescue

A prospective client asked me all about scenarios involving airfield takedowns - all the who-where-what-why-when's & how many's . . . I told her it all depends on so many factors & variables, to include what kind of troops available . . . this led to a conversation regarding the difference between Rangers and Special Forces, and so I shared with her the following parable from the ancient sagas of US Army Special Operations . . . S.L.

The Chief of Staff of the Army asked his Sergeant Major - who was both Ranger and Special Forces qualified - which organization he would recommend to form a new anti-terrorist unit. The Sergeant Major responded to the General's question with this parable: If there were a hijacked Boeing 747 being held by terrorists along with its passengers and crew and an anti-terrorist unit formed either by the Rangers or the Special Forces was given a Rescue/Recovery Mission; what would you expect to happen?

Ranger Option

Forces/Equipment Committed: If the Rangers went in, they would send a Ranger company of 120 men with standard army issue equipment.

Mission Preparation: The Ranger Company First Sergeant would conduct a Hair Cut and Boots Inspection, while the officers consulted SOPs and held sand table exercises.

Infiltration Technique: They would insist on double timing, in company formation, wearing their combat equipment, and singing cadence all the way to the site of the hijacked aircraft.

Actions in the Objective Area: Once they arrived, the Ranger company would establish their ORP, put out security elements, conduct a leaders recon, reapply their camouflage, and conduct final preparations for Actions on the OBJ.

Results of Operation: The Rescue/Recovery Operation would be completed within one hour; all of the terrorists and most of the passengers would have been killed, the Rangers would have sustained light casualties and the 747 would be worthless to anyone except a scrap dealer.

Special Forces Option

Forces/Equipment Committed: If Special Forces went in, they would send only a 12 man team (all SF units are divisible by 12 for some arcane historical reason) however, due to the exotic nature of their equipment the SF Team would cost the same amount to deploy as the Ranger Company.

Mission Preparation: The SF Team Sergeant would request relaxed grooming standards for the team. All members of the team would spend a grueling afternoon at a quality spa ensuring physical abilities would be honed.

Infiltration Technique: The team would insist on separate travel orders with Max Per Diem, and each would get to the site of the hijacking by his own means. At least one third of the team would insist on jumping in HALO.

Actions in the Objective Area: Once they arrived , the SF Team would cache their military uniforms, establish a Team Room at the best hotel in the area, use their illegal Team Fund to stock the unauthorized Team Room Bar, check out the situation by talking to the locals, and have a Team Meeting to discuss the merits of the terrorists' cause.

Results of Operation: The Rescue/Recovery Operation would take two weeks to complete and by that time all of the terrorists would have been killed, (and would have left signed confessions); the passengers would be ruined psychologically for the remainder of their lives; and all of the women passengers would be pregnant. The 747 would be essentially unharmed, the team would have taken no casualties but would have used up, lost, or stolen all the "high speed" equipment issued to them.

STORMBRINGER SENDS

A WORTHY CAUSE

Junior's Bullet Pens - proceeds go to families of fallen military & wounded disabled veterans.

Junior’s Bullet Pen Company is dedicated to one of our fallen heroes, Staff Sergeant Chris Falkel, KIA, of the 3d Special Forces Group.

I met Chris's Dad this week at Fort Bragg, and he told me the story of his son, and the Bullet Pens.

SSG Chris "Junior" Falkel was weapons sergeant Operational Detachment "Alpha" 316. Between 7–9 August, 2005, Chris and his Special Forces team were involved in a 54 hour battle “that will live in the annals of Special Forces history. On the evening of 8 August 2005, Chris paid the ultimate price and died saving the lives of his team and 16 members of the Afghan National Army attached to ODA 316. SSG Chris Falkel was awarded the Silver Star for his bravery and heroism.

In early 2005, Chris attended Special Operations Target Interdiction Course – SOTIC - the Special Forces sniper school. After he graduated, Chris shared with his Dad the concept of making pens out of 7.62 NATO shell casings - the round used in US sniper rifles. Unfortunately, he never got the chance to make a bullet pen because shortly thereafter Chris deployed to Afghanistan for his fateful Rendezvous With Destiny.

Chris's Dad thought about Chris’ dream of making a “bullet pen” for a couple of years, and ultimately Junior’s Bullet Pen Company was created. These pens are dedicated to his son.

Most of the brass used to make Junior’s Bullet Pens is once-fired military brass.

Junior’s Bullet Pen Company is Veteran owned. Foundations supported by Junior's Bullet Pens include:

Special Operations Warrior Foundation

Task Force Dagger Foundation

Fallen Heroes Project

Operation Shower

Green Beret Foundation

AmericanSnipers.org

Remembering The Brave

Worldwide Rangers Inc.


When you buy a Bullet Pen, you help support a U.S. veteran and/or his or her family. If you are a veteran, you have just supported yourself.

- STORMBRINGER SENDS

PHOENIX

Meet Demon, the Phoenix Bird of Pineland:

Demon is the mascot of my buddy JD's guerrilla unit. As a part of Exercise Robin Sage, JD provides training to Special Forces candidates by a combination of of challenging dilemmas and psychological cruelty.


Pineland:

The Special Forces Qualification Course ("Q-Course") is culminated by Operation ROBIN SAGE, a 4 week long large-scale unconventional warfare exercise conducted by the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center at Fort Bragg, North Carolina and over 50,000 square miles of North Carolina. For more than half a century, around a third of North Carolina has served as the fictional "People's Republic of Pineland" for the 28-day exercise which culminates in the 19-day Robin Sage. During this unconventional warfare training exercise, the Special Forces students are required to apply and exercise the skills taught in the Special Forces Qualification Course.

The 15 counties of North Carolina that make up the People's Republic of Pineland include: Alamance, Anson, Cabarrus, Chatham, Davidson, Davie, Guilford, Hoke, Montgomery, Moore, Randolph, Richmond, Rowan, Scotland, Stanly and Union.


The students are put into 12-man Operational Detachments 'Alpha', (ODA's). Students are isolated for 5 days and issued an operations order. They begin their planning process and study material required to execute their detachment's mission during the exercise.

On the last day of isolation the detachment presents its plan to the battalion command and staff. This plan will explain how the commander intends to execute the mission. The next day, the students make an airborne infiltration into the country of Pineland. They then make contact with the guerrilla forces and begin Robin Sage. Students will then begin their task of training, advising, and assisting the guerrillas. The training will educate the guerrillas in various specialties, including weapons, communications, medical, and demolitions. The training is designed to enable the guerrillas to begin liberating their country from oppression. It is the last portion of the Special Forces Qualification Course before they receive their "Green Berets".

ROBIN SAGE involves approximately 100 Special Forces students, 100 counter-insurgent personnel (OPFOR), 200 guerrilla personnel, 40 auxiliary personnel, and 50 cadre. The local communities of North Carolina also participate in the exercise by role playing as citizens of Pineland. Many of the OPFOR and guerrilla personnel are North Carolina residents who are financially compensated for their participation. The role of the guerrilla chief, or "G-Chief," is played by a retired Green Beret.

Bob Snyder, also known as Pineland Bob, right, maps out a transportation plan with a soldier during the Special Forces' Robin Sage exercise in Ramseur, N.C.

There is nothing like Exercise Robin Sage - on such a scale at least - in any other military organization in the world. Since my retirement from active duty I have been involved in two major corporate security organizations, working side-by-side with fellow Special Forces veterans, and the principles and truisms of guerrilla warfare learned in Robin Sage are constantly referenced. The corporate suits in the boardrooms are never able to outflank us with their office politics and agendas. We know the battle before it is fought; if we can prevail, we engage and overcome. If there is no tactical victory to be achieved; combat is declined.

The SEALs and the MARSOF are trying to replicate Robin Sage; my advice to them is why re-invent the wheel? Come over to the Dark Side - Pineland already exists - use the existing training lanes and G-networks that are already in place; there's plenty of contractors coming back from the Sandpile who are willing to plus-up the cadre.

The Anthem of Pineland is as follows:

This is the Land of the of the Tall Pine Tree

Where All of Us used to Live so Free

THIS IS PINELAND

A Place to Live and a Place to Play

But the UPA took it All away

THIS IS PINELAND

A Place where We are all Free to Work Together

Where our Crops can Grow and the Sun will Shine Forever

A Beautiful Land with Much to Give

This is where We'll Always Live

THIS IS PINELAND

ZIGGY ZOGGY ZIGGY ZOGGY OY! OY! OY!

ZIGGY ZOGGY ZIGGY ZOGGY OY! OY! OY!

ZIGGY ZOGGY ZIGGY ZOGGY OY! OY! OY!

PINELAND! PINELAND! PINELAND!

Speaking of Birds, today's Mystery Bird is HERE

THE GREEN BERETS of OPERATIONAL DETACHMENT "ALPHA" 574

Episode 3: "The Sacrifice"

On November 14, 2001, U.S. Army Special Forces Operational Detachment "Alpha" 574 - an "A" team of Green Berets known as ODA 574 - infiltrated the mountains of southern Afghanistan to carry out a tribal revolt against the Taliban




Learn more about ODA 574 in The Only Thing Worth Dying For by Eric Blehm and look for the fourth installment of this incredible story in September


This is a fitting lead up to the observances of the tenth anniversary of 9/11 - it was my intent to make a special presentation dedicated to a friend and colleague who paid the ultimate price, but I'm on the road for the next two weeks and circumstances probably won't allow for much posting if any at all. The NRA's excellent Life of Duty presentation is a fitting tribute to all who have served and especially those who sacrificed everything - over there on distant dusty battlefields and here at home on the battlefields of that terrible day at Ground Zero in Manhattan, the Pentagon in Northern Virginia, and an otherwise nondescript field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania which marks the spot where our side first fought back against the terrorist enemy. Let us never forget all of those who have given everything in this struggle against barbarism. - S. L.

INSIDE THE GREEN BERETS - OPERATIONAL DETACHMENT "ALPHA" 574

MSG Jefferson D. Davis, SFC Daniel H. Petithory and SSG Brian C. Prosser of 5th Special Forces Group were Killed In Action on December 5, 2001 in the B-52 J-DAM fratricide incident.

ODA 574 was a part of 3d Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group. I say was because since 574 performed their heroic work in the winter and spring of 01-02, US Army Special Forces has gone to a four-digit designation system for the ODAs. 574's goal was to set the condition for a democratic government in Afghanistan to replace the insurgent Taliban rulers. Jason Amerine was the Detachment Commander, but as everyone knows Army Special Forces is run by the NCOs, and in many cases the Captain is just along for the ride. (This is not to disparage Amerine - he was an effective leader and was decorated after participating in several battles of the Invasion of Afghanistan.)

Codenamed "Texas 12" (Texas One-Two), the detachment's goal was to set up a new government in Afghanistan. The group was made up of 12 Americans under command of Captain Jason Amerine. They worked side-by-side with the anti-Taliban militia led by Hamid Karzai, who planned to take the Islamic spiritual center of Kandahar. The key to the province was the town of Tarin Kowt. The civilians of the town overthrew the Taliban governor, so Karzai and Amerince planned to defend it. The 12 Americans of Operational Detachment Alpha 574 and 35 Afghans defended Tarin Kowt from 100 Taliban trucks carrying 1,000 insurgents. The town was successfully defended by the brave troops of Alpha 574 as well as the Afghan freedom-fighters, who drove back the Taliban. Fighting again along the Arghandab River, Alpha 574 defeated the Talibans at Shawali Kowt and Sayyd Alma Kalay. These victories were the key to the Kandahar Campaign, ending when Kandahar fell to US Marines. When Kandahar fell, Karzai became the interim president of Afghanistan, so Alpha 574's mission was complete.


A charter member of Team STORMBRINGER found the following on Blackfive



I found it very interesting, and there are a whole series of them to be seen so get over to Blackfive and enjoy!

Take care and have a nice weekend - more to follow so y'all come back now . . .

- S. L.

EX-SPECIAL FORCES MEMBERS DROP IN

This is my old outfit . . . of course, I wasn't in Vietnam, and I didn't do what these guys did. They are the type of heroes who were still serving as Platoon Sergeants, First Sergeants when I was a private. When I got to Special Forces, they were the Team Sergeants, Sergeants-Major, and crusty old Warrant Officers - S.L.


by Nick Stubbs
MacDill AFB Thunderbolt

6/23/2011 - MacDill Air Force Base, Fla. - In the steamy jungles of Vietnam in 1957, nearly eight years before America began major combat operations there, members of the U.S. Army's 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) were in country, advising and training indigenous warriors.

It was all on the down-low, as were all missions until the end of the war. Secrecy is stock and trade of the Green Berets, after all.

Flags proudly wave over the United States Special Operations Command Memorial Plaza during a memorial service in which members of the 1st Special Forces Group Reunion honored their fallen comrades, at MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., June 20, 2011. The memorial service included a moment of silence and a tribute to fallen members of 1st Special Forces Group from Viet Nam through Operation Enduring Freedom (Philippines and Afghanistan) and Operation Iraqi Freedom. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Basic David Tracy)

But it was no secret in Tampa this week when some 200 veterans of the famous unit gathered for a ceremony at U.S. Special Operations Command at MacDill Air Force Base Monday. Arriving in town over the weekend, the group of old soldiers staged at the DoubleTree Hotel at Rocky Point. It was a time to remember, laugh and shed a tear or more for those who were lost.

Formed at Camp Drake, Japan, June 24, 1957, 1st SFG served in the Pacific region and provided some of the first American military members to serve in Vietnam. It wouldn't be until 1965 when major combat operations would begin, sending many members of the 1st on very dangerous missions well behind enemy lines.

How far behind lines?

"We were the front line - sometimes 70 miles behind what they called the front line," said retired Master Sgt. David Kauhaahna, who joked that his special forces code name is "Brother K."

Retired Lt. Col. Keith Walter, Lt. Col. Jim Bean and Retired Sgt. Maj. Russ McDaniel, members of the United States Special Operations Command Parachute Team, The Para-Commandos, descend toward the 1st Special Forces Group Reunion memorial service. Sergeant Major McDaniel flew the POW/MIA flag behind him during the descent which was presented to former prisoner of war Isaac “Ike” Camacho. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Basic David Tracy)


He arrived in country November of 1965, and served in Laos among other places. Like most others of the 1st, he operated in small units, usually just six men. Three of them might be indigenous Montagnards, or mountain people who earned a reputation as some of the toughest warriors and expert jungle guides in the country.

Being so far behind lines, and with support far away, there was always the risk of not making it through any mission.

"Lots," said Sergeant Kauhaahna of close brushes he had with death. "Lots of times."
One sticks out in his memory.

"We were surrounded by enemy, and they had set the elephant grass on fire and it was closing in on us," he recalled. "We thought that was it for us, but helicopters got there just in time to pull us out; we would have been slaughtered."

Isaac "Ike" Camacho, Vietnam POW that escaped from his capture, receives a POW/MIA flag from Command Sgt. Maj. Thomas Smith, United States Special Operations Command, during the 1st Special Operation Group annual reunion at MacDill Air Force Base, June 20, 2011


Close calls were part of the job, said retired Sgt. Major Billy Waugh, who served just shy of eight years in Vietnam, and has a Purple Heart for all eight (along with a Legion of Merit, a Silver Star and four Bronze Stars).

"A lot of what we were doing was directing air strikes (targeting and surveillance as members of the Studies and Observation Group)," said Sergeant Waugh, who recalled that the U.S. Air Force fighters and bombers evolved into being "very effective" at tactical air strikes during his years of service. "They took a little while to get the hang of it, but once they did, they did a heck of job."

When not performing SOG duties, "Our job was to kill and destroy," said Sergeant Waugh.

Members of the 1st were invaluable to downed pilots in need of rescue behind enemy lines.

"We were the only guys there, so we did the job," said Sergeant Waugh.

The memories fill volumes, and are only outnumbered by the close kinships members of the historical group share, said Sergeant Waugh, which is why the reunions are regularly held. This year's event marks the first in Tampa, and a special one in that it was in the same town as MacDill Air Force Base and SOCOM.

"We are glad we could gather here this time," Sergeant Waugh said. "It's a sort of coming together."

Today's Bird HERE


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ORIGINS OF THE GREEN BERET

I was recently asked:  

Which is "proper" or preferred by these men when referring to them, "Green Beret" or "Special Forces"?

It is a very insightful question, and the answer is long & complex. Each one of the following paragraphs is the subject of at least a chapter-long essay; but it is my tribe, and I am the teller of the tale, so here goes:

As I recall, the "Green Berets" label became popular during the sixties, with the song, the book and the movie:

The green beret itself, as a piece of headgear for elite forces, dates to WWII and the French Underground. The Royal Marine Commandos were already wearing it, and it was picked up by the OSS Jedburghs (direct predecessors of modern day US Army Special Forces).

45 Royal Marine Commando, WWII

I don’t know exactly when French Foreign Legion paratroopers started wearing green berets - sometime after WWII when they acquired Airborne capability within the French forces, and before Dien Bien Phu - where they wore the green beret in combat.

Foreign Legion Soldiers in Algiers, 1957

Beret of the 2° Regt Etrangere Parachutiste (French Foreign Legion)

Early U.S. Army Special Forces in Europe adopted the beret as an unofficial headgear, worn only in the field. By the time of General William Yarborough’s famous First Formation in front of John F. Kennedy the beret was being worn openly (and unofficially) on post at Fort Bragg by Special Forces personnel.

President Kennedy granted official recognition & Presidential award of the headgear.

Then came the song, the book, and the movie, and from that point we were designated “Green Berets” in the popular lexicon.





Then something happened in the late 70s / early 80s. Everyone knows the Army can ruin a wet dream. The beret was officially sanctioned by no less than Presidential Executive Order, and so the Army, in it’s wisdom, determined that EVERYONE assigned to a Special Forces unit should wear the uniform (to include distinctive headgear) of that unit. Hence the phenomenon of pregnant female office clerks seen walking around Fort Bragg wearing green berets.

This sacrilege was finally put to rest when Special Forces became it’s own branch, MOS; 18-series Career Management Field. Nowadays only Special Forces qualified personnel wear the green beret; non-SF qual’d personnel assigned to Special Forces wear maroon berets (indicating airborne unit status).

For the longest time during the 70s and 80s it was almost taboo amongst Special Forces soldiers to refer to ourselves as “Green Berets”. This was how Hollywood described us, and of course there was that whole thing about the pregnant personnel clerk walking around the PX at Bragg wearing a green beret. We were and ARE Special Forces soldiers. Likewise, there is no such thing as “Navy Special Forces” or “Air Force Special Forces”. These units are designated “Special Operations Forces” (SEALs are Navy SOF, Para-Rescue are AF SOF, etc) to differentiate from the “Special Forces” designation, which has belonged to the Army since World War II.

World War II-era jump wings of the OSS (Office of Special Services)
"Special Forces"

Nowadays however a certain pride and ownership has come of the label “Green Beret” and we once again refer to ourselves as “The Green Berets”. You will see it on web sites, chatrooms, certain YouTube clips, etc. We are still not quite yet comfortable with the monicker, given the Hollywood over-usage in the past, but I have heard the term used even in Tactical Operations Centers (TOCs) and Joint Operations Centers (JOCs) by Special Forces soldiers, when discussing order of battle, to differentiate between Special Forces soldiers out there on the battlefield and other Special Operations Soldiers (Rangers are Army SOF, Marine Force Recon are MARSOF, etc).

Of course, I am (semi) retired now – I refer to myself as EX-Special Forces (“ex;” being Latin for “out of”) but NEVER “former” Special Forces; on the grounds that there is no such thing as a “former” Special Forces soldier (with the possible exception of the guys drummed out in disgrace – I’ve seen a few of those). I work and hang out with a number of colleagues from my former life, and recently a retired Sergeant Major said to me (in front of everyone), “You’re a Green Beret, Linnane – get yerself out there and KICK SOME ASS ! ! !”


Hope this answers your question for now . . . SEAN LINNANE SENDS



Today's Bird HERE


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SPECIAL FORCES SERGEANTS MAJOR DON GREEN BERET ONE LAST TIME

By Master Sgt. Donald Sparks, Special Operations Command, Europe

Feb 8, 2010

Photo credit Master Sgt. Donald Sparks

Sergeants Major Brian Bushong (left), and Larry Reeb, 1st Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne), listen to Barry Sadler’s ‘Ballad of the Green Beret’ during their retirement ceremony January 21.


STUTTGART, Germany - Twenty-five years ago, two men joined the Army one week apart at different locations. Nineteen years ago, they both became Special Forces sergeants. Earlier this year, they finished their careers together as brothers-in-arms and leaders in the SF community.

Sgts. Maj. Brian Bushong and Larry Reeb bid farewell to their fellow Green Beret brethren of 1st Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) during a retirement ceremony held Jan. 21 in Panzer Hall.

Maj. Gen. Michael S. Repass, commander, U.S. Army Special Forces Command (Airborne), praised the two warriors for their distinguished service.

"When you joined the Army, you were given a check to serve, to go in harm's way and to do the nation's business," Repass said. "You've cashed in with your service and commitment to our nation."

Bushong, a former anti-tank gunner, decided to become a Special Forces Soldier because he wanted more of a challenge and also because he was inspired by members of his family who served honorably in World War II and the Korean War.

"My father shared his experiences of combat from his time in Korea," said Bushong. "The heroes who served as part of the 'Greatest Generation' were my uncles, and they inspired me."

Reeb, who described himself as, "nothing more than a poor son of a mountain man from Kentucky," originally joined the Army as a crew chief on a UH-60 helicopter. In 1987, during a support mission in Beirut, his bird hauled a Special Forces team to a location and he said, "I want to be one of them.

"I could tell they were a tight, focused, camaraderie team and that appealed to me," he added. He earned his green beret in 1991 as well, and became a Special Forces communications sergeant.

Both men recalled their many operational contributions to missions all over the world.

Bushong took part in Operation Assured Response in 1996, evacuating nearly 1,000 Americans and embassy personnel from Monrovia, Liberia.

"It was a very hostile environment," he said. "Normally, we don't get to do missions for our own people, but having the opportunity to protect our own citizens and protecting their lives meant a lot to me. I still have a sense of satisfaction from what we did."

Reeb mentioned that the personal highlight of his career was deploying with his company to Afghanistan and returning from deployment with all of his men. Ten of his Soldiers earned Purple Hearts during their tour of duty.

"I went out on every mission with those men," Reeb said. "As a company sergeant major, I can truly say those men motivated me."

At the end of the ceremony, both men faced the next generation of warriors who proudly wear the green beret, while listening to the Ballad of the Green Beret echoing throughout the center.

"We all have that certain kind of DNA," Bushong said of Special Forces Soldiers, with a grin. "It's no coincidence of who we are and what we do."



I served with both these men - they are both honorable and worthy, and I'm glad to see they made it to Sergeant Major. One thing I will tell you is that Reeb character scared me more than any bad guy I ever faced down - he's that crazy and I say that in a good way - and that's the God's Honest Truth.

SEAN LINNANE SENDS


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HANGING OUT WITH BUDDHA

"Thus ended my airborne career . . ."







. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . STORMBRINGER

.

I GET THE WEIRDEST EMAILs . . .

I kid you not, this came in the Sean Linnane Inbox . . .


We are looking for someone to get the children ready in the morning, prepare and clear up the family's breakfast, make the beds, and take the children to school, which is about a 1.5km walk away. The Au pair would then need to pick them up at 3.20 and look after them until we get home. We will ask the Nursing assistance/Au pair to babysit 1-2 evenings a week.


There is a cleaner, so there wouldn't be any heavy housework; a bit of light cleaning and laundry which would take about 90 minutes a day in total. There would be plenty of time free in the day to go to language school, and there are a lot of good ones in the area.

The Nursing assistance/Au pair would have her own room, which is huge, and has a double bed, with sitting area and TV/DVD/Video/Hi-Fi. There is wireless broadband internet in the house.


Working hours: 0730 to 0900 and 1520 to 1930 plus about 60-90 minutes of housework a day to fit in with the Au pair's schedule. 25-30 hours a week.

Benefit: 1400 Pounds every four weeks plus a pocket money of 300 Pounds per week for the buying of some things for your self and I will also be responsible for some of the funds for your traveling documents.

Send your resume to _____________@gmail.com



Okay, lets see if they like what I have to offer here:


Twenty-five years US Army, served on Special Forces Operational Detachments ‘Alpha’ (SFODA's) as Senior Engineer Sergeant, Intelligence and Assistant Operations NCO, and Operations Sergeant (Team Sergeant).


QUALIFICATIONS:

18C Special Forces Engineer (Demolitions), SFARTAEC (Breacher)




Special Forces Combat Diver, USMC Combatives Instructor, US Army Jumpmaster.


Extensive operational experience, languages include French, Spanish, Thai and a working knowledge of Arabic.

Instructor, Survival/Evasion/Resistance/Escape (SERE) Level C, US Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center & School, Ft. Bragg NC.




Trained US and foreign Special Forces in tactics, marksmanship & Close Quarter Battle (CQB)

Rifle Expert, Pistol Expert, passed Army Physical Fitness Test. Current Security Clearance.

EDUCATION: Bachelor of Science (cum laude)


ABOUT MYSELF:

As a Special Forces Engineer, I can "change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, con a ship, operate and pull maintenance on any kind of vehicle . . .




. . . design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently and die gallantly."



Let's see . . . 2600 Pounds = 4,270.86 USD a month . . . hmmm . . .

. . . I dunno . . . sounds like an awful lot of work for that kind of scratch . . .






. . . S.L.

FIRST SPECIAL FORCES GROUP

Beret flash and crest of First Special Forces Group (Airborne). The yellow denotes "Asian Gold", the black border was added to mourn the death of President John F. Kennedy, who officially recognized the Green Beret as unit distinctive headgear.





The First Special Forces Group (Airborne) was activated 20 July 1942 at Helena, Montana as Second Company, 1st Battalion, 1st Regiment, First Special Service Force. This joint Canada-American unit, known as the “Devil’s Brigade”, was intensively trained in airborne, amphibious, winter, and mountain warfare.
The soldiers of the 1st SFF distinguished themselves through daring and successful raids in both the Pacific and Mediterranean Theaters.
The Force incurred so many casualties that it became ineffective as a combat formation, and was disbanded 6 January 1945 at Menton, France.






Although not recognized in Army lineage, Detachment 101 of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) is also considered a predecessor of 1st Special Forces Group. This unit raised and led a guerrilla force known as the “Kachin Rangers” which wrought havoc behind Japanese lines in Southeast Asia during World War II.

The modern 1st Special Forces Group was activated 24 June 1957 and stationed at Fort Buckner, Okinawa. For the next seventeen years, the Group carried out a variety of missions in the Asia-Pacific region, including civic action, foreign internal defense, counterinsurgency, reconnaissance, and disaster relief. (right) 1st SFGA Beret flash & crest, 1961-63

1st Special Forces Group saw extensive combat service in Vietnam, as well as in Laos and Thailand. Soldiers from 1st SFGA earned 296 awards for valor in Southeast Asia, and the Group was awarded the Meritorious Unit Citation. These honors were earned at a heavy price: 45 soldiers of the 1st SFGA were killed in Southeast Asia, 293 were wounded, and one remains missing in action.

1st Special Forces Group fought natural disasters as well as the enemy; teams deployed to the Philippines in 1972 and Pakistan in 1973 to provide disaster relief for victims of floods and famine. For this humanitarian service, 1st SFGA received the Philippines Presidential Unit Citation.

1st Special Forces Group was inactivated 28 June 1974 as part of a general reduction in Special Forces strength. Ten years later, recognizing the critical role that Special Forces performs in both peace and war, the Army re-activated 1st Special Forces Group. On 2 March 1984, 1st Battalion was organized at Fort Bragg, NC and posted to Torii Station, Okinawa Japan. The Group Headquarters, 2nd and 3rd Battalions were reactivated at Fort Lewis WA on 4 September 1984.

Special Forces Detachment Korea was assigned to 1st Special Forces Group in 1986.

1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) has served in peacetime and in war throughout Asia and the Pacific basin. Since the events of September 11th 2001, 1st Special Forces Group has participated in combat operations in Afghanistan, Iraq and the Philippines. The first American to die at the hands of the enemy in Vietnam, Captain Harry Cramer, KIA 21 October 1957, and the first U.S. soldier to die by hostile fire in Afghanistan, Sergeant First Class Nathan Chapman, KIA 4 January 2002, were both 1st SFGA soldiers.


To date, eleven 1st Group soldiers have given their lives in the Global War on Terror.

The battalion trains in many countries throughout the Pacific Area Of Responsibility (AOR). Performing their doctrinal mission of foreign internal defense, 10-12 man Special Forces teams train host nation forces in small unit tactics, individual specialty skills, leadership, human rights, and infiltration techniques. 1st Battalion also teaches foreign militaries' humanitarian demining, showing them how to render the areas safe for local civilians. Other subjects include counter-drug operations in coordination with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and Joint Interagency Task Force-West, and humanitarian assistance including disaster relief.

By working within local customs and taboos, and by using the indigenous language, Special Forces soldiers provide Special Operations Command Pacific (SOCPAC) a low visibility and credible engagement force. The quiet professionals of 1st Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group, with their diverse skills and robust quick response capability, earned the motto "First In Asia."

Given the maritime nature throughout their Area of Operations and Responsibility (AOR), 1st Group SF teams are proficient at maritime operations; surface & sub-surface swimmer infil supported by Zodiac boats and kayaks launched from "mother-ships", submarine lock-out, ramp-launched from MH-47 or MH-53 Special Operations helicopters, or even via parachute from MC-130 aircraft. The teams also practice fast-rope insertion techniques and military free-fall HALO (High-Altitude, Low-Opening) parachuting. The latter allows them to leave the aircraft at 25,000 feet and land within 75 feet of their objectives.

The twin Torii Gates at the front gate of Torii Station, Okinawa.

Somewhere in Pyongyang is a desk drawer filled with photographs of me flipping the bird at the guy who used to stand across the street in front of the Royal Hotel (posing as a Japanese tourist) and take our pictures as we drove out these gates.



This post is a part of an on-going series on the History of US Army Special Forces - S.L.

I HOPE SO . . .

CIA Had Plan to Assassinate Qaeda Leaders - NY Times



"Since 2001, the Central Intelligence Agency developed plans to dispatch small teams overseas to kill senior Qaeda terrorists, according to current and former government officials"

. . . for some incredible reason we're told the plan was never carried out!

The concept seems to have gotten mired down in organizational CYA overkill:

"Officials at the spy agency over the years ran into myriad logistical, legal and diplomatic obstacles. How could the role of the United States be masked? Should allies be informed and might they block the access of the C.I.A. teams to their targets? What if American officers or their foreign surrogates were caught in the midst of an operation? Would such activities violate international law or American restrictions on assassinations overseas?"

HEY! Earth to Langley, VA: SINCE WHEN DID WE START GIVING A RAT's *SS ABOUT BUNCH OF INTERNATIONAL LAWYERS ? ! ? ! ? ! We're at WAR here, RIGHT? US targeted killings of Al Qaeda terrorists is a legal act of self defense, point blank and simple - I mean, if it's OK to launch Hellfire missiles off Predator drones into multi-family dwellings in remote corners of Pakistan, what on Earth is wrong with taking out your targets with surgical precision?

OK - Problem identified; allow me to suggest a solution:

You throw enough money out there to hire a dedicated group of pissed-off ex-Green Berets like myself, and finance our operations. We know how to plan long-term operations, we speak foreign languages, we know how to live incognito overseas, and we have a certain motto when it comes to this sort of thing: "If it bleeds, you can kill it." We'll get the job done.

For planning guidance, check out GENERAL PATTON'S MAXIMS. Here are a few to consider:

o A good solution applied with vigor now is better than a perfect solution applied ten minutes later.

o Take calculated risks.

o Do not fear failure.

o In case of doubt, attack.

o No one is thinking if everyone is thinking alike.

o The only thing to do when a son-of-a-bitch looks cross-eyed at you is to beat the hell out of him right then and there.

And there's this beauty, of course:

o No good decision was ever made in a swivel chair.

CAPTURED

Katie Couric, Charlie Gibson, Brian Williams and a crusty old Army Special Forces Team Sergeant were captured by terrorists in Iraq. The leader of the terrorists told them he'd grant each of them one last request before they were beheaded and dragged through the streets.

Katie Couric said, "Well, I'm a Southerner, so I'd like one last plate of fried chicken." The leader nodded to an underling who left and returned with the chicken. Couric ate it all and said, "Now I can die content."

Charlie Gibson said, "I live in New York, so I'd like to hear the song 'The Moon and Me' one last time." The terrorists' leader nodded to another terrorist who had studied the Western world and knew the music. He returned with some rag-tag musicians and played the song. Gibson was satisfied.

Brian Williams said, "I'm a reporter to the end. I want a tape recorder so I can describe the scene here and what's about to happen. Maybe, someday, someone will hear it and know that I was on the job till the end." The leader directed an aide to hand over the tape recorder and Williams dictated his comments. He then said, "Now I can die happy."

The leader turned and said, "And now, Mr. American War Criminal, what is your final wish?"

"Kick me in the ass," said the Green Beret.

"What?" asked the leader, "Will you mock us in your last hour?"

"No, I'm NOT kidding. I want YOU to kick ME in the ASS!!!" insisted the Green Beret.

So the leader shoved him into the yard and kicked him in the behind. The Green Beret went sprawling, but rolled to his knees, pulled his 9 mm pistol from inside his waistband and shot the leader dead. In the resulting confusion, he emptied his sidearm into six terrorists, with his knife he slashed the throat of one with an AK-47, which he took, and sprayed the rest of the terrorists killing another eleven!

In a flash, all of them were either dead or fleeing for their lives. As the Green Beret was untying Couric, Gibson and Williams, they asked him, "Why didn't you just shoot them all in the first place? Why did you ask him to kick you in the behind?"

"What!?!" replied the Green Beret, "and have you three report that I was the aggressor....?"

SNAKE EATERS

“Snake Eaters” is a military slang term for Army Special Force (a.k.a. “Green Berets”), and YES we DO eat snakes. This is part of our survival training, although I have slayed and eaten snake in the field to supplement the rations, and because basically, snake tastes good.

I have encountered snakes (and eaten them) throughout my career. I have eaten cobra in Thailand (and drank the blood mixed with Mekhong whiskey), Eastern Diamondback in Mississippi and copperhead North Carolina. For what it’s worth, I prefer rattlesnake; tastes like chicken.

Back in '99 I did a six-month stint in the Ivory Coast. The base we stayed in – Camp Akuedo – was adjacent to the city dump; the place was overridden with vermin. Vultures, kites and ravens patrolled the skies. I didn’t have a solid bowel movement the whole time I was there, and every day we either killed a cobra, some kind of evil viper, or one of these lobster-sized scorpions that infested our Company area.

Well, we had this Warrant Officer Eric Red (best damn Warrant I ever worked with and one of the bravest men alive). For this deployment he was the Company XO, and he lived in the Company Supply room. The word around camp was he kept a mamba and a mongoose in there with him. Because he visited the Embassy a couple of times a week, Chief Red operated a check cashing service out of the supply room; he’d have us go in and stand in front of this desk he’d made out of MRE cartons, it was just like the old-time pay call.

One day I asked him, “So what’s this about a mongoose and a mamba, Chief?”

“Oh, I kicked the mongoose out. The damn thing moved his family in, and they kept me up all night with their fighting and scurrying about.”

“Uh-huh. So, uh, what about the mamba?”

“I kept the mamba – it keeps the Africans out.”

“But . . . but . . . but . . . it’s a MAMBA, Chief!”

“Yeah, but it’s only a GREEN mamba,” he shrugged.

Whenever I went in there to cash a check I always looked over my shoulder for the mamba.

A reader who does the 3d World Bush Tour quite a bit asked me for info on what to do in the event of a snake bite. This opened a can of worms, to coin a phrase . . .

As far as first aid goes, I refer to Army Field Manuel 21-76 SURVIVAL (which I helped write).

The advice from the SAS Survival Handbook, Vol I – Outdoor Survival by John ‘Lofty’ Wiseman (HarperCollins Publishers, London 1996), stresses avoidance:

Snakes have excellent camouflage, only movement gives them away. In snake-infested areas you will pass many every day without ever noticing them.

The chances of being bitten are small and all but the worst cases recover. In Malaysia, more people are killed each year by falling coconuts and in India rat-bites produce many more cases for hospitalization!

A bite from a poisonous snake should always be taken seriously, but there are degrees of severity. When biting in self-defence, many snakes inject only a little venom, occasionally none at all. If the snake is out of condition or has recently bitten something else, its venom may not be fully potent and there may only be a little in its venom sacs. Clothing or shoes may have deflected the full force of the bite. In many poisonous snakes the dose of venom needed to kill a man far exceed the amount that can be injected in one bite.


Funny thing is, I’ve always worried about falling coconuts. Seriously. Never knew they were THAT deadly; I just always had a sort of feeling. Just goes to show . . .

STORMBRINGER SENDS

HEROES

Profiles of Valor: 10th Special Forces Group

On 10 September 2007, a team of three Army Green Berets led by Capt. Matthew A. Chaney, along with nine Iraqi police, began an assault from two helicopters near Samarra, Iraq. The team was targeting Abu Obaeideah, a leader of the Islamic State of Iraq in the area. The field designated for landing was covered with water, so the helicopters had to land closer to the insurgents' safe house, where they came under heavy enemy fire.

Practically blinded by dust from the second helicopter, the Iraqis were all but taken out of the fight from the start, so Chaney, Sgt. 1st Class Michael D. Lindsay and Staff Sgt. Jarion Halbisengibbs led a charge against the building where the hostile fire was originating. Halbisengibbs threw in a fragmentation grenade, killing two, and the soldiers rushed in. Lindsay was hit in the throat by an AK-47 round, and Chaney took a hit to the pelvis. Then both were thrown from the doorway by a grenade blast. Lindsay, who couldn't raise his rifle, fired at the enemy with his pistol. Chaney couldn't feel his legs, but he kept firing, killing a jihadi.

Halbisengibbs "continued to clear the structure in complete darkness as his night vision goggles and personal radio were all destroyed by enemy gunfire at point blank range," the official narrative read. He was shot in the thumb and knocked down by a grenade blast but continued fighting, killing another terrorist. As he moved back to the courtyard to protect his wounded comrades, Halbisengibbs was shot through the abdomen but managed to kill another jihadi on his way to the ground. He then directed the Iraqi police to finish the fight. Obaeideah was killed, along with 12 other insurgents, six by Halbisengibbs.

All three Green Berets have recovered from their injuries. Chaney and Lindsay were each awarded the Silver Star; Halbisengibbs received the Distinguished Service Cross, the Army's second highest combat medal.