Members from the U.S. Air Force 24th Special Tactics Squadron (24th STS), Fort Bragg, complete helo, fast rope, and hoisting training during exercise Advanced Guard, Holloman Air Force Base, N.M., April 14, 2014. Advanced Guard is a multimillion-dollar exercise spanning across the states to train special operators to conduct joint operations.

The 24th STS is the Air Force‘s contribution to the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC). A tier 1 unit, the 24th STS is comprised of Pararescuemen (PJ), Combat Controllers (CCT), Tactical Air Control Party (TACP) Airmen, and Special Reconnaissance (SR) — previously known as Special Operations Weather Technicians (SOWT) — operators.  They either deploy in cohesive teams or as individual attachments to other Special Mission Units (SMU), such as Delta Force or SEAL Team 6.