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The United States Army Special Forces —'''Special Forces''' or SF — is an elite Special Operations Force of the United States Army trained for Unconventional Warfare and Special Operations . The SF was founded in 1952 by Colonel Aaron Bank , and its members are popularly known as the '''Green Berets''', because of the unit's distinctive Green Beret Headgear . Their official motto is '' De Oppresso Liber '' ( Latin : "To free the opressed"), a reference to one of their primary missions to train and assist foreign indigenous forces.1 Special Forces units are tasked with seven specific missions: unconventional warfare, Foreign Internal Defense , special Reconnaissance , Direct Action , combating Terrorism , Counter-proliferation , and Information Operations . Other duties include coalition warfare and support, combat Search And Rescue (CSAR), security assistance, Peacekeeping , Humanitarian Assistance , humanitarian De-mining and Counter-drug operations.2 HISTORY The Special Forces was established out of several special operations units that were active during World War II . Its lineage comes from the 1st Special Service Force (Devil's Brigade) as well as from operational detachments of the Office Of Strategic Services . Special Forces Command was developed out of the Special Operations Division of the Psychological Warfare Center which was activated in May 1952. June 1952, with the creation of the 10th Special Forces Group (SFG) under Colonel Bank, marked the forces' official founding. This coincided with the establishment of the Psychological Warfare School, which is now known as the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center And School . The 10th SFG deployed to Bad Tölz , Germany the following September. The remaining Cadre at Fort Bragg, North Carolina formed the 77th Special Forces Group, which in May 1960 became 7th Special Forces Group.3 Special Forces were among the first U.S. troops committed to Vietnam . Beginning in the early 1950s, Special Forces teams deployed from the United States and Okinawa to serve as advisors for the fledgling South Vietnamese Army . As the United States escalated its involvement in the war, Special Forces' mission expanded as well. In addition to raising, training, and advising the Montagnard Civilian Irregular Defense Group (CIDG) and numerous other indigenous units, Special Forces also conducted long range Reconnaissance and provided the majority of personnel for the highly classified MACV-SOG . The 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) earned seventeen Congressional Medals Of Honor in Vietnam, making it the most prominently decorated unit for its size in that conflict. THE GREEN BERET Edson Raff , one of the first Special Forces officers, is credited with introducing the green beret,4 which was originally unauthorized for wear by the U.S. Army. In 1961, President John F. Kennedy authorized them for use exclusively by the Special Forces. Preparing for an October 12 visit to the Special Warfare Center at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, the President sent word to the Center's commander, Brigadier General William P. Yarborough , for all Special Forces soldiers to wear the beret as part of the event. The President felt that since they had a special mission, Special Forces should have something to set them apart from the rest. In 1962, he called the green beret "a symbol of excellence, a badge of courage, a mark of distinction in the fight for freedom." Aside from the well-recognized beret, Special Forces soldiers are also known for their more informal attire than other members of the U.S. military. The men of the Green Beret caught the public's imagination and were the subject of a best selling book '' The Green Berets '' by Robin Moore , a hit record, '' Ballad Of The Green Berets '' written and performed by Barry Sadler , '' The Green Berets (film) '' produced, directed, and starring John Wayne and a Comic Strip and American Comic Book ''Tales of the Green Beret'' written by Robin Moore with artwork by Joe Kubert . See United States Army Special Forces In Popular Culture . ORGANIZATION U.S. Army Special Forces is divided into five Active Duty Special Forces Groups. Each Active Duty SFG has a specific regional focus. The Special Forces soldiers assigned to these groups receive intensive Language and Cultural training for countries within their regional area of responsibility. TRAINING AND SELECTION New male recruits to the Army who have requested to join the Special Forces first begin training at Fort Benning, Georgia . (All United States Special Forces units are closed to females.) This consists of basic training and Infantry training combined in a 14 week-long course. After graduation, soldiers must attend and pass the three-week Airborne school before progressing to the Special Operations Preparation Course (SOPC) at Ft. Bragg. SOPC's purpose is to prepare SF candidates for Phase I, Special Forces Assessment And Selection (SFAS), an evaluation that lasts 24 days. Upon successful completion of this phase, recruits usually return to their previous units to await being admitted to a class in the three-phase Special Forces Qualification Course ("Q Course"). There recruits are assigned to the 1st Special Warfare Training Group (Airborne) at Fort Bragg and required to participate in a demanding three-week Small Unit Tactics course. This course is designed to familiarize non-combat Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) soldiers with basic Patrolling , Orienteering and woodland skills. Afterwards, recruits of rank Staff Sergeant (E-6) and below attend the Primary Leadership Development Course /Basic Non-Commissioned Officer's Course at Camp Mackall before officially beginning Phase II, a five-week block of instruction in Small Unit Tactics. In early 2006, Phase II was expanded to include three weeks of , a large-scale unconventional warfare exercise (Phase IV) and language school (Phase V) before being awarded the Special Forces tab.5 Soldiers who successfully complete SFAS but are not already Airborne qualified are assigned a class date to attend Basic Airborne School at Ft. Benning, Georgia prior to reporting to Ft. Bragg. After successfully completing the Special Forces Qualification Course and earning the green beret and SF tab, Special Forces Soldiers are then eligible for many advanced skills courses. These include the Military Free Fall Parachutist Course, the Combat Diver Qualification Course, the Special Forces Sniper Course, Advanced Special Operations Techniques course, and the Special Forces Advanced Reconnaissance and Target Exploitation Techniques Course. Additionally, Special Forces Soldiers may participate in special operations training courses offered by other services and allied nations throughout their careers. SPECIAL FORCES MOS DESCRIPTIONS
Note: Candidates for SF school may enlist directly into the 18X MOS, and upon successful completion of Basic Training, Infantry AIT (or alternatively, Infantry OSUT as a combination of both Basic and AIT), Airborne School, and Special Forces Assessment and Selection, will be enrolled into the Special Forces Qualification Course and be awarded one of the other SF MOS. It should be noted that until a "true" SF MOS has been granted, the 18X candidate is for all intents and purposes considered to hold MOS 11B (Infantryman). SF A-TEAM COMPOSITION A Special Forces company consists generally of six Operational Detachments Alpha, (ODAs) or "A-teams", though this number can vary from company to company. These may be specialized in some way: a prime example is 3rd Battalion, 20th Special Forces Group, which maintains a "Counter-Narcotics Operational Detachment Alpha", or "CNODA" in their detachment at Camp Blanding , Florida . An ODA typically consists of 12 men, each of whom has a specific function on the team. The ODA is led by an 18A, usually a , one 18F, usually a Sergeant First Class , and two each of the B's, C's, D's, and E's. The B's, C's, D's and E's work in senior/junior roles with the seniors, ideally having the rank of Sergeant First Class, and the juniors having the rank of Staff Sergeant or Sergeant . In a regular force troop, this level would be compared to a squad, patrol or section (even if the commander is a Captain (O-3) and not a Staff Sergeant (E-6)). SF B-TEAM COMPOSITION A Special Forces company, when in need, will deploy an Operational Detachment Bravo, (ODB) or "B-team," usually comprised of eleven soldiers. While the A-team typically conducts direct operations, the purpose of the B-team is to support the A-teams in the company. There is one B-team per company. The ODB is lead by an 18A, usually a Major, who is the Company Commander (CO). The CO is assisted by his Executive Officer (XO), another 18A, usually a Captain. The XO is himself assisted by a company technician, a 180A, generally a Chief Warrant Officer Three, and assists in the direction of the organization, training, intelligence, counter-intelligence, and operations for the company and its detachments. The Company Commander is assisted by the Company Sergeant Major, an 18Z, usually a Sergeant Major. A second 18Z acts as the Operations NCO, usually a Master Sergeant, who assists the XO and Technician in their operational duties. He has an 18F Assistant Operations NCO, who is usually a Sergeant First Class. The company's support comes from an 18D Medical Sergeant, usually a Sergeant First Class, and two 18E Communications Sergeants, usually a Sergeant First Class and Staff Sergeant. Note the distinct lack of a weapons or engineer NCO: This is because the B-Team generally does not engage in direct operations, but rather operates in support of the A-Teams within its company. The following jobs are outside of the Special Forces 18-series CMF, but hold positions in a Special Forces B-Team. They are not themselves considered to be Special Forces, as they have not completed SFAS and SFQC:
In a regular force troop, this level of command could be compared to a company (although the commander is a Major (O-4) and not a Captain (O-3)) SF C-TEAM COMPOSITION A C-team is one of the operational detachments of the Special Forces. It is a pure command and control unit with operations, training, signals and logistic support responsibilities. It's very rare to see a C-team in a tactical zone. More commonly it's co-located with the conventional force commander it's supporting; at the operational or strategic level. Its basic organization follows the same lines with a Lieutenant-Colonel (O-5) for commander and a Command Sergeant Major (E-9) for the leading NCO. There are an additional 20-30 SF personnel who fill key positions in Operations, Logistics, Intelligence, Communications and Medical. SEE ALSO
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