In the English language, the word “Seal” refers to seals from seas and oceans. When you discover however the SEALs word in any context, well you should know that it refers to one of the best special forces unit in the world – probably the most dangerous adversaries of United States enemies.
Sea, Air, Land
The United States Navy’s Sea, Air and Land Teams, or briefly put Navy SEALs is the most important and efficient special forces team within the Naval Special Warfare Command. The famous acronym is inspired by their ability to operate on sea, air or land, regardless of the weather conditions or other factors.
Ever since it was founded, the SEALs unit was sent exclusively in high risk missions like saving hostages, anti-terrorists tasks, unconventional conflicts, suspects kidnapping, recon missions on enemy ground, front line interventions and internal operations.
The efficiency of the Navy SEALs made the CIA recruit it’s personnel from the ranks of this elite United States Navy unit.
This unit was created at the end of the Second World War, when the Military Marine ordered the creation of a elite group of soldiers to do recon missions on sea coasts where they were going to unload troops and military equipments, as well as to defend the Unite States coasts. At first, there was the Navy Scouts & Raiders, who started to train in 1942. One year later the Naval Combat Demolition Unit was created.
The three formations were grouped in Operational Swimmers Of The Office of Strategic Service.
President John F. Kennedy was the first to recognize the necessity of sending some special troops to work as a counter measure in Vietnam.
The unit got itself noticed through efficiency and combat skills. This is what convinced the CIA to use the Navy SEALs for some assassinations in 1963, assassinations that targeted many officials of the North Vietnam Army.
Navy SEALs scared the north Vietnam troops who referred to them as “green faced daemons”
After the Vietnam failure, the dangerous adventures of the Navy SEALs continued with the Urgent Fury operation.
Their South American career was then marked by the invasion in Panama, when 2 and 4 Navy SEALs team attacked the Balboa harbor and the PAPA unit conquered the Paitilla airport and destroyed the personal plane of Manuel Noriega.
The U.S. military operations in the Persian Bay, which actually is the invasion of Iraq was mostly possible because of the success of the Navy SEALs.
Afghanistan was also not free of their presence. Right after the September 11 2001 attacks, the Camp Doha Navy SEALs units received the order to intervene in the country lead at that time by the Taliban. Camp Rhino teams managed to capture Khirullah Said Wali Khairkwa.
Other SEALs teams were grouped in the K-Bar unit, which conducted difficult operations in the Zhawar Kili caves complex.
The Navy SEALs also took part at the Anaconda and Red Wing operations, commando ops that caused the death of many elite U.S. soldiers.
Navy SEALs Training
They run clandestine operations behind enemy lines. They capture and take out enemy targets in impossible conditions. They take out live targets. They save hostages when nobody thinks there are chances. These successes, incredible for a regular person, are part of the Navy SEALs routine.
To be able to enter this elite unit, the cadet has to pass one of the most difficult and most detailed medical tests imaginable.
A candidate has to be a high school graduate but the candidate also has to have a native intelligence above average.
Their activity is mostly based on two strategic concepts: adaptability and teamwork. Training and preparation were 14 months, a period in which the cadet passed initial tests and learns to fight under water, to put mines and explosives in difficult conditions, to be able to get orientation anywhere on Earth and to survive in all kinds of environments.
From a financial point of view, the Navy SEALs do not make a lot of money but they get consistent bonuses for completing missions.
Besides this, a Navy SEAL receives $15,000 annually just for being a part of this elite unit.
Bin Laden Hunters
The controversial identification and execution of the most wanted terrorist on Earth made the Navy SEALs front page news again.
According to official statements, Bin laden was killed in Pakistan on May 2, 2011, as part of the Neptun Spear operation.
The operation was ordered by the president of the United States, Barack Obama, and planned by the CIA.
The Navy SEALs were the ones that were chosen to carry out the operation, precisely the SEAL Team Six. The team took off from Afghanistan and the rest is recent history, viewed by millions of people on the Internet or on the news. Delta Force, the traditional SEALs rivals, watched how their fellow soldiers take down Bin Laden.
The Navy SEALs were also the ones who buried Bin Laden at sea in the Indian Ocean, in a location that will remain a secret for a long time. Critics and suspicions reached a peak after the mysterious helicopter crash in Afghanistan a few weeks later. The accident caused the death of 40 SEAL Team Six soldiers, and all the victims of the accident were involved in the Bin Laden operation.
SEALs Facts
US Navy SEALs operates with 8 task forces, numbered SEAM TEAM 1,2,3,4,5,7,8,10.
The maximum age to try out for the SEALs is 28 years.
SEALs has commandments and training camps in Virginia, California, Florida and Hawaii.