United States Special Operations Command
United States Special Operations Command |
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US Special Operations Command emblem |
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Lineup | April 16, 1987 |
Country | United States |
Armed forces | United States Armed Forces |
Armed forces | Armed forces General Command facility ( Unified Combatant Command ) of all American special forces ( Special forces ) |
Subordinate troops | |
Strength | 57,000 |
Insinuation | United States Department of Defense |
MacDill Air Force Base | Hillsborough County, Florida |
motto | Provide fully capable Special Operations Forces to defend the United States and its interests. / Synchronize planning of global operations against terrorist networks. |
commander | |
Commander of the United States Special Operations Command | GEN Richard D. Clarke , USAR |
Deputy Commander of the United States Special Operations Command | Lt. Gen James C. Slife , USAF |
The US Special Operations Command ( USSOCOM or SOCOM ; German command for special operations of the United States ) is a cross-military command facility ( Unified Combatant Command ) of all US-American special units of the US Army , US Air Force , US Navy and the US Marine Corps . It was established under the Nunn-Cohen Amendment on April 16, 1987 and is headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base , Florida . The US special forces are often incorrectly referred to as US Special Forces ; However, these represent only a part of the entire US Special Operations Forces .
history
After failures during the US invasion of Grenada , when the special forces of the individual branches of the armed forces held a real race and sometimes hindered each other or at least did not support each other adequately, and also from the findings of the failed Operation Eagle Claw , the attempt to free hostages in Iran in 1980, it became clear that a common command is essential for the coordination and management of the various units. As early as 1982, on the initiative of General Edward C. Meyer, the army's special units were merged into a new 1st Special Operations Command .
The ratified in 1986 Act Goldwater-Nichols Act was the legal basis for comprehensive military reform of the US since the National Security Act of 1947. The law requires the Department of Defense to streamline the command chains and so-called for the establishment Unified Combatant Command , joint forces grip composite commands .
At the same time, the congress had also "suggested" a joint command for the special forces of the US armed forces in order to ensure the operational coordination of the individual special forces and to avoid a repetition of disastrous missions such as the 1983 invasion of Grenada ( Operation Urgent Fury ) .
The Ministry of Defense only implemented the changes required by law and ignored this “recommendation”.
In 1987, Congress ratified the Nunn-Cohen Amendment , which legally forced the Pentagon to set up SOCOM .
In 1989, with the US invasion of Panama ( Operation Just Cause ), the United States Special Operations Command was operationally integrated with the United States Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) for the first time .
In 2010, the Special Forces were deployed in 75 states, 86 percent of which were under the responsibility of the United States Central Command .
Mission and responsibility
The SOCOM has form the order, all the special forces of the three armed forces uniform, equip and for other Unified Combatant Commands require that such organizations for their order fulfillment and request to provide ( "chop" principle, Engl .: cut, separate ).
Core tasks
- Ensuring the readiness of the special forces both CONUS and worldwide.
- Ensuring professional personnel development for the special forces.
- Development of cross-armed forces tactics, techniques and processes for special forces.
- Constant further development and implementation of special courses for training
- Training of forces not assigned to a regional command
- Administration and execution of your own budget and financial plan (money comes directly from Congress, not from the armed forces)
- Research, development and procurement of equipment specifically designed to meet the needs of the Special Operations Forces.
Global fight against terrorism
At the same time, however, it not only functions as a functional command, but also has its own associations around the world as part of the fight against terrorism . This makes it the only group command alongside the US Joint Forces Command (JFCOM) that trains, supplies and equips troops and still leads (partially) in missions itself.
Own budget
The SOCOM has under the Nunn-Cohen amendment as a single composite command of its own source of funding, which is independent of the decision of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff feeds and the budget planning of the remaining forces from a special fund the Defense Ministry.
As a result, it is no longer possible for the maternal armed forces to control the financing of their sometimes still unpopular (because costly) special forces “through the back door”.
As a result, SOCOM is de facto a sixth branch.
In fiscal 2002, the budget was $ 4.9 billion. Due to a new directive from the US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld to the USSOCOM to track down and arrest terrorists around the globe, the annual budget was more than doubled. Among other things, the budget will be used to increase the workforce from 47,000 to 56,000 and to ensure the completion of the Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey tilt rotor aircraft .
Since SOCOM is also largely autonomous in its procurement, it can happen that necessary equipment is procured on the world market apart from political requirements and national industrial interests. One example of this is the acquisition of the HELLAS helicopter laser obstacle warning system from EADS / Dornier , which was procured for its own helicopters.
In fiscal 2011, the budget was $ 9.8 billion.
Command structure
organization chart
Subordinate commands and units
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Army Special Operations Command (USASOC)
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1st Special Forces Command (Airborne) (1SFC (A)) (Green Berets)
- 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne)
- 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne)
- 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne)
- 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne)
- 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne)
- 19th Special Forces Group (Airborne) (ARNG)
- 20th Special Forces Group (Airborne) (ARNG)
- 4th Psychological Operations Group (Airborne)
- 8th Psychological Operations Group (Airborne)
- 95th Civil Affairs Brigade (Special Operations) (Airborne)
- 528th Sustainment Brigade (Special Operations) (Airborne)
- 75th Ranger Regiment
- Army Special Operations Aviation Command
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John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School (USAJFKSWCS)
- 1st Special Warfare Training Group (Airborne)
- 2nd Special Warfare Training Group (Airborne)
- Special Warfare Medical Group (Airborne)
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1st Special Forces Command (Airborne) (1SFC (A)) (Green Berets)
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Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC)
- 1st Special Operations Wing
- 24th Special Operations Wing
- 720th Special Tactics Group
- 724th Special Tactics Group
- 27th Special Operations Wing
- 352nd Special Operations Wing
- 353rd Special Operations Group
- 492nd Special Operations Wing
- 137th Special Operations Wing ( Air National Guard )
- 193rd Special Operations Wing (Air National Guard)
- 919th Special Operations Wing ( Air Force Reserve )
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Naval Special Warfare Command (NAVSPECWARCOM, NAVSOC)
- Naval Special Warfare Group 1 ( Navy Seals )
- Naval Special Warfare Group 2 (Navy Seals)
- Naval Special Warfare Group 3 ( SEAL Delivery Vehicle )
- Naval Special Warfare Group 4 (surface boats)
- Naval Special Warfare Group 10 ( Unmanned Aircraft )
- Naval Special Warfare Group 11 (Naval Reserve)
- Naval Special Warfare Center
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Marine Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC)
- Marine Raider Regiment
- Marine Raider Support Group
- Marine Raider Training Center
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Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC)
- Army: 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment - Delta (Delta Force)
- Navy: Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DEVGRU, formerly SEAL Team 6)
- Air Force: 24th Special Tactics Squadron (24th STS)
- Intelligence Support Activity (ISA)
- Joint Communications Unit (JCU)
- In addition, each of the five regionally bound Unified Combatant Commands of the US armed forces has one (with USPACOM two) administratively and technically belonging to SOCOM component commands for special operations, which are operationally subordinate to the commander of the respective regional command.
- US Special Operations Command Joint Forces Command (SOCJFCOM) at the US Joint Forces Command (USJFCOM)
- US Special Operations Command Africa (SOCAFRICA) at the US United States African Command (AFRICOM)
- US Special Operations Command Central (SOCCENT) at the US United States Central Command (CENTCOM)
- US Special Operations Command Europe (SOCEUR) at the US European Command (USEUCOM)
- US Special Operations Command Pacific (SOCPAC) at the US United States Pacific Command (USPACOM)
- US Special Operations Command South (SOCSOUTH) at US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM)
- US Special Operations Command North (SOCNORTH) at the US Northern Command (NORTHCOM)
- A specialty is the Special Operations Command Korea (SOCKOR), which is subordinate to the US Forces, Korea / Combined Forces Command (the subregional command for Korea ), which in turn is led by USPACOM. Since North and South Korea are still formally in a state of war, the commander of the sub-region was assigned a separate component for special operations.
Commanders
No. | Surname | image | Beginning of the appointment | End of appointment |
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12 | Richard D. Clarke ( USAR ) | 29th March 2019 | --- | |
11 | Raymond A. Thomas (USAR) | March 30, 2016 | 29th March 2019 | |
10 | Joseph L. Votel (USAR) | August 28, 2014 | March 30, 2016 | |
9 | William H. McRaven ( USN ) | August 8, 2011 | August 28, 2014 | |
8th | Eric T. Olson (USN) | July 9, 2007 | August 8, 2011 | |
7th | Bryan D. Brown (USAR) | September 2, 2003 | July 9, 2007 | |
6th | Charles R. Holland ( USAF ) | October 27, 2000 | September 2, 2003 | |
5 | Peter J. Schoomaker (USAR) | November 5, 1997 | October 27, 2000 | |
interim | Raymond C. Smith, Jr. (USN) | September 25, 1997 | November 5, 1997 | |
4th | Henry H. Shelton (USAR) | February 29, 1996 | September 25, 1997 | |
3 | Wayne A. Downing (USAR) | May 20, 1993 | February 29, 1996 | |
2 | Carl W. Stiner (USAR) | June 27, 1990 | May 20, 1993 | |
1 | James J. Lindsay (USAR) | April 16, 1987 | June 27, 1990 |
Web links
- Official site of the SOCOM (English)
- Official 2009 SOCOM Factbook (pdf), p. 41 ( Memento from August 16, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) (English; 4.29 MB)
- Information on GlobalSecurity.org (English)
- SOCOM at fas.org (English)
- Carlo Muñoz: Inside The Pentagon ( Memento from June 13, 2011 in the Internet Archive ), November 16, 2007, navyseals.com (English)
- SOCOM at delta-green.com ( Memento from April 17, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ www.socom.mil: About USSOCOM. ( Memento from July 11, 2010 in the web archive archive.today ) Accessed June 26, 2010.
- ↑ www.socom.mil ( Memento from December 3, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Mission of US Special Operations Command. Accessed November 24, 2013.
- ↑ US Code: Title 10, § 167 at law.cornell.edu ( accessed July 20, 2008)
- ↑ afsoc.af.mil ( Memento from December 17, 2008 in the Internet Archive ), accessed on November 16, 2008