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Special Ops also includes Airborne. That's roughly 30,000 people right there. Seems to me that it's a poor understanding on part of the public that spec ops mea

by MR4D 10y ago

Special Ops also includes Airborne. That's roughly 30,000 people right there. Seems to me that it's a poor understanding on part of the public that spec ops means you're a badass. Of course, your comment about the cook is spot on, and too many people make it seem as thought their role in spec ops was bigger than reality.

deleted 10y ago
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chrissnell 10y ago
Not exactly. The Army, Navy, and Air Force all have special operations forces that are Airborne-qualified (they've attended the U.S. Army Airborne School) and many are also Military Freefall-qualified (aka HALO). That does not mean, however, that all airborne are special operations. In fact, the vast majority of Airborne troops are not special operations-qualified. Most are members of FORSCOM, which is the traditional major command for U.S. Army ground forces--i.e. not special operations. An example of such a unit is the 82nd Airborne Division. Airborne, but not special operations. To further complicate things, it's also possible to be a member of a Special Forces unit but not actually be special operations-qualified. Like every other part of the military, special operations requires a vast logistics machine to keep it moving and there are many non-combat personnel who belong to these units and are Airborne-qualified who are not special operators. Typical non-combat jobs in these units include vehicle mechanics, logistics specialists, etc. Relatively speaking, the special operations units of the U.S. military are a tiny percentage of the overall force. Given their traditional status as "quiet professionals", it's extremely unlikely that someone offering up their status as a "green beret", "Navy SEAL", or "Army Ranger" is telling the truth. Source: I am a Captain (Engineer branch, very not-special) with eight years of service. Currently serving in the U.S. Army Reserve.
- MR4D 10y ago
  Thanks for your addition. I left out of my post that there are different commands and different definitions of "special" because I was typing on my phone (which I hate). Have a great new year and thanks for all your work.
gaius 10y ago
No it doesn't. You can look at the org chart and see which units report to which commands, that is public knowledge. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XVIII_Airborne_Corps#Current_structure https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XVIII_Airborne_Corps#Current_s...

by MR4D 10y ago

deleted 10y ago

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chrissnell 10y ago

Not exactly. The Army, Navy, and Air Force all have special operations forces that are Airborne-qualified (they've attended the U.S. Army Airborne School) and many are also Military Freefall-qualified (aka HALO). That does not mean, however, that all airborne are special operations. In fact, the vast majority of Airborne troops are not special operations-qualified. Most are members of FORSCOM, which is the traditional major command for U.S. Army ground forces--i.e. not special operations. An example of such a unit is the 82nd Airborne Division. Airborne, but not special operations. To further complicate things, it's also possible to be a member of a Special Forces unit but not actually be special operations-qualified. Like every other part of the military, special operations requires a vast logistics machine to keep it moving and there are many non-combat personnel who belong to these units and are Airborne-qualified who are not special operators. Typical non-combat jobs in these units include vehicle mechanics, logistics specialists, etc. Relatively speaking, the special operations units of the U.S. military are a tiny percentage of the overall force. Given their traditional status as "quiet professionals", it's extremely unlikely that someone offering up their status as a "green beret", "Navy SEAL", or "Army Ranger" is telling the truth. Source: I am a Captain (Engineer branch, very not-special) with eight years of service. Currently serving in the U.S. Army Reserve.

MR4D 10y ago
Thanks for your addition. I left out of my post that there are different commands and different definitions of "special" because I was typing on my phone (which I hate). Have a great new year and thanks for all your work.

gaius 10y ago

No it doesn't. You can look at the org chart and see which units report to which commands, that is public knowledge. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XVIII_Airborne_Corps#Current_structure https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XVIII_Airborne_Corps#Current_s...