View source for Frogman

{{short description|Tactical scuba diver}}
{{about|a type of combat diver}}

[[File:US Navy 050505-N-3093M-001 A member of SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team Two (SDVT-2) climbs aboard one of the team's SEAL Delivery Vehicles (SDV) before launching from the back of the Los Angeles-class attack submarine USS Philadelph.jpg|thumb|A SEAL Delivery Team member climbs aboard a delivery vehicle before launching from the back of the submarine [[USS Philadelphia (SSN-690)|USS ''Philadelphia'']].]]
{{war}}
A '''frogman''' is someone who is trained in [[scuba diving]] or [[human swimming|swimming]] underwater. The term often applies more to professional rather than recreational divers, especially those working in a tactical capacity that includes [[military]], and in some European countries, [[police]] work. Such personnel are also known by the more formal names of '''combat diver''', '''combatant diver''', or '''combat swimmer'''. The word ''frogman'' first arose in the stage name the "Fearless Frogman" of [[Paul Boyton]] in the 1870s<ref name=":1" /> and later was claimed by [[John Spence (frogman)|John Spence]], an enlisted member of the U.S. Navy and member of the [[OSS Maritime Unit]], to have been applied to him while he was training in a green waterproof suit.<ref name=latimes>{{cite news|first=Tony|last=Perry|title=John Spence dies at 95; Navy diver and pioneering WWII 'frogman' |url=http://www.latimes.com/obituaries/la-me-john-spence-20131104,0,5696985.story#axzz2lqGne5YD |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=2013-11-03 |access-date=2013-11-27}}</ref>

The term ''frogman'' is occasionally used to refer to a civilian scuba diver, such as in a [[police diving]] role.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2010-06-14 |title=The hidden world of police divers |language=en-GB |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8727869.stm |access-date=2023-03-07}}</ref>

In the United Kingdom, police divers have often been called "police frogmen".<ref>{{Cite web |title=APPENDIX'D' Relationship between the Police and the Schools |url=http://www.gov.scot/publications/kilbrandon-report/pages/22/ |access-date=2023-03-07 |website=www.gov.scot |language=en}}</ref> Some countries' tactical diver organizations include a translation of the word ''frogman'' in their official names, e.g., Denmark's ''[[Frømandskorpset]]''; others call themselves "combat divers" or similar.

==Scope of operations==
Tactical diving is a branch of [[professional diving]] carried out by armed forces and tactical units. They may be divided into:{{citation needed|date=September 2016}}
* Combat or assault divers.
* Special mission work divers (called "[[clearance diver]]s" in the British [[Royal Navy]] and [[Royal Australian Navy]]), who do general work underwater.
* Work divers who are trained in defusing [[naval mine|mine]]s and removing other explosives underwater.
These groups may overlap, and the same men may serve as assault divers and work divers, such as the Australian [[Clearance Diving Branch (RAN)]].

The range of operations performed by these operatives includes:{{citation needed|date=September 2016}}
*Amphibious assault: stealthy deployment of land or [[Naval boarding|boarding]] forces. The vast majority of combat swimmer missions are simply to get "from here to there" and arrive suitably equipped and in sufficient physical condition to fight on arrival. The deployment of tactical forces by water to assault land targets, oil platforms, or surface ship targets (as in boardings for seizure of evidence) is a major driver behind the equipping and training of combat swimmers. The purposes are many, but include feint and deception, counter-drug, law enforcement, counter-terrorism, and counter-proliferation missions.
*Sabotage: This includes putting [[limpet mine]]s on ships.
*Clandestine surveying and reconnaissance: [[Amphibious reconnaissance|Surveying a beach]] before a [[Amphibious assault|troop landing]], or other forms of unauthorized underwater surveying and reconnaissance in denied waters.
*Clandestine underwater work, e.g.:
** Recovering underwater objects.
** Clandestine fitting of monitoring devices on [[submarine communications cable]]s in enemy waters.
*Investigating unidentified divers, or a [[sonar]] echo that may be unidentified divers. Police diving work may be included.
*Checking ships, boats, structures, and harbors for limpet mines and other sabotage; and ordinary routine maintenance in war conditions.
*Underwater mine clearance and [[bomb disposal]].

Typically, a diver with closed circuit oxygen rebreathing equipment will stay within a depth limit of {{convert|20|ft|m}} with limited deeper excursions to a maximum of {{convert|50|ft|m}} because of the risk of seizure due to acute oxygen toxicity.<ref name=usn>{{cite book |title=US Navy Diving Manual, 6th revision |chapter=19 |page=13 |year=2006 |publisher=US Naval Sea Systems Command |location=United States |url=http://www.supsalv.org/00c3_publications.asp?destPage=00c3&pageID=3.9 |access-date=2008-06-15 |author=US Navy |archive-date=2008-05-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080502023541/http://www.supsalv.org/00c3_publications.asp?destPage=00c3&pageId=3.9 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The use of nitrox or mixed gas rebreathers can extend this depth range considerably, but this may be beyond the scope of operations, depending on the unit.

===Mission descriptions===
US and UK forces use these official definitions for mission descriptors:{{citation needed|date=September 2013}}
; Stealthy: keeping out of sight (e.g., underwater) when approaching the target.{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}
; Covert: carrying out an action of which the enemy may become aware, but whose perpetrator cannot easily be discovered or apprehended. Covert action often involves military force which cannot be hidden once it has happened. Stealth on approach, and frequently on departure, may be used.{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}
; Clandestine: it is intended that the enemy does not find out then or afterwards that the action has happened – for example, installing [[eavesdropping]] devices. Approach, installing the devices, and departure are all to be kept from the knowledge of the enemy. If the operation or its purpose is exposed, then the actor will usually make sure that the action at least remains "covert", or unattributable.{{quote without source|date=May 2017}}

===Defending against frogmen===
{{main|Defense against swimmer incursions}}

Anti-frogman techniques are security methods developed to protect watercraft, ports and installations, and other sensitive resources both in or nearby vulnerable waterways from potential threats or intrusions by frogmen.

==Equipment==
Frogmen on clandestine operations use [[rebreather]]s, as the bubbles released by [[open-circuit scuba]] would reveal them to surface lookouts and make a noise which [[hydrophone]]s could easily detect.{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}

== Origins of the name ==
A few different explanations have been given for the origin of the term frogman.
* [[Paul Boyton]] adopted the stage name ''The Fearless Frogman''. In the 1870s, he was a long distance swimmer who wore a rubber [[immersion suit]], with hood.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|last=Kehoe|first=Pat|date=2020-08-29|title=Paul Boyton - Fearless Frogman from Co Kildare|url=https://ireland-calling.com/features/paul-boyton-fearless-frogman-from-co-kildare/|access-date=2021-06-09|website=Ireland Calling|language=en-gb}}</ref><!-- Boynton invented or used a rubber suit but there is no mention of a hood shaped like a frog, and the photo shows a hood not shaped like a frog. -->
* In an interview with historian Erick Simmel, [[John Spence (frogman)|John Spence]] claimed that the name "frogman" was coined while he was training in a green [[waterproof]] suit, "Someone saw me surfacing one day and yelled out, 'Hey, frogman!' The name stuck for all of us."<ref name="latimes" />

==History==
{{see also|Timeline of underwater technology}}
[[File:British navy frogman.jpg|thumb|200px|A 1945 British navy frogman with complete gear, including the [[Davis Submerged Escape Apparatus|Davis apparatus]], a [[rebreather]] originally conceived in 1910 by [[Robert Davis (inventor)|Robert Davis]] as an emergency submarine escape set.]]
In ancient [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] and [[Ancient Greece|Greek]] times, there were instances of men swimming or diving for combat, sometimes using a hollow plant stem or a long bone as a [[Snorkel (swimming)|snorkel]]. Diving with snorkel is mentioned by [[Aristotle]] (4th century BC).<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/aristotleonpart00arisgoog#page/n98/mode/2up Aristotle, On the Parts of Animals, ii, 16,  transl. by W.Ogle, London, 1882, p. 51]:<br />
"Just then as divers are sometimes provided with instruments for respiration, through which they can draw air from above the water, and thus may remain for a long time under the sea, so also have elephants been furnished by nature with their lengthened nostril, and, whenever they have to traverse the water, they lift this up above the surface and breathe through it."</ref> The earliest descriptions of frogmen in war are found in [[Thucydides]]' ''[[History of the Peloponnesian War]]''. The first instance was in 425 BC, when the [[Battle of Sphacteria|Athenian fleet besieged the Spartans]] on the small island of Sphacteria. The Spartans managed to get supplies from the mainland by underwater swimmers towing submerged sacks of supplies. In another incident of the same war, in 415 BC, the Athenians used combat divers in the port of [[Syracuse, Sicily]]. The Syracuseans had planted vertical wooden poles in the bottom around their port, to prevent the Athenian [[trireme]]s from entering. The poles were submerged, not visible above the sea level. The Athenians used various means to cut these obstacles, including divers with saws.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=6PZgB2Cqw-QC&q=%CE%BA%CE%BF%CE%BB%CF%85%CE%BC%CE%B2%CE%B7%CF%84%CE%B1%CE%AF Thukydides, History of the Peloponnesian War, edition Ambrosio Firmin Didot, Paris, 1842, book 4, 26, and b. 7, 25.] In Greek and Latin.</ref> It is believed that the underwater sawing required snorkels for breathing and diving weights to keep the divers stable.<ref>Pierros D. Nick, ''The tactics of the enemies in the sea warfare during the Peloponnesian War''. 1st Pan-Corinthian Congress, Corinth, Greece, 2008. In Greek. N. Pierros is a Civil Engineer and author of historical essays.</ref>

Also, in the writings of [[Al-Maqrizi]], it is also claimed that the naval forces of the [[Fatimid Caliphate]], in an engagement with [[Byzantine]] forces off the coast of [[Messina]] henceforth referred to as the [[Battle of the Straits]], employed a novel strategy with strong similarities to modern-day frogmen tactics. In the writings of [[Heinz Halm]], who studied and translated the writings of Al-Maqrizi and other contemporary Islamic historians, it is described: "They would dive from their own ship and swim over to the enemy ship; they would fasten ropes to its rudder, along which earthenware pots containing [[Greek fire]] were then made to slide over to the enemy ship, and shattered on the sternpost." Apparently, this tactic succeeded in destroying many Byzantine vessels, and the battle ended in a major Fatimid victory; according to the Arab historians, a thousand prisoners were taken, including the Byzantine admiral, Niketas, with many of his officers, as well as a heavy Indian sword which bore an inscription indicating that it had once belonged to [[Muhammad]].{{cn|date=October 2024}}

The Hungarian [[Chronicon Pictum]] claims that [[Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor|Henry III]]'s 1052 invasion of [[Hungary]] was defeated by a skillful diver who sabotaged Henry's supply fleet. The unexpected sinking of the ships is confirmed by German chronicles.{{citation needed|date=September 2016}}
On 4 November 1918, during World War I, Italian frogmen sunk the Austro-Hungarian ship ''Viribus Unitis''.

Italy started World War II with a commando frogman force already trained. Britain, Germany, the United States, and the [[Soviet Union]] started commando frogman forces during World War II.{{citation needed|date=September 2016}}

===First frogmen===
The word ''frogman'' appeared first in the stage name ''The Fearless Frogman'' of [[Paul Boyton]], who since the 1870s broke records in long distance swimming to demonstrate a newly invented rubber [[immersion suit]], with an inflated hood.<ref name=":1" />

The first modern frogmen were the World War II [[Italian commando frogmen]] of ''[[Decima Flottiglia MAS]]'' (now "ComSubIn": [[Comando Raggruppamento Subacquei e Incursori Teseo Tesei]]) which formed in 1938 and was first in action in 1940. Originally these divers were called "''Uomini Gamma''" because they were members of the top secret special unit called "''Gruppo Gamma''", which originated from the kind of [[Pirelli]] rubber skin-suit<ref>{{Cite web|title=Pirelli Diving Suit|url=http://www.therebreathersite.nl/Zuurstofrebreathers/Italian/pirelli_diving_suit.htm|access-date=2021-03-17|website=www.therebreathersite.nl}}</ref> nicknamed ''muta gamma'' used by these divers. Later they were nicknamed "''Uomini Rana''," Italian for "frog men", because of an underwater swimming [[frog kick]] style, similar to that of frogs, or because their fins looked like frog's feet.<ref>Manuale Federale di Immersione - author Duilio Marcante</ref>{{verify source|date=September 2016}}{{request quotation|date=September 2016}}

This special corps used an early oxygen rebreather [[scuba set]], the ''Auto Respiratore ad Ossigeno'' (A.R.O), a development of the [[Drägerwerk|Dräger]] oxygen [[self-contained breathing apparatus]] designed for the mining industry and of the [[Davis Submerged Escape Apparatus]] made by Siebe, Gorman & Co and by Bergomi, designed for escaping from sunken submarines. This was used from about 1920 for [[spearfishing]] by Italian sport divers, modified and adapted by the Italian navy engineers for safe underwater use and built by Pirelli and SALVAS from about 1933, and so became a precursor of the modern diving rebreather.<ref>{{cite web|first=Alejandro Sergio |last=Marí|url=http://www.therebreathersite.nl/Zuurstofrebreathers/Italian/pirelli_aro_ww_ii.htm|title=Pirelli ARO WW II|publisher=Therebreathersite.nl (Janwillem Bech)}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://history.flyer.it/rebreathers/Italiano/sezioni/storia/frameset.htm |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120710031009/http://history.flyer.it/rebreathers/Italiano/sezioni/storia/frameset.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=2012-07-10 |title=Rebreathers - Rebreather Autorespiratori per l'Immersione Subacquea a recupero di gas }}</ref>

For this new way of underwater diving, the Italian frogmen trained in [[La Spezia]], [[Liguria]], using the newly available [[Genoa|Genoese]] [[free diving]] spearfishing equipment; [[diving mask]], [[Snorkel (swimming)|snorkel]], [[swimfin]]s, and rubber [[dry suit]], the first specially made [[diving watch]] (the luminescent [[Panerai]]), and the new A.R.O. scuba unit.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.paginedidifesa.it/|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111002210911/http://www.paginedidifesa.it/2005/guerrini_051213.html|url-status=dead|title=Libri. Teseo Tesei e gli Assaltatori della Regia Marina, di Gianni Bianchi|archivedate=Oct 2, 2011|date=December 13, 2005|accessdate=Sep 3, 2022}}</ref> This was a revolutionary alternative way to dive, and the start of the transition from the usual heavy underwater diving equipment of the [[Standard diving dress|hard hat divers]] which had been in general use since the 18th century, to self-contained divers, free of being tethered by an air line and rope connection.{{citation needed|date=September 2016}}

===Wartime operations===
After [[Military history of Italy during World War II#Italy enters the war: June 1940|Italy declared war]], the ''[[Decima Flottiglia MAS]]'' (''Xª MAS'') attempted several frogmen attacks on British naval bases in the Mediterranean between June 1940 and July 1941, but none were successful, because of equipment failure or early detection by British forces. On September 10, 1941, eight ''Xª MAS'' frogmen were inserted by submarine close to the British harbour at [[Gibraltar]], where using [[human torpedo]]es to penetrate the defences, sank three merchant ships before escaping through neutral Spain. An even more successful attack, the [[Raid on Alexandria (1941)|Raid on Alexandria]], was mounted on 19 December on the harbour at [[Alexandria]], again using human torpedoes. The raid resulted in disabling the [[battleship]]s {{HMS|Queen Elizabeth|1913|6}} and {{HMS|Valiant|1914|6}} together with a [[destroyer]] and an [[oil tanker]], but all six frogmen were captured.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.usnwc.edu/getattachment/f9f595b1-7547-4929-8d05-b2e798390a3c/Frogmen-against-a-Fleet--The-Italian-Attack-on-Ale.aspx |title=Frogmen against a fleet: The Italian Attack on Alexandria 18/19 December 1941 |last1=O'Hara |first1=Vincent P. |last2=Cernuschi |first2=Enrico |website=www.usnwc.edu |publisher=Naval War College Review |access-date=19 September 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170212032918/https://www.usnwc.edu/getattachment/f9f595b1-7547-4929-8d05-b2e798390a3c/Frogmen-against-a-Fleet--The-Italian-Attack-on-Ale.aspx |archive-date=12 February 2017 }}</ref> Frogmen were deployed by stealth in [[Algeciras]], Spain, from where they launched a number of [[Limpet mine|limpet-mine]] attacks on Allied shipping at anchor off Gibraltar.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Borghese|first=Valerio|title=Sea Devils: Italian Navy Commandos in World War II|publisher=Naval Institute Press|year=1995|isbn=1-55750-072-X|pages=208–09}}</ref> Some time later they refitted the interned [[Italian auxiliary ship Olterra|Italian tanker ''Olterra'']] as a mothership for human torpedoes, carrying out three assaults on ships at Gibraltar between late 1942 and early 1943, sinking six of them.<ref>Borghese (1995), pp. 242-43</ref><ref>Borghese (1995), pp. 257-59</ref>

[[Nazi Germany]] raised a number of frogmen units under the auspices of both the ''[[Kriegsmarine]]'' and the ''[[Abwehr]]'', often relying on Italian expertise and equipment. In June 1944, a ''[[K-Verband]]'' frogman unit failed to destroy the bridge at [[Bénouville, Calvados|Bénouville]], now known as [[Pegasus Bridge]], during the [[Battle of Normandy]]. In March 1945, a frogman squad from the [[Brandenburgers]] was deployed from their base in Venice to destroy the [[Ludendorff Bridge]] over the [[Rhine]] which had been captured by the US Army in the [[Battle of Remagen]]. Seven frogmen swam {{convert|17|km}} downriver to the bridge carrying explosives, but were spotted by [[Canal Defence Light]]s. Four died, two from [[hypothermia]], and the rest were captured.<ref>{{cite book |last=Blocksdorf |first=Helmut |date=2008 |title=Hitler's Secret Commandos: Operations of the K-Verband |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O_rLDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT286 |location=Barnsley, South Yorkshire |publisher=Pen & Sword Military |isbn=978-1844157839}}</ref>

The British [[Royal Navy]] had captured an Italian human torpedo during a failed attack on Malta; they developed a copy called the [[Chariot manned torpedo|Chariot]] and formed a unit called the [[British commando frogmen|Experimental Submarine Flotilla]], which later merged with the [[Special Boat Service]]. A number of Chariot operations were attempted, most notably [[Operation Title]] in October 1942, an attack on the [[German battleship Tirpitz|German battleship ''Tirpitz'']], which had to be abandoned when a storm hit the fishing boat which was towing the Chariots into position.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nmrn-portsmouth.org.uk/sites/default/files/styles/homepage_collections_slidshows/public/modules/image/Attack%20on%20the%20Tirpitz.pdf |title=Information sheet no 101 - Attack on the Tirpitz |year=2014 |website=www.nmrn-portsmouth.org.uk |publisher=National Museum of the Royal Navy |access-date=26 September 2016}}</ref> Operation Principal in January 1943 was an attack by eight Chariots on [[La Maddalena]] and [[Palermo]] harbours; although all the Chariots were lost, the new [[Italian cruiser Ulpio Traiano|Italian cruiser ''Ulpio Traiano'']] was sunk.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://codenames.info/operation/principal-iii/ |title=Operation Principal (iii) |last=Chant |first=Christoper |date= |website=codenames.info |publisher= |access-date=24 May 2023}}</ref> The last and most successful British operation resulted in sinking two [[Ocean liner|liner]]s in [[Phuket]] harbour in [[Thailand]] in October 1944.<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Hood |editor-first=Jean |year=2007 |title=Submarine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FH1122l8pXkC&q=Chariot+attack+on+%22phuket%22+1944&pg=PA505 |publisher=Conway Maritime |pages=505–506 |isbn=978-1-84486-090-6}}</ref> Royal Navy divers did not use fins until December 1942.{{citation needed|date=September 2016}}

===Wartime developments===
In 1933 Italian companies were already producing underwater oxygen rebreathers, but the first diving set known as SCUBA was invented in 1939<ref>{{Cite web|last=Downey|first=Sally A.|date=2011-02-21|title=Christian J. Lambertsen, 93, developer of the first scuba gear|url=https://www.inquirer.com/philly/obituaries/20110221_Christian_J__Lambertsen__93__developer_of_the_first_scuba_gear.html|access-date=2021-06-09|website=The Philadelphia Inquirer|language=en}}</ref> by [[Christian Lambertsen]], who originally called it the Lambertsen Amphibious Respirator Unit (LARU)<ref name=Shapiro2011>{{cite news|last=Shapiro|first=T Rees|title=Christian J. Lambertsen, OSS officer who created early scuba device, dies at 93|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/18/AR2011021802873.html|access-date=16 May 2011|newspaper=Washington Post|date=18 February 2011}}</ref> and patented it in 1940.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.google.com/patents/about?id=5PRKAAAAEBAJ|title=Lambertsen's patent in ''Google Patents''|accessdate=Sep 3, 2022}}{{dead link|date=June 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> He later renamed it the Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus, which, contracted to SCUBA, eventually became the generic term for both open circuit and rebreather autonomous underwater breathing equipment.

Lambertsen demonstrated it to the [[Office of Strategic Services]] (OSS) (after already being rejected by the U.S. Navy) in a pool at a hotel in Washington D.C.<ref name="washingtonpost.com">{{cite news| url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/18/AR2011021802873.html | newspaper=The Washington Post | first=T. Rees | last=Shapiro | title=Christian J. Lambertsen, OSS officer who created early scuba device, dies at 93 | date=2011-02-19}}</ref> OSS not only bought into the concept, they hired Lambertsen to lead the program and build up the dive element of their [[OSS Maritime Unit|Maritime Unit]].<ref name="washingtonpost.com"/> The OSS was the predecessor of the [[Central Intelligence Agency]]; the maritime element still exists inside the CIA's [[Special Activities Division]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://cia.americanspecialops.com/|title=CIA Special Operations Group &#124; Special Activities Division|website=cia.americanspecialops.com|accessdate=Sep 3, 2022}}</ref>

[[John Spence (frogman)|John Spence]], an enlisted member of the U.S. Navy, was the first man selected to join the OSS group.<ref name=latimes/>

===Postwar operations===
In April 1956, Commander [[Lionel Crabb]], a wartime pioneer of Royal Navy combat diving, disappeared during a covert inspection of the hull of the [[Soviet Navy]] {{sclass|Sverdlov|cruiser|1}}, {{ship|Soviet cruiser|Ordzhonikidze||2}}, while she was moored in [[Portsmouth Harbour]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mcdoa.org.uk/Buster%20Crabb%20Enigma.htm |title=The Buster Crabb Enigma |last=Hoole |first=Rob |date=2007 |website=mcdoa.org.uk |publisher=Minewarfare & Clearance Diving Officers' Association |access-date=21 July 2017 }}</ref>

The [[Shayetet 13]] commandos of the [[Israeli Navy]] have carried out a number of underwater raids on harbors. They were initially trained by veterans of ''Xª MAS'' and used Italian equipment.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.zionism-israel.com/dic/Shayetet_13.htm |title=Zionism and Israel - Encyclopedic Dictionary - Shayetet 13 |last=Isseroff  |first=Ami  |date=2005 |website=www.zionism-israel.com |access-date=12 March 2017 }}</ref> As part of [[Operation Raviv]] in 1969, eight frogmen used two human torpedoes to enter Ras Sadat naval base near [[Suez]], where they destroyed two [[motor torpedo boat]]s with mines.<ref>{{cite book |last=Gawrych |first=George Walter |date=2000 |title=The Albatross of Decisive Victory: War and Policy Between Egypt and Israel in the 1967 and 1973 Arab-Israeli Wars |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Da8qEtrF2sMC&q=operation+raviv+frogmen&pg=PA111 |publisher=Praeger |page=111 |isbn=978-0313313028 }}</ref>

During the 1982 [[Falklands War]], the [[Servicio de Inteligencia Naval (Argentina)|Argentinian Naval Intelligence Service]] planned an attack on British warships at Gibraltar. Code named [[Operation Algeciras]], three frogmen, recruited from a former anti-government insurgent group, were to plant mines on the ships' hulls. The operation was abandoned when the divers were arrested by Spanish police and deported.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://newhistories.group.shef.ac.uk/wordpress/wordpress/operation-algeciras-how-argentina-planned-to-attack-gibraltar/ |title=Operation Algeciras: How Argentina planned to attack Gibraltar |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=21 May 2011 |website=newhistories.group.shef.ac.uk |publisher=New Histories |access-date=12 March 2017 }}</ref>

In 1985, the [[Moruroa#French nuclear weapons testing|French nuclear weapons tests]] at [[Moruroa]] in the Pacific Ocean was being contested by environmental protesters led by the [[Greenpeace]] campaign ship, {{ship||Rainbow Warrior|1955|2}}. The [[Action Division]] of the French [[Directorate-General for External Security]] devised a plan to [[Sinking of the Rainbow Warrior|sink the ''Rainbow Warrior'']] while it was berthed in harbor at [[Auckland]] in [[New Zealand]]. Two divers from the Division posed as tourists and attached two limpet mines to the ship's hull; the resulting explosion sank the ship and killed a Netherlands citizen on board. Two agents from the team, but not the divers, were arrested by the [[New Zealand Police]] and later convicted of [[manslaughter]]. The French government finally admitted responsibility two months later.<ref>{{cite book|title=Reports of International Arbitral Awards : Case concerning the differences between New Zealand and France arising from the Rainbow Warrior affair|date=6 July 1986|publisher=United Nations|page=200 |url=http://legal.un.org/riaa/cases/vol_XIX/199-221.pdf|access-date=12 March 2017}}</ref>

In the U.S. Navy, frogmen were officially phased out in 1983 and all active duty frogmen were transferred to SEAL units. In 1989, during the [[Operation Just Cause|U.S. invasion of Panama]], a team of four U.S. Navy SEALs using [[rebreather]]s conducted a combat swimmer attack on the ''Presidente Porras'', a gunboat and yacht belonging to [[Manuel Noriega]]. The commandos attached explosives to the vessel as it was tied to a pier in the [[Panama Canal]], escaping only after being attacked with grenades.<ref name="Hoyt2011">{{cite book|first=Edwin P. |last=Hoyt|title=SEALs at War|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fDvNvnMrc1QC&pg=PT159|date=15 June 2011|publisher=Random House Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-307-57006-2|pages=159–}}</ref> Three years later during [[Operation Restore Hope]], members of [[SEAL Team One]] swam to shore in Somalia to measure beach composition, water depth, and shore gradient ahead of a Marine landing. The mission resulted in several of the SEALs becoming ill as Somalia's waters were contaminated with raw sewage.<ref name="Mann2014">{{cite book|first=Don |last=Mann|title=How to Become a Navy SEAL: Everything You Need to Know to Become a Member of the US Navy's Elite Force|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zvefAwAAQBAJ&pg=PT18|date=5 August 2014|publisher=Skyhorse Publishing|isbn=978-1-62873-487-4|pages=18–}}</ref>

In 1978, the U.S. Navy Special Operations Officer (1140) community was established by combining Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) and Expendable Ordnance Management officers with Diving and Salvage officers. Special Ops Officers would become qualified in at least two functional areas - normally EOD or Diving and Salvage, and Expendable Ordnance management. Officers trained in diving and salvage techniques were now allowed to follow a career pattern that took advantage of their training, and Unrestricted line officers were now permitted to specialize in salvage, with repeat tours of duty, and advanced training. Career patterns were developed to ensure that officers assigned to command were seasoned in salvage operations and well qualified in the technical aspects of their trade. "The combination gave a breadth and depth of professionalism to Navy salvage that had not been possible before."<ref>url=https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/citations/ADA278438</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery mode="packed" heights="160px">
File:Nageurcombat ix.jpg|A French frogman with chest counterlung loop rebreather with two [[Breathing tube (breathing apparatus)|breathing tubes]] (model "Oxygers", 1957).
File:" 10 - ITALY - Gamma-della-X.gif|Italian [[World War II]] frogman of "Gruppo Gamma"
File:The Royal Navy during the Second World War A26571.jpg|Royal Navy divers in [[Sladen suit]]s during World War II
File:USMC combatant diving (2nd Recon Bn).jpg|[[United States Marine Corps|USMC]] 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion refreshing in combatant diving with the Draeger LAR V rebreather.
File:Taistelusukeltaja mallinukke 2.JPG|Mannequin wearing Finnish Navy combat diver equipment. The chest rebreather is likely a Viper S-10.
File:Maiale SLC.jpg|The "maiale" or "siluro a lenta corsa": first underwater transport way used by Italian frogmen in World War II
File:Typ XXI Kampfschwimmerschleuse.JPG|Diver lock for frogmen on a type XXI U-boat.
File:SEAL Delivery Team operations.jpg|A Navy diver and special operator from SEAL Delivery Team (SDV) 2 perform SDV operations with the nuclear-powered guided-missile submarine {{USS|Florida|SSGN-728|6}}
File:SDV Mk IX US Navy Submarine Museum.jpg|US Navy SDV MK IX Swimmer Delivery Vehicle. Non-watertight submersible held two scuba-equipped swimmers.
File:SEAL Delivery Vehicle loading.jpg|A SEAL Delivery Vehicle (SDV) is loaded aboard the ''Los Angeles''-class fast attack submarine {{USS|Dallas|SSN-700|6}}. A Dry Deck Shelter (DDS) is attached to the submarine's forward escape trunk to provide a dry environment for Navy Seals to prepare for special warfare exercises or operations. DDS is the primary supporting craft for the SDV
File:US Navy 050505-N-3093M-002 A member of SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team Two (SDVT-2) prepares to launch one of the team's SEAL Delivery Vehicles (SDV) from the back of the Los Angeles-class attack submarine USS Philadelphia (SSN 690).jpg| A member of [[United States Navy SEALs|SEAL]] Delivery Vehicle Team Two prepares to launch one of the team's SEAL Delivery Vehicles from the back of {{USS|Philadelphia|SSN-690|6}} on a training exercise. The SDVs are used to carry Navy SEALs from a submerged submarine to enemy targets while staying underwater and undetected.
File:SEAL Delivery Vehicle operations.jpg|Navy divers and special operators attached to SEAL Delivery Team 2, perform SDV operations with USS ''Florida''
</gallery>

== See also ==
* [[List of military diving units]]
* {{annotated link|Lionel Crabb}}
* [[Military diving]]
* [[Underwater Demolition Team]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* Frogman operations: [[Decima Flottiglia MAS]], [[Underwater Demolition Team]], [[human torpedo]], [[Sinking of the Rainbow Warrior]], [[Russian commando frogmen]]
*{{cite book|title= America's first frogman : the Draper Kauffman story|first= Elizabeth Kauffman|last=Bush|year= 2004|publisher= Naval Institute Press|isbn=1-59114-098-6|oclc=	55699399}}
*{{cite book|title= Frogman V.C.|first= Ian|last= Fraser|date= 1957|publisher=Angus & Robertson|oclc=1599838}}
*{{cite book|title=Frogman: Commander Crabb's story|first= Marshal|last=Pugh|date=1956|oclc=1280137}}
*{{cite book|title= Frogman Spy: the mysterious disappearance of Commander 'Buster' Crabb|first1= Michael G. |last1=Welham|first2= Jacqui|last2= Welham|date= 1990|publisher=W.H. Allen|isbn=1-85227-138-8|oclc=	21979335}}
*Tony Groom: DIVER. Royal Naval Clearance Divers work in the Falklands conflict. {{ISBN|978-1574092691}}.

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline}}
* [https://paneraireview.com/panerai-history/panerai-during-world-war-two/ Panerai during World War Two] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190414133459/https://paneraireview.com/panerai-history/panerai-during-world-war-two/ |date=2019-04-14 }}
* [http://users.frii.com/rdruss/frogmenbook.html Frogman - Training, Equipment, and Operations of Our Navy's Undersea Fighters - C.B. Colby] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190309180405/http://users.frii.com/rdruss/frogmenbook.html |date=2019-03-09 }}
* [http://classicdivebooks.customer.netspace.net.au/oeclassics-military.html List of books about frogmen]

{{Underwater diving|prodiv}}

[[Category:1870s neologisms]]
[[Category:Combat diving]]
[[Category:Special forces]]
[[Category:Armed forces diving]]
[[Category:Combat occupations of the late modern period]]