View source for United States Naval Special Warfare Command

{{Short description|Naval component of United States Special Operations Command}}
{{redirect|Naval Special Warfare Command|the Thai Naval Special Warfare Command|Naval Special Warfare Command (Thailand)}}
{{distinguish|Naval Surface Warfare Center}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2022}}
{{Infobox military unit
| unit_name = United States Naval Special Warfare Command
| image = US NSWC insignia.jpg
| caption = Naval Special Warfare Command [[Seal (emblem)|official seal]]
| dates = 16 April 1987 – present<ref name="2014 SOCOM Fact book">{{cite book |author=SOCOM Public Affairs |title=SOCOM Fact Book 2014|url=http://www.socom.mil/News/Documents/USSOCOM_Fact_Book_2014.pdf|year=2014|publisher=SOCOM Public Affairs |access-date=21 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131204133407/http://www.socom.mil/News/Documents/USSOCOM_Fact_Book_2014.pdf|archive-date=4 December 2013}}</ref>
| country = {{flagu|United States}}
| branch = {{Navy|United States}}
| type = [[Special operations]]
| role = [[Amphibious warfare]]<br>[[Amphibious reconnaissance]]<br>[[Direct action (military)|Direct action]]<br>[[Brown-water navy|Riverine Warfare]]<br>[[Underwater demolition]]<br><ref name="Naval Heritage NSW">{{cite web|url=https://www.history.navy.mil/browse-by-topic/communities/special-warfare.html|title=Naval Special Warfare|publisher=naval.mil|date=|access-date=22 June 2024}}</ref>

| size = 10,000+ positions authorized:<ref name="dvids1">{{cite web|url=https://www.dvidshub.net/news/427675/naval-special-warfare-command-holds-change-command-ceremony|title=Naval Special Warfare Command Holds Change of Command Ceremony|publisher=dvidshub.net|date=19 August 2022|access-date=19 October 2022}}</ref>
* ≈3,000 SEAL operators
* ≈755 SWCC crewman
* 4,600 combat support and combat service support personnel
* ≈700 reservists
* 1,200 civilians
| command_structure = {{dodseal|USSOCOM}} [[United States Special Operations Command|U.S. Special Operations Command]]
| garrison = [[Naval Amphibious Base Coronado]], [[San Diego County, California]], U.S. [[Joint Expeditionary Base–Little Creek]], [[Virginia Beach, Virginia]], U.S.
| garrison_label = Headquarter
| nickname =
| patron =
| motto =
| colors =
| march =
| mascot =
| battles = [[Operation Earnest Will]]<br />[[Operation Prime Chance]]<br />[[Operation Just Cause]]
* [[Operation Nifty Package]]
[[Operation Desert Storm]]<br />[[Operation Restore Hope]]<br />[[Operation Gothic Serpent]]
* [[Battle of Mogadishu (1993)|Battle of Mogadishu]]
[[Operation Uphold Democracy]]<br />
[[Operation Enduring Freedom]]
*[[War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)|War in Afghanistan]]
**[[Operation Red Wings]]
*[[Operation Enduring Freedom – Horn of Africa]]
**[[Operation Ocean Shield]]
***[[2013 raid on Barawe]]
*[[Operation Enduring Freedom – Philippines]]
**[[Siege of Marawi]]
[[Operation Iraqi Freedom]]
*[[Battle of Al Faw (2003)|Battle of Al Faw]]
*[[Battle of Umm Qasr]]
*[[Battle of Ramadi (2006)|Battle of Ramadi]]
[[War in North-West Pakistan]]<br />
[[Operation Inherent Resolve]]
| anniversaries =
| current_commander = Rear Admiral Walter H. Allman III<ref name="Allman">{{cite web|url=https://www.navy.mil/Leadership/Flag-Officer-Biographies/BioDisplay/Article/4299774/rear-admiral-walter-h-allman-iii/|title=Acting Commander, Naval Special Warfare|publisher=navy.mil|date=10 September 2025|access-date=27 September 2025}}</ref>
}}

The '''United States Naval Special Warfare Command''' ('''USNSWC'''), also known as '''NAVSPECWARCOM''' and '''WARCOM''',<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/what%e2%80%99s-wrong-with-the-rest-of-socom-warcom-afsoc-and-marsoc|title=What's Wrong with the Rest of SOCOM?: WARCOM, AFSOC, and MARSOC &#124; Small Wars Journal|website=smallwarsjournal.com|access-date=23 October 2020}}</ref> is the [[United States Navy|naval]] component of [[United States Special Operations Command]], the [[Unified Combatant Command|unified command]] that oversees and conducts the nation's [[special operations]] and missions.

Originating in the [[Unconventional warfare|unconventional]] naval units formed during [[World War II]], WARCOM was established on 16 April 1987 at [[Naval Amphibious Base Coronado]] in [[San Diego]], California. Its mission is to provide leadership, doctrinal guidance, resources, and oversight to special operations carried out in [[wikt:maritime|maritime]] and [[littoral]] environments.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.navsoc.navy.mil/ |title=Naval Special Warfare |publisher=U.S. Navy |access-date=2012-09-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080214064830/http://www.navsoc.navy.mil/ |archive-date=14 February 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> WARCOM specializes in a broad range of tactical areas, including unconventional warfare, direct action, counterterrorism, special reconnaissance, and personnel recovery.

WARCOM is organized primarily around eight [[Navy SEAL]] teams, three [[Special Boat Teams|special boat teams]], and various supporting commands, totaling about 9,200 personnel. Units can operate independently, as part of [[carrier battle group]]s and [[amphibious ready group]]s, or integrated with other U.S. special operations forces. By using the [[United States Navy]]'s ships, submarines, and overseas facilities, WARCOM forces can be deployed rapidly around the world.{{Citation needed|date=March 2023}}

== Background ==
Today's U.S. Navy [[special warfare]] operators trace their origins to various units formed during [[World War II]], including the [[#Scouts & Raiders|Scouts and Raiders]], Naval Combat Demolition Units, [[Office of Strategic Services]] Operational Swimmers, Underwater Demolition Teams, and [[Torpedo boat#Motor torpedo craft|Motor Torpedo Boat]] Squadrons.<ref name="navysealmuseum.com">{{Cite web|url=https://www.navysealmuseum.org/tickets/seal-history-origins-naval-special-warfare-wwii|title=SEAL History: Origins of Naval Special Warfare-WWII|website=National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum|access-date=23 October 2020}}</ref> In the Vietnam era, the Navy's special units included separate Underwater Demolition Teams (the successors to Navy Combat Demolition Units) and SEAL teams (successors to Scouts and Raiders). In 1983, the Underwater Demolition Teams were merged into the SEAL teams.

A detailed history of Naval Special Warfare, including writings by members who have served in the various NSW units, is available at the [[National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum]] website, while the facility itself has an extensive collection of related artifacts on display.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.navysealmuseum.org/about-navy-seals/seal-history-the-naval-special-warfare-storyseal-history-the-naval-special-warfare-story|title=SEAL History: The Story of Naval Special Warfare|website=National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum|access-date=23 October 2020}}</ref>

=== World War II ===
By the time the United States became involved in [[World War II]], [[Adolf Hitler]] and the [[Axis powers|Axis forces]] had control over a large portion of [[European Theatre of World War II|Europe]], Asia and [[North African Campaign|North Africa]]. If the Allied forces were to stand a chance, there would have to be several full-scale landings. The U.S. Navy decided that to do the job right required sending in their own. They needed men to reconnoiter the landing beaches, take note of obstacles and defenses and ultimately guide the landing forces in. Later, during the war, the Army Engineers passed down demolition jobs to the U.S. Navy. They were to clear any obstacles and/or defenses in the nearshore area, beginning a tradition that continues today.
<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://navysealmuseum.com/about-navy-seals/seal-history-the-naval-special-warfare-story/seal-history-origins-of-naval-special-warfare-wwii/|title = SEAL History: Origins of Naval Special Warfare-WWII}}</ref>

==== Scouts and Raiders ====
{{See also|Observer Group}}

The Navy Scouts and Raiders were created before the Navy Combat Demolition Units (NCDUs). The Scouts and Raiders were first formed 15 August 1942,<ref name="navyseals.com">{{Cite web|url=https://navyseals.com/nsw/navy-seal-history/|title=Navy SEAL history|access-date=23 October 2020}}</ref> nine months after the [[attack on Pearl Harbor]], from the [[Observer Group]], a joint [[United States Marine Corps|Marine Corps]]–[[United States Army|Army]]–[[United States Navy|Navy]] unit. The Observer Group was the first unit trained in [[amphibious reconnaissance]].<ref>Shinn, lstLt Leo B. (April 1945). "Amphibious Reconnaissance". ''Marine Corps Gazette'' '''29''' (4).</ref> They trained in [[inflatable boat]] insertions from [[submarine]]s around the [[Chesapeake Bay]] and at the [[Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek|Amphibious Training Base (ATB) Little Creek]] in [[Virginia]] and in [[Fort Pierce, Florida]]. They were training for an intense clandestine mission in North Africa.<ref name="Meyers, Amphib Recon">Bruce F. Meyers, ''Swift, Silent, and Deadly: Marine Amphibious Reconnaissance in the Pacific, 1942–1945'', (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 2004).</ref>

With US Marines limited to the Pacific Theatre of Operations, the Observer Group was disbanded, with the Marine Corps counterpart forming the [[United States Marine Corps Amphibious Reconnaissance Battalion|Amphib Recon Company]]; the Army/Navy unit formed the '''Scouts and Raiders''' with the Army later leaving. The U.S. Navy began the Scouts and Raiders to provide [[reconnaissance]] and [[raid (military)|raiding]] missions to support amphibious landings. The unit utilized two men to [[platoon]]-sized operations to conduct raids and sabotage missions.<ref>pp.168–177 Brutsman, Bud, & Dockery, Kevin. "Scouts and Raiders" in ''Navy SEALs: The Early Years'' Berkley Publishing 2007</ref>

The unit continued its deployment to [[North African Campaign|North Africa]] as planned,<ref name="Meyers, Amphib Recon" /> where they earned eight [[Navy Cross (United States)|Navy Crosses]]. [[Robert Halperin]], a former NFL football player and future Olympic medalist, received a [[Presidential Unit Citation (United States)|Presidential Citation]] and the Navy Cross for his work during the amphibious landings in [[French Morocco]].<ref name="chicagotribune1985">{{cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1985/05/09/robert-halperin-77-war-hero-executive/ |title=Robert Halperin, 77, War Hero, Executive |work=Chicago Tribune|date=9 May 1985 |author=Kenan Heise |access-date=11 July 2011}}</ref> This was just the first of many war-time missions for the versatile Scouts and Raiders.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.navyfrogmen.com/Scouts%20and%20Raiders.html |title=Scouts & Raiders history |access-date=2 January 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080226225415/http://www.navyfrogmen.com/Scouts%20and%20Raiders.html |archive-date=26 February 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===== First group =====
The first group included [[Phil H. Bucklew]], the "Father of Naval Special Warfare", after whom the [[Naval Special Warfare Center]] building is named. Commissioned in October 1942, this group saw combat in November 1942 during [[Operation Torch]] on the North African coast. Scouts and Raiders also supported landings in [[Allied invasion of Sicily|Sicily]], [[Operation Avalanche (World War II)#Salerno landings|Salerno]], [[Operation Shingle|Anzio]], [[Invasion of Normandy|Normandy]], and southern France.<ref name="navysealmuseum.com" />

===== Second group =====
A [[combined operations]] joint US-Australian unit, Special Service Unit No. 1 (SSU 1), was established on 7 July 1943. Its first mission, in September 1943, was at [[Finschhafen District|Finschafen]] on [[New Guinea]]. Later operations were at [[Gasmata]], [[Arawe]], [[Cape Gloucester (Papua New Guinea)|Cape Gloucester]], and the East and South coast of [[New Britain]], all without any loss of personnel. Conflicts arose over operational matters, and the unit was dissolved.

The US Navy personnel from SSU 1 became the basis of the [[7th Amphibious Scouts]]. They received a new mission, to go ashore with the assault boats, mark channels with [[buoy]]s, erect markers for the incoming craft, handle casualties, take offshore soundings, blow up beach obstacles, and maintain voice communications linking the troops ashore, incoming boats, and nearby ships. The 7th Amphibious Scouts conducted operations in the [[Pacific Ocean theater of World War II|Pacific]] for the duration of the conflict, participating in more than 40 landings.

Scout landings were done at night during the new moon. The men were brought to a lagoon by submarine and came ashore with rubber paddle boats. They would bury the boats in the sand and begin recon. Their mission was to clear the area prior to the main Naval landing which would then take over the island. They stayed from three days to as long as seven days engaging in covert operations and "taking no prisoners". They had learned martial arts (judo) and were armed with Thompson submachine guns, sidearms and knives. The entire Navy Scouts program was strictly volunteer, since it was considered too dangerous to order men to do this job. When the island was secured, they would transmit code to the sub, which would pick them up the next night. A typical loss would be 12 men going in and 3–5 coming back alive. Sometimes only one would come back.<ref>Lawrence Taylor, USN Scout</ref>{{Full citation needed|date=July 2018}}

===== Third group =====
The third Scout and Raiders organization deployed to fight with the [[Sino-American Cooperative Organization]] (SACO) in China.  [[Admiral]] [[Ernest J. King]] ordered that 120 officers and 900 enlisted sailors be trained for "Amphibious Roger" at the Amphibious Roger<ref name="navyseals.com" /> school at [[Fort Pierce, Florida|Fort Pierce]], Florida in order to support this mission. They formed the core of what was envisioned as a "[[Guerrilla warfare|guerrilla]] [[Amphibious warfare|amphibious]] organization of Americans and Chinese operating from coastal waters, lakes and rivers employing small [[steamboat]]s and [[sampan]]s."{{citation needed|date=August 2013}} Elements of the third Scouts and Raiders saw active service conducting surveys of the upper [[Yangtze River]] in the spring of 1945 and, disguised as [[coolie]]s, conducting a detailed three-month survey of the Chinese coast from Shanghai to [[Kitchioh]] Wan, near Hong Kong.  The majority of the force remained garrisoned at [[Camp Knox, India|Camp Knox]] in [[Kolkata|Calcutta]], India.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.navsoc.navy.mil/History.html |title=NSW – Naval Special Warfare Command: History |access-date=11 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921060449/http://www.navsoc.navy.mil/History.html |archive-date=21 September 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

=== Naval Combat Demolition Units ===
{{main|Naval Combat Demolition Units}}
In September 1942, 17 Navy salvage personnel arrived at [[Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek|ATB Little Creek]], [[Virginia]] for a one-week concentrated course on demolitions, explosive cable cutting and commando raiding techniques. The units were organised into six-man teams of an officer, a petty officer and four seamen using a seven-man [[LCRS]] inflatable boat to carry their explosives and gear.<ref>p.34 Brutsman, Bud & Dockery, Kevin ''Navy SEALs: A History of the Early Years'' Berkley Publishing 2001</ref>

On 10 November 1942, this first combat demolition unit succeeded in cutting a cable and net barrier across the Wadi [[Sebou River]] during Operation Torch in [[North African Campaign|North Africa]]. Their actions enabled {{USS|Dallas|DD-199|6}} to traverse the river and insert [[United States Army Rangers#World War II|Army Rangers]], who proceeded to capture the [[Kenitra|Port Lyautey]] [[aerodrome]].

Plans for a massive cross-channel invasion of Europe had begun and intelligence indicated that the Germans were placing extensive underwater obstacles on the beaches at [[Normandy]]. On 7 May 1943, [[Lieutenant commander (United States)|Lieutenant Commander]] [[Draper L. Kauffman]], "The Father of Naval Combat Demolition," was directed to set up a school and train people to eliminate obstacles on an enemy-held beach prior to an invasion.
On 6 June 1943, LCDR Kaufmann established Naval Combat Demolition Unit training at [[Fort Pierce, Florida|Fort Pierce]]. By April 1944, a total of 34 NCDUs were deployed to England in preparation for Operation OVERLORD, the [[Invasion of Normandy|amphibious landing]] at Normandy.

On 6 June 1944, in the face of great adversity, the NCDUs at [[Omaha Beach]] managed to blow eight complete gaps and two partial gaps in the German defenses. The NCDUs suffered 31 killed and 60 wounded, a casualty rate of 52%. Meanwhile, the NCDUs at [[Utah Beach]] met less intense enemy fire. They cleared {{convert|700|yd|m}} of beach in two hours, another {{convert|900|yd|m}} by the afternoon. Casualties at Utah Beach were significantly lighter with six killed and eleven wounded. During Operation OVERLORD, not a single demolitioneer was lost to improper handling of explosives.

In August 1944, NCDUs from [[Utah Beach]] participated in the landings in [[southern France]], the last amphibious operation in the [[European Theater of Operations]].
NCDUs also operated in the [[Pacific Ocean theater of World War II|Pacific theater]]. NCDU 2, under LTjg [[Frank Kaine]], after whom the Naval Special Warfare Command building is named, and NCDU 3 under LTjg [[Lloyd Anderson]], formed the nucleus of six NCDUs that served with the [[Seventh Amphibious Force]] tasked with clearing boat channels after the landings from [[Biak]] to [[Borneo]].

=== OSS Operational Swimmers ===
Some of the earliest World War II predecessors of the SEALs were the Operational Swimmers of the [[Office of Strategic Services]], or OSS.<ref name=butler>{{cite journal |author=Butler FK |title=Closed-circuit oxygen diving in the U.S. Navy |journal=Undersea Hyperb Med |volume=31 |issue=1 |pages=3–20 |year=2004 |pmid=15233156 |url=http://archive.rubicon-foundation.org/3986 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080613163441/http://archive.rubicon-foundation.org/3986 |url-status=usurped |archive-date=13 June 2008 |access-date=19 March 2009 }}</ref> Many present day SEAL missions were first assigned to them.
The OSS specialized in special operations, dropping operatives behind enemy lines to engage in organized guerrilla warfare as well as to gather information on such things as enemy resources and troop movements.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/general/articles/officestrategicservices.aspx|title=OSS History|access-date=2 January 2008|archive-date=2 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190202051540/https://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/general/articles/officestrategicservices.aspx|url-status=dead}}</ref>

British [[Combined Operations Headquarters|Combined Operations]] veteran Lt Cdr Wooley, of the [[Royal Navy]], was placed in charge of the [[OSS Maritime Unit]] in June 1943.
Their training started in November 1943 at [[Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton|Camp Pendleton]], California, moved to [[Santa Catalina Island, California]] in January 1944, and finally moved to the warmer waters of The Bahamas in March 1944. Within the [[Military of the United States|U.S. military]], they pioneered flexible [[swimfin]]s and [[diving mask]]s, [[Rebreather|closed-circuit diving]] equipment (under the direction of Dr. [[Christian J. Lambertsen|Chris Lambertsen]]), the use of [[Swimmer Delivery Vehicle]]s (a type of [[submersible]]), and combat swimming and [[limpet mine]] attacks.<ref name=butler/>

In May 1944, [[William Joseph Donovan|General Donovan]], the head of the OSS, divided the unit into groups. He loaned Group 1, under Lieutenant Arthur Choate Jr., to [[Chester W. Nimitz|Admiral Nimitz]], as a way to introduce the OSS into the [[Pacific Ocean theater of World War II|Pacific theater]]. They became part of UDT-10 in July 1944, with Lt. Commander Choate commanding the unit. Five OSS men participated in the very first UDT submarine operation with the {{USS|Burrfish|SS-312}} in the [[Caroline Islands]] in August 1944.

===Beach Jumpers===
{{main|Beach Jumpers}}
Beach Jumper Unit One was formed at the Amphibious Training Base at Camp Bradford, Virginia on 16 March 1943 for deception operations to simulate large scale amphibious raids and invasions.

=== Underwater Demolition Teams ===
{{main|Underwater Demolition Team}}
[[File:Underwater Demolition Teams shoulder sleeve patch.JPG|thumb|Patch of the [[Underwater Demolition Teams]]]]
On 23 November 1943, the U.S. Marine [[Battle of Tarawa|landing and the subsequent battle at Tarawa Atoll]] emphasized the need for hydrographic reconnaissance and underwater demolition of obstacles prior to any amphibious landing. After [[Battle of Tarawa|Tarawa]], 30 officers and 150 enlisted men were moved to the [[Waimānalo, Hawai'i|Waimānalo]] Amphibious Training Base to form the nucleus of a demolition training program. This group became [[Underwater Demolition Teams]] (UDT) One and Two.

The UDTs saw their first combat on 31 January 1944, during [[Operation Flintlock (World War II)|Operation Flintlock]] in the Marshall Islands. FLINTLOCK became the real catalyst for the UDT training program in the Pacific Theater. In February 1944, the Naval Combat Demolition Training and Experimental Base was established at [[Kihei, Hawaii|Kīhei]], [[Maui]], next to the Amphibious Base at [[Kamaole]]. Eventually, 34 UDT teams were established. Wearing swim suits, fins, and dive masks on combat operations, these "Naked Warriors" saw action across the Pacific in every major amphibious landing including: [[Eniwetok]], [[Battle of Saipan|Saipan]], [[Battle of Guam (1944)|Guam]], [[Battle of Tinian|Tinian]], [[Battle of Angaur|Angaur]], [[Ulithi]], [[Battle of Peleliu|Peleliu]], [[Battle of Leyte|Leyte]], [[Invasion of Lingayen Gulf|Lingayen Gulf]], [[Zambales]], [[Battle of Iwo Jima|Iwo Jima]], [[Battle of Okinawa|Okinawa]], [[Operation Oboe Six|Labuan]], [[Brunei Bay]], and on 4 July 1945 at [[Battle of Balikpapan (1945)|Balikpapan]] on [[Borneo campaign (1945)|Borneo]], which was the last UDT demolition operation of the war.

The rapid demobilization at the conclusion of the war reduced the number of active duty UDTs to two on each coast with a complement of seven officers and 45 enlisted men each.

The [[Korean War]] began on 25 June 1950, when the [[Korean People's Army|North Korean army]] invaded South Korea. Beginning with a detachment of 11 personnel from UDT 3, UDT participation expanded to three teams with a combined strength of 300 men.
As part of the Special Operations Group, or SOG, UDTs successfully conducted demolition raids on railroad tunnels and bridges along the Korean coast. On 15 September 1950, UDTs supported [[Battle of Incheon|Operation Chromite]], the amphibious landing at [[Incheon]]. UDT 1 and 3 provided personnel who went in ahead of the landing craft, scouting mud flats, marking low points in the channel, clearing fouled propellers, and searching for mines. Four UDT personnel acted as wave-guides for the Marine landing.

In October 1950, UDTs supported mine-clearing operations in [[Wonsan|Wonsan Harbor]] where frogmen would locate and mark mines for minesweepers. On 12 October 1950, two U.S. minesweepers hit mines and sank. UDTs rescued 25 sailors.

The UDT's entered the [[Vietnam War]] in 1958, UDTs delivered small watercraft far up the [[Mekong River]] into [[Laos]]. In 1961, naval advisers started training South Vietnamese personnel in [[South Vietnam]]. The men were called the ''Liên Đoàn Người Nhái'' (LDNN) or Vietnamese Frogmen, which translates as "Frogmen Team."

UDT teams carried out [[hydrography|hydrographic]] surveys in South Vietnam's coastal waters and reconnaissance missions of harbors, beaches and rivers often under hazardous conditions and enemy fire.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://navysealmuseum.com/about-navy-seals/seal-history-the-naval-special-warfare-story/seal-history-vietnam-the-men-with-green-faces/ |title=SEAL History: Vietnam-The Men With Green Faces &#124; National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum |publisher=Navysealmuseum.com |access-date=2014-05-12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141110042203/https://navysealmuseum.com/about-navy-seals/seal-history-the-naval-special-warfare-story/seal-history-vietnam-the-men-with-green-faces |archive-date=10 November 2014 }}</ref>

Later, the UDTs supported the Amphibious Ready Groups operating on South Vietnam's rivers creating a River Patrol Force (Task Force 116) of UDT's that operated [[River Patrol Boats]]. UDTs manned riverine patrol craft and help went ashore to demolish obstacles and enemy bunkers. They operated throughout South Vietnam, from the [[Mekong Delta]] ([[Nam Can Naval Base|Sea Float]]), the [[Parrot's Beak, Cambodia|Parrot's Beak]] and French canal AO's through [[I Corps (South Vietnam)|I Corps]] and the Song Cui Dai estuary south of [[Da Nang]]. UDT's provided infiltration and extraction for assigned SEAL team assault squads along the rivers.

== Navy SEALs and SWCC ==
[[File:Members of SEAL Team 18 perform a demonstration. (14311590937).jpg|thumb|Members of SEAL Team 18]]

Naval Special Warfare personnel make up less than one percent of [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]] personnel. Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) and [[Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen]] (SWCC) units operate across the spectrum of conflict and in operations other than war in a controlled manner; their ability to provide real time intelligence and "eyes on target", offer decision makers immediate options in the face of rapidly changing world crises.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.navsoc.navy.mil/missions.htm|title= NAVSOC mission|publisher= U.S. Navy|access-date= 21 January 2008|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080112092129/http://www.navsoc.navy.mil/missions.htm|archive-date= 12 January 2008}}</ref>

=== SEALs ===
{{Main|United States Navy SEALs}}
[[File:United States Navy Special Warfare insignia.png|thumb|[[Navy Special Warfare Trident Insignia]] worn by qualified [[United States Navy SEALs|U.S. Navy SEALs]]. ]]
SEALs are [[United States Special Operations Command|Special Operations Command]]'s force-of-choice to conduct small-unit maritime military operations which originate from, and return to a river, ocean, swamp, delta or coastline. This [[Littoral zone|littoral]] [[Littoral (military)|capability]] is considered more important now than ever, as half the world's infrastructure and population is located within one mile (1.6&nbsp;km) of an ocean or river.<ref name="navyseals.com" />

Responding to President [[John F. Kennedy]]'s desire for the Services to develop an Unconventional Warfare (UW) capability, the U.S. Navy established SEAL Team One and SEAL Team Two in January 1962. Formed entirely with personnel from Underwater Demolition Teams, the SEALs mission was to conduct counter guerrilla warfare and clandestine operations in maritime and riverine environments.
<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.sealchallenge.navy.mil/seal/introduction.aspx|title= Official U.S. Navy SEAL Information Website, Into|access-date= 21 January 2008|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080116021903/http://www.sealchallenge.navy.mil/seal/introduction.aspx|archive-date= 16 January 2008}}</ref>

Navy SEALs have distinguished themselves as an individually reliable, collectively disciplined and highly skilled maritime force. Because of the dangers inherent in NSW, prospective SEALs go through what is considered by many military experts{{Who|date=May 2020}} to be the toughest training in the world. The intense physical and mental conditioning it takes to become a SEAL begins at Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training.

SEAL candidates begin BUD/S training at the Naval Special Warfare Center, [[Naval Amphibious Base Coronado|NAB Coronado]], California. This six-month course of instruction focuses on physical conditioning, small boat handling, [[diving physics]], basic diving techniques, land warfare, weapons, demolitions, communications, and reconnaissance.
* First Phase trains, develops, and assesses SEAL candidates in physical conditioning, water competency, teamwork, and mental tenacity.
* Second (Diving) Phase trains, develops, and qualifies SEAL candidates as competent basic combat swimmers. During this period, physical training continues and becomes even more intensive. Emphasis is placed on long distance underwater dives with the goal of training students to become basic combat divers, using swimming and diving techniques as a means of transportation from their launch point to their combat objective. This is a skill that separates SEALs from all other Special Operations forces.
* Third Phase trains, develops, and qualifies SEAL candidates in basic weapons, demolition, and small unit tactics. Third Phase concentrates on teaching land navigation, small-unit tactics, patrolling techniques, rappelling, marksmanship, and military explosives. The final three and a half weeks of Third Phase are spent at [[Naval Auxiliary Landing Field San Clemente Island|NALF]] [[San Clemente Island]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://cnrsw.cnic.navy.mil/Installations/NAVBASE-Coronado/ |title=Naval Auxiliary Landing Field, San Clemente Island |work=Naval Base Coronado |publisher=United States Navy |access-date=18 November 2008}}</ref> where students apply all the techniques they have acquired during training.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.seal.navy.mil/seal/buds.aspx|title= BUD/S (Basic Underwater Demolition / SEAL) – Naval Special Warfare Center|work= Official U.S. Navy SEAL Information Website|access-date= 21 January 2008|publisher= United States Navy|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070213085023/http://www.seal.navy.mil/seal/buds.aspx|archive-date= 13 February 2007|df= dmy-all}}</ref>

==== SEAL Delivery Vehicle Teams ====
[[File:SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team.jpg|thumb|SEALs using a [[SEAL Delivery Vehicle]] ]]
[[SEAL Delivery Vehicle]] Teams' (SDVT) historical roots began during WWII with the earliest [[human torpedo]]es to see use: Maiale, used by [[Kingdom of Italy|Italy's]] [[Decima Flottiglia MAS]], and Chariots, used by [[British commando frogmen]]. Naval Special Warfare entered the [[wet sub]]mersible field in the 1960s when the [[Naval Support Activity Panama City|Coastal Systems Center]] in [[Panama City, Florida]] developed the Mark 7, a free-flooding SDV of the type used today, and the first SDV to be used in the fleet. The Mark 8 and 9 followed in the late 1970s.

Today's Mark 8 Mod 1 provides NSW with an unprecedented capability that combines the attributes of [[Clandestine operation|clandestine]] underwater mobility and the combat swimmer. The [[Advanced SEAL Delivery System]] (ASDS) program that would have provided NSW a new (dry) submersible for long range infiltration missions was abandoned in 2009.  However, news reports have stated that USSOCOM have purchased a new dry SEAL Delivery Vehicle called the Dry Combat Submersible and will be become operational around 2018/2019.

=== Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen ===
{{Main|Special warfare combatant-craft crewmen}}
[[File:Special Warfare Crews Train on Salt River DVIDS59040.jpg|thumb|[[Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen]] (SWCC) in the Special Operations Craft-Riverine]]
The exclusive mission of Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen (SWCC) operators is to expertly drive and provide large-caliber gunfire support on specialized high-tech, high-speed, and low-profile Surface Combatant Craft to secretly infiltrate and exfiltrate Navy SEALs on Special Operations missions worldwide. These missions include direct action on land, sea, coastline or rivers (such as strikes, captures, and ship take downs by [[Visit, Board, Search, and Seizure]]), special reconnaissance, coastal patrol and interdiction of suspect ships and surface craft, [[counter-terrorism]] operations, [[Brown-water navy|riverine warfare]], deception operations, [[search and rescue]] operations, and [[foreign internal defense]] missions.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.navyseals.com/navy-swcc-navys-elite-boat-warriors|title= Navy SWCC – The Navy's Elite Boat Warriors|publisher= NavySEALs.com|access-date= 2 January 2008|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071224055739/http://navyseals.com/navy-swcc-navys-elite-boat-warriors|archive-date= 24 December 2007|url-status= dead}}</ref> Although SEALs and SWCC undergo different training programs, both are focused on special operations in maritime environments. The SWCC program includes extensive training on craft and weapons tactics, techniques, and procedures. Like SEALs, SWCC must show physical fitness, possess strong motivation, be combat focused, and maintain responsiveness in high stress situations.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.seal.navy.mil/swcc/introduction.aspx|title= Introduction to SWCC and Naval Special Warfare|work= Official U.S. Navy SWCC Information|publisher= United States Navy|access-date= 2 January 2008
}}{{dead link|date=April 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>

The SWCC designation is a relatively new Naval Special Warfare career path that is independent of the regular line Navy. Today's Special Boat Teams have their origins in the [[PT boat]]s of WWII and the [[Brown Water Navy|"Brown Water" naval force]] onset of the [[Vietnam War]] in 1965 that later birthed the River Patrol Force (Task Force 116) of UDT's and various sailors that supported SEALs along the rivers. [[Submarine chaser|Patrol Coastal]] and Patrol Torpedo ships are the ancestors of today's {{sclass|Cyclone|patrol ship|1}}s and [[Mark V Special Operations Craft]].

== Structure ==
[[File:Sailors conduct military dive operations off the East Coast of the United States. (47972805487).jpg|thumb|SEALs from Naval Special Warfare Group 2 training in 2019]]
As of 2022, Naval Special Warfare included more than 10,000 people, including about 9,000 SEALs, SWCCs, and other military personnel and about 1,200 civilian support staff.<ref name="dvids1" />

Naval Special Warfare Command's components include:
* Naval Special Warfare Group 1: SEAL Teams 1, 3, 5, 7
* Naval Special Warfare Group 2: SEAL Teams 2, 4, 8, 10
* [[Special warfare combatant-craft crewmen#Naval Special Warfare Group 4|Naval Special Warfare Group 4]]: Special Boat Teams 12, 20, 22
* Naval Special Warfare Group 8:<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.nsw.navy.mil/JOIN/Support-Troops-Support-Rates/ | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210401210527/https://www.nsw.navy.mil/JOIN/Support-Troops-Support-Rates/ | url-status=dead | archive-date=1 April 2021 | title=Join Special Reconnaissance Team }}</ref> [[SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team 1]] and [[SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team 2|Team 2]], Logistics Support 3, Special Reconnaissance 1, Special Reconnaissance 2, Training Detachment 3, Mission Support Center<ref name="dvids nswg3+10 deactivated">{{cite web |title=U.S. Naval Special Warfare Command Establishes Group Eight, Disestablishes Groups Three and Ten |url=https://www.dvidshub.net/news/403911/us-naval-special-warfare-command-establishes-group-eight-disestablishes-groups-three-and-ten |website=DVIDSHUB |access-date=21 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210829121215/https://www.dvidshub.net/news/403911/us-naval-special-warfare-command-establishes-group-eight-disestablishes-groups-three-and-ten |archive-date=29 August 2021 |date=25 August 2021}}</ref><ref name="businessinsider nswg3+10 deactivate">{{cite web |last1=Atlamazoglou |first1=Stavros |title=To take on Russia and China, the US Navy is standing up a new unit to do the missions that only SEALs can do |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/new-naval-special-warfare-group-created-amid-great-power-competition-2021-9 |website=Business Insider |access-date=21 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220707022230/https://www.businessinsider.com/new-naval-special-warfare-group-created-amid-great-power-competition-2021-9 |archive-date=7 July 2022 |date=15 September 2021}}</ref><ref name="socom 2022 fact book">{{cite web |date=2022 |title=Fact Book 2022 |url=https://www.socom.mil/FactBook/2022%20Fact%20Book.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220704041607/https://www.socom.mil/FactBook/2022%20Fact%20Book.pdf |archive-date=4 July 2022 |access-date=21 July 2022 |website=SOCOM}}</ref>
** Mission Support Center mission is to "organize, train, educate, equip, deploy and sustain specialized intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and preparation-of-the-environment capabilities")<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=60617 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130606165814/http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=60617 |url-status= dead |archive-date= 6 June 2013 |title= Naval Special Warfare Welcomes Group 10 to Force |publisher= navy.mil |date= 26 May 2011 |access-date= 3 January 2018}}</ref>
* Naval Special Warfare Group 11: SEAL Teams 17, 18 (formerly ''Operational Support Teams'' 1, 2)<ref>{{cite web |first= Christopher |last=Menzie |url= http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=38975 |archive-url= https://archive.today/20120909012955/http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=38975 |url-status= dead |archive-date= 9 September 2012 |title= Naval Special Warfare Reserve Command Renamed |date=8 August 2008 |website= U.S. Navy |access-date=1 October 2011}}</ref> (Navy Reserve composed of SEALs and SWCCs)
* [[Naval Special Warfare Center]]: includes the [[Naval Small Craft Instruction and Technical Training School]]
* [[Naval Special Warfare Development Group]] (formerly SEAL Team 6): Assigned operationally to [[Joint Special Operations Command|JSOC]]

Inactivated Groups:
* [[Naval Special Warfare Group 3]]: SEAL Delivery Vehicle Teams 1, 2<ref>{{cite news |last1=Faram |first1=Mark D. |title=SEALs revive stealthy submarine delivery team in Virginia |url=https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2019/02/26/seals-revive-stealthy-submarine-delivery-team-in-virginia/ |access-date=17 March 2019 |work=Navy Times |date=25 February 2019}}</ref>
** Deactivated in August 2021; its subordinate units were transferred to Naval Special Warfare Group 8<ref name="dvids nswg3+10 deactivated"/><ref name="businessinsider nswg3+10 deactivate"/>
* Naval Special Warfare Group 10: NSW Support Activity One, NSW Support Activity Two, Mission Support Center
** Established at Virginia Beach, Va. on 25 May 2011.<ref>{{cite web|last=Communication |first=Mass |url=http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=60617 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130606165814/http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=60617 |url-status=dead |archive-date=6 June 2013 |title= Naval Special Warfare Welcomes Group 10 to Force|publisher=Navy.mil |access-date=7 April 2013}}</ref> Deactivated in August 2021; its subordinate units were transferred to Naval Special Warfare Group 8.<ref name="dvids nswg3+10 deactivated"/><ref name="businessinsider nswg3+10 deactivate"/>
<br>
[[File:US Navy - Naval Special Warfare Command - Organization 2021.png|thumb|center|960px|Naval Special Warfare Command structure as of 2022 (following deactivation of Group 3 and 10 and activation of Group 8 in 2021)]]

== Global War on Terror ==
NSW is committed to combating the global terrorist threats. In addition to being experts in special reconnaissance and direct action missions, the skill sets needed to combat terrorism; NSW is postured to fight a dispersed enemy on their territory. NSW forces can operate from forward-deployed Navy ships, submarines and aviation mobility platforms as well as overseas bases and its own overseas units.

=== War in Afghanistan ===
In response to the attacks on America 11 September 2001, Naval Special Warfare forces put operators on the ground in Afghanistan in October. The first military flag officer to set foot in Afghanistan was a [[Navy SEAL]], Rear Admiral [[Albert Calland]], in charge of [[Special Operations Command Central]] (SOCCENT), which was responsible for all special operations for [[United States Central Command|Central Command]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.forum.militaryltd.com/sea-air-land-seal-teams/m447-nswarrior |title=NSWarrior – Military Forum |publisher=MilitaryLTD.com |access-date=2012-09-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120326025828/http://www.forum.militaryltd.com/sea-air-land-seal-teams/m447-nswarrior |archive-date=26 March 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Additionally, a Navy SEAL captain commanded Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force (CJSOTF) South. Commonly referred to as [[Task Force K-Bar]], the task force included [[United States Navy|Navy]], [[United States Army|Army]], [[United States Air Force|Air Force]] and Coalition Special Operations forces. During [[Operation Enduring Freedom]], NSW forces carried out more than 75 special reconnaissance and direct action missions, destroying more than 500,000 pounds of explosives and weapons; positively identifying enemy personnel and conducting Leadership Interdiction Operations in the search for terrorists trying to escape by seagoing vessels.

[[Operation Red Wings]], a counter insurgent mission in [[Kunar Province]], Afghanistan, involved four Navy SEALs and took place on 28 June 2005. The SEALs were on a mission to try to find a key [[Taliban]] leader. However, goat herders stumbled upon their hiding place and alerted local Taliban fighters, and they were subsequently surrounded by Taliban forces. The four SEALs requested back up after the Taliban had surrounded them. In the attempt to rescue the four SEALs on the ground a [[Chinook helicopter|Boeing CH-47 Chinook]] containing members of SEAL delivery team one and several Army "Nightstalker" pilots was shot down. At the time, this was the biggest single loss of life for Naval Special Warfare forces since World War II.{{Citation needed|date=March 2012}} A firefight ensued, killing three SEALs. The fourth, [[Marcus Luttrell]], was protected by local villagers and later rescued by the U.S. military. The team leader, SEAL Lieutenant [[Michael P. Murphy]], was posthumously awarded the [[Medal of Honor]].

SEAL Senior Chief Petty Officer Dan Healy was awarded the Bronze Star with Combat "V" for Valor, Purple Heart, and Afghanistan Campaign Medal, posthumously.

On the night of 1–2 May 2011, operators from Red Squadron of [[DEVGRU|U.S. Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DEVGRU)]] (aka "SEAL Team 6") raided the compound of [[Osama bin-Laden]] in [[Abbottabad]], Pakistan, killing the [[al-Qaeda]] leader and four others.  The operation was codenamed "Neptune Spear" in reference to the SEAL insignia's trident.

=== Iraq War ===
Naval Special Warfare has played a significant role in [[Operation Iraqi Freedom]], employing the largest number of SEALs and SWCCs in its history. NSW forces were instrumental in numerous special reconnaissance and direct action missions including the securing of the southern oil infrastructures of the [[Al Faw]] peninsula and the off-shore gas and oil terminals; the clearing of the [[Khawr Abd Allah]] and [[Khawr az-Zubayr]] waterways that enabled humanitarian aid to be delivered to the vital port city of [[Umm Qasr]]; reconnaissance of the [[Shatt al-Arab]] waterway; capture of high-value targets, raids on suspected chemical, biological and radiological sites; and the first [[POW]] rescue since WWII. Additionally, NSW is also fighting the war on terrorism in other global hot spots including the [[Operation Enduring Freedom - Philippines|Philippines]] and the [[Operation Enduring Freedom - Horn of Africa|Horn of Africa]].
<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.navsoc.navy.mil/history.htm|title= NAVSOC History|access-date= 2 January 2008|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070726162744/http://www.navsoc.navy.mil/history.htm|archive-date= 26 July 2007}}</ref>

SEAL Petty Officer Second Class [[Michael A. Monsoor]] was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for actions in [[Ramadi, Iraq]].

==See also==
* [[List of Navy SEALs]]
* [[Naval Small Craft Instruction and Technical Training School]] (NAVSCIATTS)
* [[Special Missions Training Center]] (SMTC)
* [[Underwater Construction Teams]] (UCT) 
* [[Republic of Korea Navy Special Warfare Flotilla|ROKN UDT/SEAL]] – Korean equivalent 
* [[Naval Special Operations Command|Naval Special Operations Command (SEAL/Special Boat/EOD teams)]] – Philippines equivalent

== References ==
Much of this text in this article was taken from [https://web.archive.org/web/20070726162744/http://www.navsoc.navy.mil/history.htm Official U.S. Navy SWCC web site] which as a work of the U.S. Government is presumed to be a [[public domain resource]].
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

;Bibliography
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080214064830/http://www.navsoc.navy.mil/ Naval Special Warfare website]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070726162744/http://www.navsoc.navy.mil/history.htm Naval Special Warfare, History page]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080116021903/http://www.sealchallenge.navy.mil/seal/introduction.aspx Official U.S. Navy Seal Information Website]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080210172401/http://www.sealchallenge.navy.mil/swcc/introduction.aspx Official U.S. Navy SWCC Information Website]
* [[Marcus Luttrell|Luttrell, Marcus]]. (2007). ''Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10'', New York: Hachette Book Group. ({{ISBN|0-316-06759-8}})
* Cunningham, Chet. (2005). ''The Frogmen of World War II: An Oral History of the U.S. Navy's Underwater Demolition Teams'', New York: Pocket Books. ({{ISBN|0-7434-8216-6}})

==External links==
{{commons category}}
* {{official website|https://www.nsw.navy.mil/ }}
* [https://www.sealswcc.com/ Naval Special Warfare Command] – official recruiting site.
* [http://navyseals.com/ NavySeals.com]
* [http://www.shadowspear.com/ ShadowSpear.com Special Operations]

{{US Special Operations Forces}}
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[[Category:United States Naval Special Warfare Command| ]]
[[Category:Special operations units and formations of the United States Navy|Special Warfare Command]]
[[Category:Special operations commands of the United States Armed Forces|Naval Special Warfare Command]]