SEAL TEAM SIX
The Secret to BUD/S and SEAL Team 6 are under this rock, if you can find it.
Seriously, we don’t even call it SEAL Team 6 anymore. In fact, what is now commonly known as Naval Special Warfare Development Group (NSWDG) is even outdated terminology. In all seriousness, it’s about OpSec, and you will not find me and the guys on this site compromising our Teammates. If you want to find out more, the best thing to do is to join up! Or check out the SOFREP join SEALs or SWCC pages. I’ve also included a brief snapshot of the history of ST6 below. Enjoy-
-Brandon, Editor-in-Chief (BUD/S 215)
SEAL Team Six History
The origins of ST6 can be traced to the aftermath of Operation Eagle Claw, the failed 1980 attempt to rescue American hostages at the U.S. Embassy in Iran. During the Iran hostage crisis in 1979, Richard Marcinko was one of two U.S. Navy representatives for a Joint Chiefs of Staff task force known as the TAT (Terrorist Action Team). The purpose of the TAT was to develop a plan to free the American hostages held in Iran, which culminated in Operation Eagle Claw. In the wake of the operation’s disaster at the Desert One base in Iran, the Navy saw the need for a full-time dedicated Counter-Terrorist Team, and tasked Marcinko with its design and development.
The Father of SEAL TEAM SIX: Dick Marcinko
Marcinko was the first commanding officer of this new unit, which was first called MOB 6 (Mobility 6) and Sixth Platoon, but eventually named the unit SEAL Team Six. At the time, there were only two United States Navy SEAL (SEa, Air and Land) teams; Marcinko named the unit Team Six in order to confuse Soviet intelligence as to the number of actual SEAL teams in existence. The men in the unit were hand-picked by Marcinko from across the U.S. Navy’s Special Operations personnel. SEAL Team Six became known as the U.S. Navy’s premier counter-terrorist unit. It has been compared to the U.S. Army’s Delta Force. Marcinko held the command of SEAL Team Six for three years, from 1980 to 1983, instead of the typical two-year command stint in the Navy at the time. SEAL Team Six was formally created in October 1980, and an intense, progressive work-up training program made the unit mission-ready six months later. The existing SEAL teams, including 12 platoons in SEAL Team One on the West Coast, had already begun counter-terrorism training; they formed a dedicated two-platoon group known as “MOB Six” (Mobility Six) in anticipation of a maritime scenario requiring a counter-terrorism response, and had begun training to that end. SEAL Team Six started with 75 shooters. According to Dick Marcinko, the annual training allowance for the command was larger than that of the entire U.S. Marine Corps. Their funding is the main thing that separates SEAL Team Six/NSWDG from the “regular” SEAL teams. They are given a large amount of money and are able to buy the best weapons and equipment available.
