Category: Expert Analysis

Special guest article by Doug Kechijian who is a former Air Force Pararescueman and is currently a physical therapist. Recent reports indicate that U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) is open to discussing the possibility of prescribing performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) to service members to increase operational readiness and relieve the physical burden of demanding mission sets.  […]

In the first segment of SpecialOperations.com interview with Brian Decker, we talked about the problem with the Special Forces Qualification Course (SFQC) and the issues that arose from the Special Forces Selection and Assessment Course (SFAS). Brian Decker (‘the smartest guy in Training Group”) was tasked to fix the issues and get the Selection course […]

It took him half an hour to fall. -Peachy Carnehan, “The Man Who Would Be King” On June 24, I published Nuristan Province: Conflict, Reconciliation, and Development at Foreign Intrigue that examined the consequences for diminished application of  aid and development resources in the eastern Afghanistan province of Nuristan. This article is a companion piece to “Nuristan […]

The Special Forces Qualification Course (SFQC) was in a bit of a crisis mode back in 2011. Candidates were failing at about a 50 percent rate which isn’t necessarily a bad thing but the reasons why they were failing was a big concern with the powers in the Special Warfare Center (SWC). The issue was […]

When I was contacted about watching and reviewing an early screening of “Megan Leavey,” the upcoming dramatic biopic starring Kate Mara that tells the story of a Marine K9 handler and her experiences with a German Shepard named “Rex,” I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect.  There hasn’t been a particular shortage of contemporary war […]

Over a span of more than a hundred years, the 1911 pistol platform has earned a reputation as an accurate and reliable shooter.  Designed specifically to comply with the requirements of the U.S. Army after a campaign in the Philippines saw the current service pistol, a double action revolver chambered in .38, fail to provide […]

I recently had the chance to get up before dawn and spend a day learning about leadership from two former US Navy SEAL commanders, Jocko Willink and Leif Babin. Willink led SEAL Team 3 Task Unit Bruiser, the most highly decorated special operations unit of the Iraq War, and Babin was his second in line, […]

It can be easy to fall into the trap of dismissing the effect popular culture has on our perceptions of the world.  We’re each intelligent, reasoning individuals that can appreciate the differences between reality and the fantasy we see on our screens – so it seems almost offensive, at first glance, to insinuate that someone […]

(Dedicated to Recon6) Riiiingggg… riiiingggg… riiiingggg… (this is a sound that phones made in the day, back before we could we could select Poison by Bell Biv Devoe as a ring tone) Jesus H. Christ, it’s only 0230… and oh-no, there can be only one good reason my home phone is ringing at this hour. […]

The 75th Ranger Regiment describes itself as America’s premier raid force, with the missions of direct action, special reconnaissance, and forced entry operations such as airfield seizures.  However, the Ranger mission in Syria has taken a very different turn, one in which the Regiment is deployed as a political force to build rapport with allies […]

I first came across the Chiappa Little Badger survival rifle in a magazine a few months ago, and distinctly recall thinking to myself, “I’m not sure how useful that would be… but it sure looks cool,” as I kept flipping through the pages.  In that brief moment, I told myself that if I came across […]

Getting out of the forces is a daunting time for any soldier. Life in Civvy Street if far more complex than the military regimen guys are used to. In many cases soldiers have joined in they’re late teens and are knocking on 30 or 40 years plus when they leave. This has given them no […]