US Army Special Forces

Special Operations From 15 Countries Take Part in “Allied Spirit VI” Joint Exercise

Special Operations operators from 15 different countries were part of the over 3000 troops that recently took part in the Allied Spirt VI exercise. The training was conducted at the 7^th Army Joint Multinational Readiness Training Center located in Hohenfels, Germany and took place for nearly the entire month of March.

Allied Spirit VI is a multinational exercise training service members from Canada, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Hungary, Germany, Italy, Macedonia, Kosovo, Latvia, the Netherlands, Slovenia, the United Kingdom and the U.S. on integrating special operations and conventional forces to increase their effectiveness.

“The primary purpose of this exercise is providing a venue for the 1st Latvian Brigade to train in a Joint Task Force environment and increase their interoperability with both U.S. units as well as other multinational forces,” said Army Maj. Robert Temple, special operations force cell planner at JMRC. “Within that [joint task force] environment they have a replicated special operations component command.”
During the exercise, soldiers from 1st Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group trained on their advise and assist mission while working closely with Estonian forces, who provided mission command of all special operations elements, and Macedonian special operations mission command elements.
“We are here supporting our Estonian Special Operations Task Group brethren. They are one of our long-time partners that we’ve worked with and continue to work within our Partnership Development Program,” explained a company commander for 1st Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group. “Additionally, we get to work with the Latvians which are another one of our primary partner nations.”

This training program is conducted to foster interoperability and ease of operations between the member countries. The ability to work together seamlessly is invaluable in joint operations and pulls together our eastern allies in the face of Russian expansion in Eastern Europe. Battle staff drills, call for fire missions and the safe clearance of lines are just some of the areas that have proved valuable in the past.

To read the entire article from Department of Defense, click here:

Photo courtesy US Army

SOF Selection PT Preparation 4.3.2017

After a long rucksack march on Sunday, the run today is of the shorter duration, with the PT geared toward the UBRR. Monday starts a new week, so get motivated and keep grinding.

Training:

More preparation for the UBRR

2 x 1-minute Pushups

2 x 1-minute Sit-ups

2 x 1 minute, Crunches

2 x Dips as many as possible to muscle failure

2-mile run

Stretch well after completion

SOF Selection PT Preparation 4.2.2017

Today is a just a long ruck, with just a few stretching exercises to get you warmed up then it is hitting the trail and putting some miles in. Try to not only maintain the pace needed to pass the course but to better it.

Try to push as hard as you can without running. Push yourself harder in the second half of the course. And remember to drink plenty of water on the course. Don’t let yourself get dehydrated.

Training:

Warm up 3 x 30 seconds Mountain Climbers

Warm up 3 x 30 seconds Spider-Man Planks

10-mile Ruck march over varied terrain with a minimum 45-pound ruck

Stretch well after completion

SOF Selection PT Preparation 4.1.2017

Continue to prep for the UBRR with the focus on legs and lower body today. Notate your time in your training notebook. Remember to stretch well after completing your run and always stay hydrated. You won’t feel like drinking on cool or cold mornings but it is important to remain hydrated.

Training:

3 x Pullups 10 reps

3 x Front Squat 20-15-12 reps (lighter weight)

3 x Goblet Squats 20-15-12 reps (lighter dumbbell)

3 x 20 Lunges with kettlebell

3 x 10 Leg Extensions

3 x 10 reps Standing Arnold Press

3 x 20 Push-ups

3 x 20 Crunches

30 x “V” ups

4-mile run

Stretch well after completion

Narrative for Silver Stars Awarded To Special Operations Forces Reveal Valor

Since 9/11 there have been over 1000 awards for valor consisting of the Silver Star or higher awarded to US troops, mainly in Iraq and Afghanistan. Almost 20 percent of those have been awarded to Special Operations Forces, Navy SEALS, Green Berets, Delta Force commandos and Army Rangers.

The Pentagon and the Special Operations Command has released some of the narratives that accompanied the soldiers’ awards. And they read like a Hollywood script. Some of the narratives were published to give the public a glimpse of the valor of the Special Operations troops, however, the names were blacked out for security concerns.

Taliban insurgents blew a hole in the eastern wall of the fort in east central Afghanistan with a car bomb. The base housed a Provincial Reconstruction Team, a military-civilian unit tasked with helping Afghans rebuild their country. After the blast, 10 insurgents dressed in Afghan army uniforms flowed through the breach with rifles, grenades and suicide vests.
The Army special operator, identified only as “the Medical sergeant” raced to the “sound of gunfire and explosions.” He killed the insurgent closest to him, while two of his fellow commandos gunned down two more. Turning a corner with another commando, they confronted six more insurgents and faced a hailstorm of gunfire and grenades. One bullet struck the sergeant’s helmet, knocking him to the dirt where he continued to fight to blunt the attack.
Sped to a surgery team, the medical sergeant refused treatment, insisting on guarding the medical personnel until more troops arrived.
“His efforts directly supported containing the enemy to the edge of the airfield and saved the lives of (1,400) personnel,” the narrative states.

The Pentagon is reviewing the awards and considering many for reclassification to a higher award. Many Special Operations troops frequently are awarded awards below what they’d normally get in a conventional unit. That is one of the factors in being the “Quiet Professionals”.

To read the entire article from USA Today, click here:

Photo courtesy DOD

Remembering Greg Fronius, KIA in El Salvador 31 March 1987

Thirty years ago today on March 31, 1987, Special Forces SSG Greg Fronius was killed in action in El Paraiso, El Salvador when guerrilla forces from the FMLN (Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front) attacked the Salvadoran base during an early morning attack.

Fronius was 27 at the time of his death and left behind a wife and two small children. He was one of the only 55 military advisers to the Salvadoran military allowed at that time and was assigned to the cuartel, which was the headquarters for the 4^th Brigade.

His death during the brutal war that wracked El Salvador took place in a little-known time when many Special Forces risked their lives there during a so-called time of peace. It was a period that wasn’t recognized as a war zone for the Green Berets until many years later.

Fronius graduated from the Special Forces Qualification Course (SFQC) as an Engineer Sergeant (18C) and was assigned to the 2^nd Bn, 7^th SFG(A) from 1983-85. In 1985, he was reassigned to 3/7 SFG in Panama. There, in early 1987 he was sent to El Salvador as Intelligence Sergeant assigned to the Military Advisory Group.

The 4^th Brigade Headquarters in El Paraiso, 36 miles north of the capital of San Salvador had two American advisors assigned but at the time of the attack, Fronius was alone, his counterpart was in the capital getting some equipment and was scheduled to fly out in a helicopter the next day.

The guerrillas launched a coordinated assault beginning at 2 a.m. on the morning of March 31. They had concentrated mortar and rocket fire that targeted the major headquarters buildings. It was later learned that they were helped by DIA agent and double agent spy Ana Montes. Montes was considered an up and coming agent for DIA but in reality, she had defected and was spying for Cuba.

She visited the El Paraiso base just weeks before the attack and debriefed the Americans there, and later fed the information directly to her Cuban handlers who passed it on to the FMLN. She was directly implicated in Fronius’ death. She was not caught until her arrest in September 2001 just after the attacks of 9/11. She was sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2002.

The base at El Paraiso held 1000 troops but at the time of the attack on March 31, only 250 were on site. The remainder were out on different operations. It was during the attack where Montes treachery paid off for the FMLN. Their mortar and rocket fire was extremely accurate, nearly all of the headquarters buildings were either destroyed or severely damaged.

Casualties were high, 69 El Salvadoran soldiers were killed, another 79 were wounded. FMLN casualties were probably even higher. Once the attack commenced, Fronius was in the command bunker under the HQ building and he sprinted up the stairs to reach an M-60 machine gun position that was engaging FMLN troops that were inside the compound. With complete disregard for his own safety, he took off, going up the steps, when a rocket or mortar shell perforated the corrugated tin roofing of the stairs and the explosion killed Fronius.

He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star and promoted to Sergeant First Class (E-7) The language lab at Ft. Bragg was named in honor of him in 1997.

He was later buried in a small cemetery in Western Pennsylvania. It was a bad week for the Green Berets of the 7^th SFG. The firing party for his funeral was from ODA-722 1^st Bn. They had just come from New York and had buried their A-team Commander CPT Schlomer who had been killed in Honduras earlier.

Just three months after Fronius’ death, Special Forces would lose another warrior. SSG Tim Hodge was wounded by a gunshot in the neck and needed immediate exfil to a hospital. The helicopter coming for him crashed in bad weather killing:
CW3 John D. Raybon
1LT Gregory J. Paredes
SP4 Douglas Lee Adams
SFC Lynn V. Keen
LTC James M. Basile (USAF )-Deputy MILGRP Commander
LTC Joseph L. Lujan -SF Advisor

Special Forces SFC Tommy Grace was badly burned in the crash but survived.

During the height of the El Salvadoran Civil War between 1983 – 1992 a total of 21 Army, Navy and Marines lost their lives in our covert operation to stop the Marxist guerillas from wresting control of the country.

Much about that time frame was shrouded in secrecy but the veil was finally lifted in 1997 as the combat operations the SF advisors were involved in was recognized. An interesting footnote and tremendous read was a pitched battle in San Miguel, El Salvador which took place in 1984. That can be read in its entirety here.

Photo courtesy US Army

SOF Selection PT Preparation 3.31.2017

After a swim day, it is back to a heavy day of UBRR preparation with pushups, sit-ups, crunches, and a longer ruck march. Keep a PT prep log of your times on your runs and rucks and you should be noticing a decrease in the times as we forge ahead.

Don’t forget your stretching and this is a great time to begin breaking in a second pair of boots. If anything happens to your best pair or they get wet when in Selection, (and they will), having a good broken in second pair is very important.

Training:

More Preparation for the UBRR:

100 x pushups (no time limit)

100 x sit ups (no time limit)

100 x crunches

3 x 20 dips or until muscle failure

25 x V-ups

6-mile rucksack march (45-pound minimum) over varied terrain, note your time

Stretch well after completion

USSOCOM Warrior Care Program – Taking Care of Wounded SOF Warriors

USSOCOM’s Warrior Care Program (Care Coalition) may have changed their name but what remains the same is that it still provides service to special operations forces wounded, ill or injured Service members and their families.

The program was implemented to assist the wounded members of the command in the recovery, rehabilitation, and reintegration as quickly as possible, thus improving USSOCOM readiness. In the event of a more serious injury, the program will assist the wounded warrior with the medical and career transition to civilian life.

Founded in 2005 with the charter to advocate for SOF and their families after life changing events, the organizations primary focus has always been on retention rather than transition. In fact, according to U.S. Army C ol. Cary Harbaugh, Warrior Care Program (Care Coalition) director, SOCOM’s retention rate after illness or injury is 73 percent, the services are at about 10 percent.
“We are the gold standard in Warrior Care. Unfortunately, we have a steady flow of ill and wounded. Today, SOF are in dangerous and hazardous environments and our training is high risk. So as we have a steady influx of ill and wounded and our focus is on returning them back to the force and we take all measures to do so,” said Harbaugh. “We view the medical evaluation board as the last step and we do everything we can to appropriately delay the board to ensure all treatments are tried. I think that is why we have such a high retention rate.”
“They made a promise to us when they joined, whatever service they joined, and then they made another promise to us when they came in as special operations and we’re making a promise to them, that we’re going to be with them for the rest of their lives if anything happens to them and we’re going to help take care of their families as well.” Former USSOCOM Commander U.S. Army Gen. Doug Brown at the founding of USSOCOM’s Care Coalition.

The Warrior Care Program works on a comprehensive recovery plan to include goals for the wounded members, services that will be required, such as education, employment, and housing. The program also provides adaptive sports programs and transitional assistance.

The USSOCOM Warrior Care Program is located in Tampa, Florida, but the recovery care coordinators and liaisons operate in multiple locations around the globe. These include major military treatment facilities and Department of Veterans Affairs Polytrauma Rehabilitation centers.

Any questions about the USSOCOM Warrior Care Program can be asked on their hotline number (877) 672-3039 or from the website: https://www.socom.mil/care-coalition/. With the many questions surrounding the waiting time for VA services in some locations, the knowledge that the command is looking to take care of their own has to be a big benefit and peace of mind for the families and the troops in the command

To read the entire article from Special Operations Command, click here:

Photo courtesy DOD

Importance of Language, Cross-Cultural Communication In SF Operations

Special Forces troops and all Special Operations Forces for that matter are masters at relationship building with host nation forces that they live with, train, and fight alongside in the world today.

From the beginning of the OSS, the special operations forces had to earn the trust of their counterparts in occupied France before they could get the French Resistance to do operations that eventually tied up divisions of German troops behind the lines of Normandy. It carried over to the war in Vietnam where Special Forces A-Teams built camps all along the border of North Vietnam and recruited indigenous mountain tribesmen to create irregular defense groups.

Today the mission is no different although the area of the world has changed. And one of the best ways to earn the trust of the locals is to learn the language and customs. Sharing communal meals and hardships goes a long way with building rapport with host nation forces that Special Op’s troops will be embedded with.

Learning the language is paramount even if you’re not fluent, the act of trying to speak in host nation’s tongue is very important. Showing an effort that you want to learn the language, learning cultural nuances and customs shows respect for the local troops and people. And without the rapport with the locals, the mission is bound to fail.

In order to engage and earn the trust of a local population, you, the SF operator—must be able to speak their language, both literally and figuratively. You must be able to recognize and use to your and their advantage the local needs and desires.

In 2009, the Commander of USSOCOM wrote about the ability of Special Operations troops to build a relationship with the local troops was of paramount importance.

The complexity of today’s and tomorrow’s strategic environments requires that our SOF operators maintain not only the highest levels of warfighting expertise but also cultural knowledge and diplomacy skills. We are developing “3-D operators”—members of a multidimensional force prepared to lay the groundwork in the myriad diplomatic, development, and defense activities that contribute to our Government’s pursuit of our vital national interests.

Every prospective Special Operations candidate should strive to learn a new language. While the training in the Special Forces Qualification Course (SFQC) will include language training, don’t wait for that, take the initiative and do it on your own. Just about every college and junior college have language programs that candidates can sign up for. Programs like “Rosetta Stone” offer, learn at home software that are fantastic learning tools.

And sometimes the learning of an additional language will come in handy in the strangest of places. Who would think that having a Chinese linguist in Panama would be invaluable? Anyone? Bueller? Well, it just so happens that it did just that.

After the conflict with Panama in 1989 and the ouster of Manuel Noriega, the Panamanian Defense Forces (PDF) were disbanded. They were drawn down at much smaller levels and retrained as the Panamanian National Police (PNP). SF troops from 3^rd Bn 7^th SFG(A) conducted the early portions of the training until police instructors from the US could be brought in.

The country was split into six areas A-F and two SF OPATTs were assigned to each area to advise, train and monitor the local police forces. From Panama City, we received word in Area F that former military members loyal to Noriega were stockpiling weapons and that several crimes had occurred against the recent Chinese immigrants that settled in Panama.

The Chinese had immersed themselves in the culture of Panama and despite learning the language fluently in less than 18 months, were shunned by the locals. The Chinese were very distrustful of outsiders and wouldn’t talk to the local police. We were fortunate enough to have two Reserve SF soldiers who were cops at home in the US to augment us. One of them, a Vietnam vet was fluent in Mandarin Chinese which at the time of his arrival didn’t seem relevant, as well as Spanish.

Within five minutes of him speaking to the owners of a restaurant in the center of the area of operations, we were invited to dinner. Our linguist kept up a dialogue and knowing their culture, was a trusted ally immediately. Others were brought in and the information flowed quickly. The information that the community provided was extremely accurate, a number of weapons caches were found and confiscated. Also, a few assault cases and a double murder were solved because of their involvement.

Without the benefit of the language and customs, those avenues would have remained closed. And the Chinese community which had distrusted the Panamanian police now looked upon us as friends and nearly family. It was a rapport that sadly, was not maintained by the police after we were pulled out, we later learned.

When preparing for Selection and Special Operations training, we tend to focus on the physical aspects of the training in our preparation, which is understandable. But don’t neglect nor forget the very important part of being prepared. And that is being able to build rapport with the host nation forces that you’ll hopefully someday be embedded with.

You will be as reliant on them as they will be to you. A big part of mission success will depend on the team building rapport with the local military forces and the populace. And the first step of that is being able to communicate in their language and learn the cultural nuances of the country or region. The opportunities are out there and easily available to you…You’ll be glad you did.

Photo courtesy of DOD

SOF Selection PT Preparation 3.30.2017

Today is a swim day, so head back to the pool.

The swim test is a big part of the initial testing phase and many candidates fail to properly prepare for it by practicing it in uniform. Get used to being comfortable in the water.

Warm up first –

3 x 30 seconds Mountain climbers

3 x 30 seconds Spider-Man planks

Swim 300 meters with fatigues and boots; swimming with them on it feels like little gremlins are pulling you down in the water from the corners of your uniform.

Stretch well after completion