# Which is the US military's most elite special operations force? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [April 21, 2007, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033 "2007-04-21T03:21:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/21 "2007-04-23T03:30:52Z")
[QUOTE=Pudmobile] Well I think you forgot these guys on your list [SEAL Team Six - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DEVGRU) I personally think Devgru and Delta are the best combat orientated special forces in the US. Both recruiting mostly from special forces in their respective branch. [/QUOTE] Linky no worky. Try it again, above; I took out the surplus http: //. ---
**Author:** ![Pudmobile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3ab097/32.png) [@Pudmobile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pudmobile)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/22 "2007-04-23T15:33:30Z")
[QUOTE=Elendil’s Heir] Linky no worky. Try it again, above; I took out the surplus http: //. [/QUOTE] Sorry about that. Here we go hopefully. [Devgru](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DEVGRU) ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/23 "2007-04-23T15:38:14Z")
I’m surprised nobody has yet mentioned [the Omega Force!](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_bacon) ---
**Author:** ![DustyButt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc348/32.png) [@DustyButt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DustyButt)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/24 "2007-04-24T02:47:16Z")
While in Los Angeles, those in the know said to contact these guys if I needed help… [They say that if you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them that they were for hire.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_A-Team) Some of their exploits were caught on film. These guys get my vote. ---
**Author:** ![cerberus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71e660/32.png) [@cerberus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cerberus)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/25 "2007-04-24T06:27:15Z")
The OP really doesn’t make any sense, as the various forces do different sorts of jobs. You can’t really order them in a linear sort of way. The PJ(Air Force and Coast Guard) probably have the most physically demanding and psychotic stressors, including the SEAL teams. You can’t shoot or blow up the sea, you can’t sneak up on the sea, and all you have as a weapon is your body and training. You basically do your job in the sea while it tries to kill/freeze/drown you. SEAL teams, like DELTA, are trained for brief, high-intensity missions that rely on shock and superior firepower. Neither are deployed for extended operations, though the DELTA people are more like Super Duper SWAT guys, and SEAL teams are trained for a greater variety of operations, including the original UDT/blow things up in the water ops. Special Forces are trained for a variety of missions, but function in a sustained fashion, and train/coordinate local forces. SF also employ specialized teams, and generally stay out of the water. The Air Force has some crazy spec ops types who basically embed on the ground and call in air strikes. Marine Recon and Army Rangers serve similar advance action operations, but again, these units generally aren’t deployed on sustained missions: they lay the ground work for more forces that follow later. At this point, the various special ops assets of the US armed services have been doing more and more mission sharing and cross-training, and if I recall correctly, there is actually a combined services special operations command. Looking at non-US forces, the old Spetznaz were rather nasty, and in European circles both the SAS(UK Special Air Service) and GSG-9(German Counter-terrorism Unit) share rather high status as elite units. ---
**Author:** ![Shamozzle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shamozzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shamozzle)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/26 "2007-04-24T07:06:38Z")
[QUOTE=cerberus] The OP really doesn’t make any sense, as the various forces do different sorts of jobs. You can’t really order them in a linear sort of way. The PJ(Air Force and Coast Guard) probably have the most physically demanding and psychotic stressors, including the SEAL teams. You can’t shoot or blow up the sea, you can’t sneak up on the sea, and all you have as a weapon is your body and training. You basically do your job in the sea while it tries to kill/freeze/drown you. SEAL teams, like DELTA, are trained for brief, high-intensity missions that rely on shock and superior firepower. Neither are deployed for extended operations, though the DELTA people are more like Super Duper SWAT guys, and SEAL teams are trained for a greater variety of operations, including the original UDT/blow things up in the water ops. Special Forces are trained for a variety of missions, but function in a sustained fashion, and train/coordinate local forces. SF also employ specialized teams, and generally stay out of the water. The Air Force has some crazy spec ops types who basically embed on the ground and call in air strikes. Marine Recon and Army Rangers serve similar advance action operations, but again, these units generally aren’t deployed on sustained missions: they lay the ground work for more forces that follow later. At this point, the various special ops assets of the US armed services have been doing more and more mission sharing and cross-training, and if I recall correctly, there is actually a combined services special operations command. Looking at non-US forces, the old Spetznaz were rather nasty, and in European circles both the SAS(UK Special Air Service) and GSG-9(German Counter-terrorism Unit) share rather high status as elite units. [/QUOTE] Thanks for that. Very, very interesting. Thanks to everyone else too. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/27 "2007-04-24T15:57:06Z")
I’ve heard tell that there’s nothing cushy about life in the Women’s Auxillary Balloon Corps. ---
**Author:** ![GLWasteful](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f05b48/32.png) [@GLWasteful](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GLWasteful)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/28 "2007-04-24T16:58:27Z")
[QUOTE=BMalion] I’ve heard tell that there’s nothing cushy about life in the Women’s Auxillary Balloon Corps. [/QUOTE] Those candy asses? Hah! The National PTA would mop up the floor with them. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/29 "2007-04-24T17:13:45Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] I’m surprised nobody has yet mentioned [the Omega Force!](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_bacon) [/QUOTE] Bah. I vote for both the A-Team and the G.I. Joe special missions force. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/30 "2007-04-24T19:43:38Z")
[QUOTE=BMalion] I’ve heard tell that there’s nothing cushy about life in the Women’s Auxillary Balloon Corps. [/QUOTE] It’s a **man’s** life in the Women’s Auxiliary Balloon Corps! ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/31 "2007-04-24T20:16:39Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] It’s a **man’s** life in the Women’s Auxiliary Balloon Corps! [/QUOTE] or for that matter the Darbyshire Light infantry! ---
**Author:** ![ChrisBooth12](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e95f7d/32.png) [@ChrisBooth12](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChrisBooth12)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/32 "2007-04-24T21:37:15Z")
Each is the best at what they do. I would say DELTA over SEALS for the reason that I believe you can volunter to be a SEAL but not a Delta. ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/33 "2007-04-24T21:45:18Z")
In the U.S. Army, at least, SFOD-Delta are modeled after the British SAS and are considered the creme de la creme, from what I’ve been read and been told. Recruits usually come from soldiers already qualified for and serving in Ranger and Special Forces (aka “Green Berets”) units, and only a fraction of them make it through selection. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/34 "2007-04-24T21:48:20Z")
Whatever unit trained Jack Bauer. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/35 "2007-04-24T22:18:21Z")
[Blackwater](http://www.blackwaterusa.com/) ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/36 "2007-04-24T22:48:34Z")
[QUOTE=mswas] [Blackwater](http://www.blackwaterusa.com/) [/QUOTE] [Ah, yes, W’s Praetorian Guard . . .](http://www.thenation.com/doc/20070402/scahill) ---
**Author:** ![Weirddave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/919ad9/32.png) [@Weirddave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weirddave)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/37 "2007-04-24T23:12:27Z")
[QUOTE=cerberus] Looking at non-US forces, the old Spetznaz were rather nasty, and in European circles both the SAS(UK Special Air Service) and GSG-9(German Counter-terrorism Unit) share rather high status as elite units. [/QUOTE] I’ve been told by more than one special forces soldier that the training one had to go through for the Spetznaz was crazy insane brutal, as in fatalities were pretty much expected in each training class. When people who train as hard as these guys do speak of something with that level of respect, there is probably something to it. ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2007, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/38 "2007-04-24T23:28:22Z")
[QUOTE=Miller] Giant ants? [/QUOTE] 😛 I thought from what I read about the little affair in Mogadishu, that the Army Rangers were frowned upon by other elite units in the US as a bit of a cop out. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/39 "2007-04-25T00:21:14Z")
I highly suspect that the bulk of what people here know about various Special Operations groups comes almost exclusively from Tom Clancy, Richard Marcinko, and various video games, and is therefore suspect, out of date, and almost completely bullshit, respectively. I don’t claim to have any special knowledge, from public information on these groups it’s clear that they each have different taskings, and within that each internal group or team may have a different purpose. Not all are combat oriented, and in fact many provide intelligence, logistical and medical support, construction and demolitions, transportation and infiltration, et cetera. I don’t think any objective standard could quantify which is “most elite”, though clearly the selective enrollment in DEVGRU and SFOD-D and their particular allowance in variations of equipment and appearance mark them as unique. Note that while physical conditioning and training in a variety of skills are important, from the few I’ve known SpecOps operators are largely selected on the basis of their determination and coolness under fire. It’s quite possible for someone in prime condition to be rejected as not meeting the requisite standards while someone else who is in lesser (but still superior) physical condition may be accepted as a better candidate. Aside from this, the major difference between SpecOps troops and others is the amount of training time invested in them; when they’re not out in the field actively working, they’re pretty much training continuously. It’s a hard life, and to keep people in it there has to be an air of exclusivity and camaraderie far in excess of normal units. If I had to pick a single group, I’d point at the Air Force Pararescue; while the other SpecOps groups have to occasionally engage in combat, it’s usually at their initative and their advantage. The entire mission of the Pararescue is to go into an actively hostile situation and conduct S&R in unfamiliar, uncontrolled territory with limited logistical and intelligence support. It’s one thing to walk into a dangerous situation knowing that at least you have stealth on your side–and most operations depend on getting in and getting out with minimal contact and exposure–but quite another to waltz, or rather drop, into a freefire zone and hunt around for wounded people who you’re then going to have to haul out to an extraction point. **Pushkin** , there’s always interservice, and often intraservice, rivalries between various groups. I’d be hard pressed to call an Army Ranger a “cop out” to his face, though. These guys are light infantrymen whose specialty is infiltration into advanced or behind enemy lines positions and then disrupt logistical, communications, and support operations in preparation for advance of armor or combined arms forces. As such, they operate under threat, with very limited supply, and a high degree of local operationaly autonomy, and for longer or wider scale operations than are typical of Delta or DEVGRU. Because of the scale on which they operate they may not be considered as elite as SFOD-D but these guys get much of the same training, including the despised survival, evasion, and escape training which is reported to be the hardest of all training challenges. If you want to call them cop outs, that’s your perrogative, but give me warning so I can pick up my drink and move down the bar to a nice, safe spot where I can watch the resultant action. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033/40 "2007-04-25T08:02:36Z")
[QUOTE=Stranger On A Train] If you want to call them cop outs, that’s your perrogative, but give me warning so I can pick up my drink and move down the bar to a nice, safe spot where I can watch the resultant action. Stranger [/QUOTE] So they can thrash me to pieces then? Cool, that must mean they’re right then. And the best of the best of the best. Obviously. Because I’m so physically imposing myself 🙂 Yeah I’ll call them cop outs. But with the disclaimer that its cop outs as special forces. Then I’d invite them to sit down with me in armchairs and discuss it in front of the Discovery channel like all good generals do 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-is-the-us-militarys-most-elite-special-operations-force/401033.md?page=1)