Flashback: Delta Force Founder Charlie Beckwith in Vietnam

We thought readers might appreciate this gem out of our archives.  Prior to being the founder of the Army’s counter-terrorism unit, Delta Force, Colonel Beckwith was a officer in Project Delta (unrelated to the unit he later founded) in Vietnam.                

75th Ranger Regiment Soldiers Go Covert in Pakistan

With dramatis personae that include the CIA, Delta Force, DEVGRU, the Intelligence Support Activity, Pakistani Commandos, the Taliban, and spies from Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence Agency (ISI), this story has the makings of a future Brad Thor bestseller. The only difference is, this story happened over the course of an eight-month period for a very small […]

The Cults of Special Operations

The units that make up America’s Special Operations community are now spread across all four branches and include upwards of approximately 80,000 personnel. Many are support and staff positions, but when we talk about the “tribes” of Special Operations we are really just referencing actual SOF-qualified troops, those who have been through RASP, BUD/S, SFAS, […]

Beyond Neptune Spear: The (Open) Secret History of SEAL Team Six (Part 1)

“It Is What We Do” Operation Neptune Spear was merely the conclusion of a vast and overarching mission that stood out as exceptional in a multitude of ways.  A nation’s desperate call for justice was answered in the early hours of May 2, 2011; Osama bin Laden met his end inside his Abbottabad, Pakistan, hideout […]

JSOC, Hostage Rescue Track Record

In the wake of the failed hostage rescue mission conducted by the British SBS in Nigeria, it may also prove useful to take a look back at JSOC hostage rescue missions as well.  Special thanks to SOFREP reader Chris for his hard work in compiling this information for us. The successful rescue of Jessica Buchanan […]