Combat Survival Training
Combat survival training is a component of many military training regimens across the world. In the United States, all members of the Army and Marine Corps undergo a very basic version of combat survival training during boot camp. Those who decide to try for Special Forces training undergo a vastly different version of survival training. This type goes into much more detail and is generally designed to be tougher on those going through it.
Other People Are Reading
-
History
-
The United States' Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) was first formed as part of the U.S. Air Force shortly after the 1953 armistice that ended fighting during the Korean War. The program was initially designed to help those with jobs recognized as having a "high probable risk" of enemy capture to evade being captured by learning how to survive in the wild for prolonged periods of time. Sometime during the Vietnam War the program was expanded to include forces in the Army, Navy and Marines that also had "high-risk" jobs. While much of the training is classified, it is said to mirror similar training from military forces of other countries.
Purpose
-
The purpose of most combat survival training courses is to prepare soldiers that are deemed to hold "high-risk" jobs to be able to survive behind enemy lines. The training often includes learning how to survive without supplies, evading enemy forces that may be patrolling an area or looking specifically for a soldier, and learning how to draw the attention of friendly forces. Some training programs, like SERE, also provide training in simulated prisoner-of-war camps. This type of training teaches soldiers how to survive as prisoners of enemy forces.
-
Physical Stress
-
Combat survival training can never truly recreate the conditions that soldiers may encounter in the field. However, these soldiers still undergo significant physical stress during combat survival training. Physical stress comes in the form of malnutrition, dehydration and the typical strains that accompany trekking long distances in the woods. This physical toll from survival combat training can often result in soldiers dropping or failing out of the program.
Mental Stress
-
Soldiers going through combat survival training are not only tested physically, but mentally as well. These soldiers, sailors, marines and airmen are pushed to their absolute mental limit through long training exercises that include sleep and food deprivation, as well as long periods of isolation. The mental stress sometimes sets in before training even begins, when candidates for the training program first learn that much of the training they are about to embark on is classified. This means they have no idea what is coming. This is designed to weed out the mentally weak from those who are fully capable of undergoing the training program.
Improvised Combat
-
Most military forces, including that of the United States, realize that those caught behind enemy lines may have to fight their way out of a tough situation. As a result, combat survival training often heavily emphasizes improvised combat. Many soldiers that advance deep into the program learn how to construct weapons and traps from objects they find around them.
-
References
Comments
-
nice to be here.
