The
U.S. Navy's SEA, AIR, LAND (SEAL)
SEALs
are the elite Naval Special Operations unit of the US Navy.
The U.S. Navy's SEA, AIR, LAND (SEAL) teams are one of the most
respected commando forces in the world - they are often cited as
the most elite, flexible and highly trained Naval Commando force.
When
it comes to Maritime Special Operations and Anti / Counter-Terror
operations the SEALs are hard to beat.
Formed
in 1962 by President J. F. Kennedy as a maritime counterpart
to the U.S. Army Special Forces (the "Green Berets"),
the SEALs have amassed a remarkable history of successes and have
become legendary in their exploits.
The
Teams have operated in every hellhole known to modern warfare
and come away with many victories, some bruises and a vast history
of achievements. Most SEAL missions are unreported and unknown to
the general public. Due to focus, dedication, training, and an attitude
that "Failure is NOT an option" the Teams have have been
very successful.
SEALs
are trained to operate in small units of one or two men
up to platoon strength of sixteen. However, they work best in squads
of eight or fewer. Most missions are clandestine in nature, planned
in exacting detail and executed with precision and swiftness. During
peacetime, SEALs find themselves with the same rigorous training
as during war. Training remains strict to enforce the belief that
the more you sweat in peacetime, the less you will bleed in war.
During
VIETNAM, SEAL Teams One and Two amassed a combined kill
ratio of 200:1
In
September 1962, SEAL Team Two, led by its commander,
departed for Fort Bragg in North California to receive training
in non-conventional warfare at the Army’s Special Forces Centre.
The
rise of the SEALs in 1966 closely followed the growth of the American
forces in Vietnam. So, a light detachment from SEAL Team Two of
the Atlantic fleet landed for the first time in Vietnam.
A very important event took place in late 1968,
on 31 January. More than 100,000 North Vietnamese and Vietcong fighters
attacked the large cities and the strategic points in the south.
Along with other American units, SEAL platoons were engaged in combat.
In one instance, the 8th platoon of SEAL Team Two
at Chau Doc near the Cambodian border, had to face more than 4,000
Vietnamese soldiers. But in spite of brilliant successes such as
the attack of the American embassy in Saigon or the capture of Hue,
the communists did not win over to their side the population of
South Vietnam and by mid February, the last positions still held
by Hanoi's forces were eliminated!
Some
48 SEALs were killed in Vietnam, their bodies were always
repatriated. In a year, SEAL Team One had lost nine men and SEAL
Team Two six elements.
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