Army Special Forces Schools
The Green Berets are the United States Army's Special Forces. It is tasked with six primary missions: unconventional warfare, foreign internal defense, special reconnaissance, direct action, hostage rescue, and counter-terrorism. Becoming a Green Beret requires intensive training in a wide variety of subjects and techniques, not to mention mental fortitude and physical ability far beyond most people's capabilities.
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Advanced Individual Training
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Advanced Individual Training, or AIT, is the first step to becoming a Special Forces soldiers. Upon completion of boot camp, infantry AIT lasts four weeks at Fort Benning, Georgia. There, soldiers learn small arms, anti-armor, howitzers and heavy mortars, among other weapons and tactics.
Army Airborne School
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Army Airborne School, or Jump School, is a three-week course at Fort Benning. The first week is held on the ground, teaching basic techniques of parachuting. The second week is held on a 34-foot tower, which ensures trainees learn basic techniques are without extreme physical danger. During the third week, trainees must make five jumps from a plane in flight at 1,250 feet.
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Special Operations Preparation Course
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Special Operations Preparation Course, or SOPC, is a 30-day course at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. It helps prepare volunteers for the grueling tests ahead of them if they choose to pursue a Special Forces Military Occupational Specialty (MOS.) It involves intense physical training and conditioning and land navigation, an important skill that can make or break a Special Forces candidate.
Special Forces Assessment and Selection
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The Special Forces Assessment and Selection, or SFAS, is a 24-day course at Fort Bragg. Similar to the Navy SEALs First Phase indoctrination, approximately 60 percent of soldiers attempting SFAS leave, either voluntarily or due to injury. It involves numerous land navigation courses, timed, with no assistance from instructors, often carrying heavy loads. Obstacle courses, marches and exams (including IQ tests and the Defense Language Aptitude Battery) are also common.
Special Forces Qualification Course
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After SFAS, Special Forces soldiers undergo 13 weeks of additional individual skills training, such as small unit tactics, Special Forces tactics and advanced survival skills. All soldiers must select a Special Forces MOS: weapons, engineer, medical, communications, operations and assistant operations and intelligence, and receive training for that MOS. Language training follows, and then a four-week unconventional warfare practical exercise (Operation ROBIN SAGE). Finally, Survival, Escape, Resistance and Evasion (SERE) school teaches combat survival tactics.
Live Environment Training
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Upon completion of SFQC, Live Environment Training, or LET, immerses Special Forces soldiers in another culture. Teaching etiquette, language, cuisine, customs and traditions, soldiers are prepared to operate with foreign nationals for prolonged periods of time.
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References
- Photo Credit parachute image by Jerome Dancette from Fotolia.com
