Posted by Christopher Charles, officer of the United States
Marine Corps
https://www.quora.com/What-distinguishes-the-various-famous-elite-units-in-the-U-S-Military-from-one-another
The Army Rangers (75th Ranger Regiment), Army Special Forces (Green
Berets), 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment - Delta, the
Navy SEALs, and DEVGRU (aka Seal Team 6, it stands for Naval
Special Warfare Development Group) are all part of US. Special
Operations Command (USSOCOM). USSOCOM conducts covert and
clandestine missions, such as unconventional warfare, special
reconnaissance, anti-terrorism, war on drugs, and other direct
action missions. There are other units that fall under Special
Operations Command, but the above units are generally considered as
the prototypical/standard units. As America's elite operatives,
members of these units all receive special training and have access
to special equipment and gear that the rest of the military doesn't
have access to.
USSOCOM generally and unofficially divides its various units
into a "Tier 1" group and a "Tier 2" group. The Rangers, Green
Berets, and "normal" SEALs fall under Tier 2. These are the more
conventional of SOCOM's forces.
The SEALs are the Navy's primary Special Operations unit. They
are the most "seafaring" of the bunch. SEAL training consists of
extensive time in the water, both in the pool and in the ocean near
Coronado, CA. Most of the SEALs' missions involve infiltrating and
ex-filtrating via the water. They do this either by dropping into
the ocean a few miles offshore and swimming to their objective or
by using small Zodiac boats to speed from ship to shore. From there
they can move inland, accomplish their mission, and then swim back
out into the ocean where they can safely and clandestinely be
picked up by friendly forces. SEALs are also able to dive
underwater and plant explosives on the hulls of enemy ships or set
up explosives on water defense systems in anticipation of an
amphibious landing. For example, the precursors to the SEALs
(called "Frogmen") swam ashore ahead of D-Day and cleared some of
the obstacles on the beaches. This does not mean that all SEAL
missions involve water or swimming, just that they are experts in
that field. SEALs are identifiable on the battlefield by their
sand-colored helmets.
The term Special Forces (SF) refers to the Green Berets. A
common mistake people make is calling other groups such as the
SEALs "Special Forces". The Rangers and SEALs, are "Special
Operations". SF are the Army's primary unconventional warfare and
foreign defense experts. They are usually tasked with working
closely with foreign military forces in joint operations and in a
training role. You might even call them the "teachers" of the Spec.
Ops. community since they train a lot of foreign forces. For
example, the Green Berets are currently deployed across Northern
Africa to help train the Algerian military how to conduct
anti-terrorism operations and defeat al-Qaeda's presence in the
Sahara. The Green Berets can also work closely with their foreign
allies to conduct missions deep in enemy territory. For example,
shortly after 9/11, the Green Berets were tasked with going into
Afghanistan and developing relationships with various warlords in
the hopes of recruiting them and their men in the fight against the
Taliban. To blend in, they grew beards and rode on horseback to
move from camp to camp. SF are fully capable of performing other
types of special operations missions, such as assassinations,
hostage rescue, etc..., but their primary task, and what sets them
apart, is their ability to work closely with America's military
allies to train them and assist them in missions.
The Rangers are different from the Special Forces in that they
don't go out and work hand in hand with foreign military forces. A
common misconception is that anybody who wears the "Ranger" tab on
their shoulder is a Ranger. Soldiers can apply for and receive
Ranger training at Ranger School, but graduating doesn't mean that
the soldier is a Ranger. To be fully considered a Ranger and fall
under USSOCOM, a soldier has to actually be a member of the 75th
Ranger Regiment. The Rangers are what are termed "High Speed, Low
Drag" units, meaning that they come in fast, hit the enemy hard,
then quickly get out before the enemy can reorganize. Think of the
Rangers as the Army's version of the SEALs -- they are all around
specialists who are all about killing the enemy. As the Army is a
more land-based entity, the Rangers don't have the same intensive
water-based training that the SEALs get. The Rangers, however, are
experts in navigating land terrain such as mountains, jungles, and
dense forests. For example, the USSOCOM mission in Somalia in 1993
(Black Hawk Down incident) was primarily composed of Army Rangers,
with a small mix of other units.
One last point. The SEALs and Rangers are unique in the SOCOM
community in that they accept recruits straight out of basic
training. A qualified civilian can enlist in the Army or Navy with
a contract that guarantees them a slot in either a Ranger unit
(with a high likelhood of a Ranger School slot) or SEAL training,
respectively. As soon as that man (women cannot join any of these
units due to their intense physical requirements as well as the
fact that they frequently operate behind enemy lines) graduates
basic training, they will be sent to either BUD/s (SEALs) or to a
Ranger unit to prepare for Ranger School. This is unlike the Army
Special Forces, who will only accept soldiers with prior service
into the Q course. What this means is that the Special Forces are
seeking the top 1% of soldiers to train into Green Berets, while
the Rangers and SEALs are looking for highly motivated individuals
to complete hellish training, regardless of prior service or
accomplishments.
Tier 1
"Tier 1" refers to those units that are the elite of the elite;
those that perform the most sensitive and unconventional of
missions. Delta and DEVGRU are considered "Tier 1" units. For
example, DEVGRU was chosen to undertake the mission that killed
Osama Bin Laden. Delta was tasked with the rescue of Pvt. Jessica
Lynch in 2003. Delta Operators are selected from the ranks of the
Green Berets and Rangers, while DEVGRU operators are recruited from
the SEAL ranks. What this means is that each unit is taking the top
1% of their respective branches and further weaning that number
down until they find around the top 10% of that 1%. Truly the Best
of the Best.
Tier 1 units fall under a special subdivision of USSOCOM known
as Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC). Delta and DEVGRU are so
elite that they typically don't wear military uniforms at all in
order to remain completely anonymous. They are expected to NOT have
military haircuts and oftentimes grow mustaches and beards in order
to conceal the fact that they are in the military. When they went
into Afghanistan post-9/11, they wore traditional Afghan clothes
and sported long beards in order to pass unnoticed among the
populace. It is useless to talk about Delta and DEVGRU separately
because they do the same missions and work very closely together.
Their primary mission is to track down, find, and kill or capture
High Value Targets (HVTs). They push far ahead of conventional
forces in order to conduct deep reconnaissance.
For example, before the Battle of Shah-i-Kot, in Afghanistan in
early 2002, members of Delta performed extensive reconnaissance,
finding the location of hundreds of enemy in the mountains. They
then crept into elevated positions in and around the enemy's camp,
and marked the locations of enemy defense networks and
anti-aircraft weapons. After members of the Army's 10th Mountain
battalion assaulted the enemy, Delta operators, remaining
concealed, helped call in targets for air assets flying above,
helping obliterate the entrenched enemy.
Bottom line: Tier 1 are essentially spies/soldiers, discarding
their military uniforms and haircuts in order to achieve missions
deep behind enemy lines, usually in teams of no more than 3 or 4.
However, when they do operate in a more conventional military
setting (such as in Somalia in 1993), they do wear military
uniforms. In such instances, Delta are recognizable by their black
helmets, while DEVGRU will wear the SEALs' standard sand colored
helmets.
I hope that this serves as a thorough answer to the question at
hand. This simple question has a complicated answer. Keep in mind
that this is only a synopsis. It is the tip of the iceberg. The
CIA's Special Activities Division (SAD) recruits those that excel
in Delta or DEVGRU (basically, the top 10% of the top 10% of the
top 1% of the US Military) to perform covert or black ops
paramilitary operations.
Posted by Christopher Charles, officer of the United States Marine
Corps :
https://www.quora.com/What-distinguishes-the-various-famous-elite-units-in-the-U-S-Military-from-one-another
