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The Royal Netherlands Army Korps Commandotroepen.

SOF Pic of the Day: Royal Netherlands Army Korps Commandotroepen

Today’s photograph showcases the elite Korps Commandotroepen (KCT) of the Royal Netherlands Army in action, exemplifying their rich history, rigorous training, and diverse capabilities in various global missions.

The Pic of the Day Oct 07

A Sri Lankan SOF Combat Rider takes to the bush.

Pic of the Day: Sri Lanka Special Operations Combat Riders

Captivated by the image of a Sri Lankan Combat Rider, I’m whisked back to childhood dreams of riding dirt bikes and battling foes, only to realize the real-life prowess and history of the Sri Lankan Special Forces Regiment.

The Pic of the Day Sep 30

Capers (bottom right) and Team Broadminded.

Major James Capers: Marine Recon legend & Commando Hall of Fame member

Editor’s note: This article was originally published on June 23. Major Capers was honored with a parade and homecoming ceremony in his birthplace of Bishopville, SC on August 28. Visit United American Patriots to view photos and videos from the event. We’ve all seen those Hollywood films where the protagonist has a resume that is […]

Women & standards in Special Operations and Special Mission units

Women & standards in Special Operations and Special Mission units

SOFREP recently published an exclusive piece covering the journey of the first female candidate set to graduate the Special Forces Qualification Course and earn her coveted green beret — an amazing achievement. Similarly, recent years have seen the services open their previously male-exclusive roles, including the opportunity to attend Ranger School and others, to women […]

The Rhodesian SAS: Covert external operations

The Rhodesian SAS: Covert external operations

You can read the previous part here. We explored the historical background of the Rhodesian SAS C Squadron. Now it is time to focus on a few of the missions that they undertook during the Rhodesian Bush War, a war that threatened to destroy the government of Rhodesia, take the land and evict those of […]

Coalition SOF Jun 07

AFSOC.

The Pic of the Day: Combat Control students get ambushed

Combat Control School students assigned to the 352nd Battlefield Airman Training Squadron are ambushed at their drop-off point during a tactics field training exercise at Camp Mackall. Special Operations airmen are in high demand. Recently, the Air Force has made significant changes to its Special Operations with the creation of the Special Reconnaissance job and […]

Entertainment May 28

The Mahari Desert Patrol: Tunisia’s desert raiders

The Mahari Desert Patrol: Tunisia’s desert raiders

Editor’s note: This article was written by Louis Tayler and originally published on Grey Dynamics. Deep in the South of Tunisia, the Groupement Territorial Saharien (GTS), a part of the Tunisian Army, protects the border areas and remote deserts of Tunisia from all who may do Tunisia harm. This includes terrorists, smugglers, those crossing borders […]

Coalition SOF May 17

SADF.

The Special Operations world of Sub-Saharan Africa

It is common knowledge that warfare has greatly evolved in our times: from the strategic to the operational and tactical levels, from training and equipment to mission statements and structure. Indeed, literally every facet of warfare has seen close to a complete doctrinal overhaul. A good number of countries across the globe have firsthand experienced […]

Coalition SOF May 15

Estonian SOF and U.S. Special Forces assigned to 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) conduct a combined direct action mission during exercise TrojanFootprint 18 near Moe, Estonia, June 2, 2018:

French Special Operations task force grows as Estonia commits commandos

Estonian commandos are the latest to join a French-led Special Operations task force that will deploy in Africa in the upcoming summer to fight Islamic extremists. The deployment of the Estonian commandos was first reported by the Defense Post back in 2019. Then, an Estonian Defense Ministry spokesperson had stated that the country’s contribution to […]

Coalition SOF Apr 03

When Special Forces Recon Team Python ruled the Valley of Death

When Special Forces Recon Team Python ruled the Valley of Death

Situated in the northwestern portion of South Vietnam, along the border with Laos, lies the A Shau Valley. At 25 miles long and one mile wide, A Shau the valley consists of tall and thick elephant grass flanked on either side by steep mountain ranges, dense with jungle, that rise between 3,000 and 6,000 feet. […]

Air Force creates new pathway for Special Operations candidates

Air Force creates new pathway for Special Operations candidates

The Air Force has created a new, single pathway to funnel candidates in its Special Warfare specialties. Called the Special Warfare Operator Enlistment Vectoring (SWOE-V) program, the new pathway will pool all those who wish to join one of the Special Operations career fields of the Air Force (Pararescue, Combat Control, Special Reconnaissance, and Tactical […]

Exclusive: Army Special Forces command disbands elite units

Exclusive: Army Special Forces command disbands elite units

Update: SOFREP has learned that the 1st Special Forces Command will retain some CRF-like Direct Action capability, though significantly smaller than the current one. The rationale behind the decision to downsize, however, remains the same: CRFs are too expensive for their utility. In a historic decision for the Special Forces community, the Crisis Response Force […]

Vikings in Africa: Sweden joins French-led Special Operations task force

Vikings in Africa: Sweden joins French-led Special Operations task force

A Tier 1 Special Operations unit, attack helicopters, and lots more. This is what Sweden is ready to contribute to the new French-led counterterrorism task force in Africa. Last year, France declared its commitment to defeating extremism in the Sahel region of Africa with the creation of Task Force TAKUBA. In a brief press release, […]

Coalition SOF Feb 07

Featured image of Queen's Dragoon Guards courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

An introduction to the unknown operations of the SAS in Aden

Yemen, 2020. A civil war that hardly makes the headlines. And yet, 23.8 million people out of a population of 27 million face starvation. Almost six years have passed since the Iran-backed Shia Houthi rebels took the capital, Sanaa, in September 2014. The Saudi-led coalition, backed by the West, has failed to end the war, […]

Military History Jan 26

AFSOC.

A crisis in the making? Air Force Spec Ops short on operators

The Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) appears to be short on active-duty operators, a report indicates. As 2019 faded away, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) published a report that reveals a crisis in the making for the Air Force’s elite. Like almost every other Special Operations Command, during the last years, AFSOC has […]

How Airmen prepare for Ranger School

How Airmen prepare for Ranger School

Airmen aspiring to attend and complete the suckfest called Ranger School have to first complete an assessment course that evaluates their potential and prepares them for the real deal. The Air Force Ranger Assessment Course has been around for a few years. It is a three-week course that sharpens basic soldiering tasks, including land navigation, […]

Military Jan 19

SAS Old School: The Oman mission that saved the Special Air Service

SAS Old School: The Oman mission that saved the Special Air Service

“The Special Air Service is superfluous. It doesn’t belong to our Cold War army.” This was your conventional post-war British military thinking. Following the defeat of Nazi Germany, the “anomaly” of the SAS had been corrected and the Regiment disbanded. It took a communist insurgency in Malaya (1950-1960) to resurrect it. But its position still […]

Military History Jan 05

DVIDS

Air Force releases more information on new Special Warfare career field

The Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) has released more information about the incoming changes in the new Special Warfare career field. Launched this past October, Special Warfare is comprised of the Pararescue (1Z1), Combat Control (1Z2), Tactical Air Control Party (1Z3) and Special Reconnaissance (1Z4) Air Force Specialties. Previously these were separate career fields, […]

Royal Navy

Royal Marines Paras? British military considers controversial merger of 2 elite units

The British Ministry of Defence (MoD) is toying with the controversial idea of merging the elite Parachute Regiment and Royal Marines. This isn’t the first time that a merger between the two elite units has been voiced by senior officials inside the British Ministry of Defence (MoD). Last year, similar reports had been leaked to […]

Coalition SOF Dec 14

U.S. Marines with Basic Reconnaissance Course cover each other with sand for camouflage during clandestine landing and withdraw training at Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, California, Oct. 30, 2019. BRC is one of the many courses taught by the staff at Reconnaissance Training Company, Advanced Infantry Training Battalion, School of Infantry - West. The course provides students with the basic knowledge of reconnaissance doctrine, concepts, and techniques with emphasis on amphibious entry and extraction, beach reconnaissance and reconnaissance patrolling skills. (Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Andrew Cortez).

Female Marine becomes the first to pass grueling Marine Recon selection

A female Marine has passed the grueling Marine Corps Basic Reconnaissance Course (BRC). Earlier in November, Lance Corporal Alexa Barth became the first-ever female to graduate from the 12-week course. Although Lance Cpl. Barth has been awarded the coveted 0321 military occupational specialty (MOS), which distinguishes her as a Recon Marine, she is currently going […]

Military Nov 22

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