Spec-Ops: A History of the US Special Forces

US Special Forces History Force Recon — A Force Recon commando rises out of the surf.

US Special Forces History Army Ranger — Army Rangers wore night vision goggles as they cleared a Taliban compound in Afghanistan.

US Special Forces History Marine Force Recon Platoon — A Marine Force Recon Platoon fast-ropes from a CH-53 helicopter to the USNS Arctic.

US Special Forces History AFSOC — An AFSOC soldier carries an M4A1 carbine with a M203 grenade launcher.

US Special Forces History Night Stalker — A Night Stalker of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR) is shown seated in an MH-47 Chinook.

US Special Forces History Navy SEALs — Navy SEALs are sometimes lifted airborne by the Special Patrol Insertions and Extraction System (SPIES), used in situations where a helicopter is unable to land or come in for a low hover.

The special forces divisions of the U.S. military are commanded by the U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), formed April 16, 1987.

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The Command plans and conducts special operations as directed by the president or secretary of defense. Its mission: provide special operations forces to defend the United States and its interests, and synchronize planning of global operations against terrorist networks.

ARMY

The Army’s special ops efforts are directed by the U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC). With 26,000 personnel, it is the military’s largest special ops force.

Green Berets: Officially known as the U.S. Army Special Forces Command (Airborne), the Green Berets, so-called because of their distinctive headwear, have five primary missions: unconventional warfare, direct action, special reconnaissance, foreign internal defense, and counterterrorism. The group was formed in 1952. The green berets were first worn in 1954, its color matching that of the “rifle green” beret of the British Rifle Regiments. The beret was banned in 1956 because outsiders to a retirement parade thought the beret-clad soldiers were a NATO outfit, but it was reinstated and finally adopted as the group’s official headdress in 1961.

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