Jamie Read

In a recent series, we examined the United Kingdom Special Forces (UKSF) spectrum. In this series, we’ll review the elite components within the conventional British forces. We will start with one of the U.K.’s most renowned units: the Royal Marines, an elite amphibious commando force of the Royal Navy. The Royal Marines (RM), or Bootnecks […]

The Special Operation Group (SOG) was a SOF unit from the Czech Republic. The unit was part of the Military Police and was one of the youngest units kicking around having been formed only in 2002. SOG consisted of two departments: the Department of Protection for the Minister of Defense and the Combat Operation Department. […]

The coveted maroon beret of the parachute regiment, better known as the Paras, has long been a symbol of elite warriors. British Army officer captain Rosie Wild, age 28, of 7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery, has become the first woman to pass the arduous All Arms Pre-Parachute Selection (AAPPS), also known as P Company, […]

Russian backed separatists forced Ukrainian troops, from the 72nd Armoured Brigade based in Zolote, Luhansk region, to withdraw on February 18th, 2020. This has been the most intense engagement since the conflict broke out in 2014. This does not bode well for the ongoing peace negotiations. The Ukrainian TSN TV news service reported that not […]

Note: This is part five of a multi-part series exploring the various units within the U.K. Special Forces (UKSF). The Special Air Service (SAS) is the British Army’s most distinguished and renowned special forces unit. From the moment operators of the 22 SAS emerged on the balconies of the Iranian embassy in London in 1980, […]

Note: This is part four of a multi-part series exploring the various units within the U.K. Special Forces (UKSF). The Special Forces Support Group (SFSG) is a fairly new special forces unit. Officially formed on 3 April 2006, the SFSG is based on a core segment of the soldiers from the 1st Battalion Parachute Regiment […]

Note: This is part three of a multi-part series exploring the various units within the U.K. Special Forces (UKSF). The Special Boat Service (SBS), one of the oldest Special Forces regiments, is the U.K.’s premier naval counter-terrorism unit (CT). The unit is tasked with addressing assaults on U.K.’s maritime interests. Over the years the SBS […]

Note: This is part two of a multi-part series exploring the various units within the U.K. Special Forces (UKSF). The United Kingdom’s prolonged involvement in the Global War on Terror (GWOT) has created the demand for an increase in the country’s number of special forces operators. From that need emerged the United Kingdom’s newest special […]

This is the first part of a multi-part series exploring the various units within the U.K. Special Forces (UKSF). The Special Air Service (SAS) is widely recognized the world over and is often erroneously considered the only special operations unit Britain has. This couldn’t be further from the truth. In this series, we’ll cover the […]

One of the most clandestine of all British special operations units is E Squadron. It’s a small unit of United Kingdom Special Forces (UKSF) operatives handpicked to work for the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), better known as MI6. Both the UKSF Directorate and Secret Intelligence Service use E Squadron to carry out clandestine activities. They […]

Note: This is the fifth and final part of a multi-part series exploring elite components within the conventional British forces. To wrap up this series, we awarded honorable mentions to No. 2 Squadron RAF Regiment and Counter Terrorist Specialist Firearms Officers (CTSFOs). The most elite units in the U.K. military would be unable to do […]

Note: This is part four of a multi-part series exploring elite components within the conventional British forces. The Pathfinder Platoon (PF), also known as the Pathfinder Group, is an elite airborne reconnaissance unit within the 16 Air Assault Brigade. Pathfinders work as the Brigade’s eyes and ears, and operate far forward of the Brigade, behind […]