A brief introduction...
The Special Air Service Regiment (SAS) is the principal special
forces unit of the British Army. A small and secretive institution,
it sometimes attracts a disproportionate amount of media coverage.
The SAS was formed in 1941 with British and later French volunteers
to conduct raids behind enemy lines in North Africa, and today
serves as a model for similar units fielded by other
countries.
The SAS is the most experienced special forces unit in the world,
dating back to the Africa Campaign of the Second World War. Second
in line is regarded as either Delta Force or the Green Berets of
the United States in terms of training and experience.
Most famous operation was the Iranian Embassy Seige...
On 30 April 1980, six Iranian terrorists took over the Iranian
Embassy in Princes Gate, London. After six days of unsuccessful
negotiations and one hostage's murder, Prime Minister Margaret
Thatcher ordered an assault. At 19:26 on Monday 5 May, the SAS went
in. More than thirty effectives entered the building, including
some who went in across the now famous balcony filmed live by the
BBC. A diversionary attack was staged and other men went in through
the ground floor. One hostage was killed by the terrorists, but
within minutes the terrorist threat had been eliminated, with five
of the six having been killed and one captured. Of the original 26
hostages, 24 were safe. The operation was hailed as a great success
and was to change the way the public viewed the regiment.
Now for selection...
The SAS accepts members from the Commonwealth
nations and The Republic of Ireland, with notable
representation from Fiji, the former Rhodesia, New Zealand and
Australia. The Parachute Regiment is frequently the SAS's main
recruiting area.
And according to wikipedia... We're still members of the
Commonwealth Nations...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_members_of_the_Commonwealth_of_Nations_by_name#Current_members
