Posted on 06/03/2012 10:22:37 PM PDT by Nachum
As Navy SEALs bask in the limelight for daring missions, some in the Army are wondering whether the other half of the nation’s counter-terrorism covert warriors - Delta Force - is being upstaged and left in the shadows.
Adm. William H. McRaven, a SEAL who commanded the Joint Special Operations Command when SEAL Team 6 killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan last year, favors his guys over Delta, some say.
“All I’ve heard and observed is that he is obviously pro-SEAL and that explains why Delta has been sidelined,” said a retired ArmyGreen Beret who still conducts special operations as a government contractor.
A spokesman for U.S. Special Operations Command, where Adm. McRaven is now the top officer and the second SEAL in a row to lead the force, declined to comment. “There are some units we do not discuss,” he said.
SEAL Team 6 has won heaps of public praise since dispatching the world’s most wanted terrorist in May 2011. Months later, real SEALs starred in an action movie, “Act of Valor.” Later this year, Hollywood will release another SEAL-related film on the hunt for bin Laden.
A SEAL team added to the hype in January by rescuing American hostage Jessica Buchanan from a band of pirates in Somalia.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
What kind of idiot wrote this article? Few SEALs are like that. The only two that come to mind are Jesse Ventura and Richard Marcinko. Other than that, I’m sure they prefer to keep a low profile. A very low profile.
Didn’t the WH out the Navy Seals?
Memorial Day weekend I went down to see Three Dog Night on the flight deck of The Midway and met a few SEALs at the show. I’m an actor, and on Sunday morning I was invited to go inside the Navy SEALs training facility on Coronado Island. The SEAL who showed me around was from SEAL Team 3. The odd number SEAL Teams are on the West Coast and the even number SEAL Teams are on the East Coast.
I was in awe of these men. We watched a few video’s then walked around the courtyard (The Grinder). There’s a great sign that hangs on one of the walls above The Grinder that says “The only easy day was yesterday.”
I asked a few of the SEAL’s I talked to what they thought of Obama taking credit and giving away certain details of the missions and all they said was basically the same thing “I wish he would shut up.”
Two days before I was there some of seniors from the University of Michigan’s football team were there. Here’s a link from ESPN. The SEAL who showed me around was Rob Stella who’s featured in this story and a great guy.
The SEALs like you to be humble as you’ll see in the article just a little over half way down.
I grew up in Oak Park, IL and a good friend of mine from high school who lives out by me now in the Los Angeles area who retired a few years ago was a Col. in Delta Force. Col. Pete Blaber, he has a book out called “The Mission, The Men, and Me: Lessons from a former Delta Force Commander.” His first deployment with Delta Force was that Blackhawk Down incident. He speaks very highly of the SEALs and told me they’re incredible machines. He doesn’t think too much of Obama and his spiking the football after the killing of Osama bin Laden. Col. Blaber came up with the idea of following the courier (details are in his book). He planned Operation Anaconda and the bombing of Tora Bora. He followed a courier and that’s how he knew bin Laden was in Tora Bora. He doesn’t talk about it, but I’ve read other books and several authors claim that Col. Blaber’s missions have killed more Al Queda than anyone on the planet. He’s a very humble guy, but funny as hell.
Was Jesse Ventura actually a SEAL? He was part of the UDT, but he was not a SEAL. The former SEAL Commander (Bill Salisbury) even refuted him being a SEAL. UDTs joined with SEALs 8 years after The Body had left the Navy.
Anyways, as for the article - I am sure there is profound respect between the members of DEVGRU (aka SEAL Team 6) and CAG (aka Delta Force, 1st SFOD-D). Those two are the tippy-tip of the spear-tip, Tier 1 operators that are, honestly, better than their Tier 2 comrades in the other SEAL Teams and Army Special Forces (Green Berets) respectively. The third Tier 1 Group is the FBI's HRT. DEVGRU and CAG are as close to super-human as you can get without having to flip through a Batman comic. I would expect such a high level of training and expertise would make a member of DEVGRU thoroughly respect a member of CAG, and vice-versa. I believe they even cross-train, and the only difference between the two is whether one is part of Army or of Navy.
In terms of actual capability CAG and DEVGRU are absolutely equal. CAG could have taken out Osama as easily as DEVGRU did.
BTW to see how good these guys are just think about it this way - Howard Wasdin, a former SEAL operator who took part in Mogadishu, said that DEVGRU spends more 9mm ammo in one year than the entire Marine Corps. Considering the Corps are a bunch of kick-butt-take-names heroes, for one unit to shoot more than the entire Corps says a lot. I've read that CAG and DEVGRU operators tend to have 100% marksmanship, which can be borne out by the hostage rescue off Somalia where some SEAL snipers took successful headshots at some pirates. Not a big deal until you consider 1) the distance, 2) the fact the SEALs were on a ship, 3) the fact the pirates were on a bobbing boat, 4) the fact that all shots had to be simultaneous. Quite different from shooting a Ceska at a paper target at the range.
Anyways, I'd say both CAG and DEVGRU are equal. You can toss in HRT there too. Every one else ...every one ...is below them. True ubersmensch.
I remember reading the first Rogue Warrior book, and Marcinko said his budget for ammunition when SEAL Team SIX first started was more than the entire Marine Corps.
bump for later read
I was lucky enough to be invited to tag along on a “vip” tour of some of the SAS facilities around Hereford last year.
We met a number of members of the squadron currently on the domestic counter revolutionary warfare (the equiv. of seal 6) rotation and the NCO acting as our guide told us each man puts down 800-1200 rounds a week during training exercises in the infamous “killing house” (now more of a killing complex).
Apparently its not uncommon for some of the lads to “sneak” into rooms ahead of the team doing the exercise so that the guys blowing the door find their comrades taking the place of the hostages while the flash-bangs roar and live ammo flies inches from their heads at the baddie targets.
Apparently the “untold story” of the Afghan war is how effective a relatively small number of SAS, Seal 6 & Delta have been at “mopping up” whole swaths of mid-level Taliban types while sustaining very few casualties themselves.
....read Eric Haney's book, Inside Delta Force, during their kill house training periods they were reprimanded by, founder col. Charley Beckwith for not going through hundreds of thousands of rounds a month. Either the Brits are cheap or a lot better shots than Delta.
Rowan Scarborough is a well—respected, well-connected Conservative military affairs journalist with the Washington Times. He is also a sort of “Anti-Woodward” author of numerous national security and military-related books. If he writes it, you can take it to the bank...
You forgot DOE OST. We typically outshoot all but CIA SAD and tie with DEVGRU at competitions. Never competed against Delta though. Those boys are tough, but we shoot more;) Sometimes we lose, to DSS, but only once when I was there. OST does three things: Shoot, Run, Drive.......we shot ALOT more than USSS & HRT. Fun times and lots of lead down range!
Adm. William H. McRaven, a SEAL .... favors his guys over Delta, some say. “All I’ve heard and observed is that he is obviously pro-SEAL and that explains why Delta has been sidelined,” said a retired ArmyGreen Beret who still conducts special operations as a government contractor.IMHO that assessment by the retired SF soldier is spot on. That being said, it's also MHO that Delta Force should be thankful that what they do is still kept TOP SECRET.
Thanks to Barry and the Admiral(s), SEAL Team 6 is now the walking, talking, breathing equivalent of Area 51. The least best kept 'Secrets' we have. As such Delta Force can still continue being The Quiet Professionals.
SEAL Team 6 can't, not any more.
That “more ammo than the USMC” fable has been around for at least 25 years, since I first heard it.
On my source though - it was from Howard Wasdin. However, I've only 'met' him via a book, while you are an actual FReeper, and since you are both operatives your word takes immediate precedence.
Stay blessed.
Has the HRT ever actually rescued a hostage?
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