United States Army Special Operations Command

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name= United States Army Special Operations Command (Airborne)


caption= United States Army Special Operations Command (Airborne) shoulder sleeve insignia
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country= United States of America
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branch= United States Army
type= Special Operations
role= to organize, train, educate, man, equip, fund, administer, mobilize, deploy and sustain Army special operations forces to successfully conduct worldwide special operations.
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command_structure= U.S. Army
USSOCOM
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commander1= Lieutenant General Robert W. Wagner

The United States Army Special Operations Command (Airborne) (USASOC or ARSOC)is the command charged with overseeing the various Special Operations Forces (SOF)of the United States Army. The command is part of the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM); a largercommand overseeing all the different SOF Commands of each branch of the U.S. military. The commander of United States Army Special Operations Command is Lieutenant General Robert W. Wagner.

ubordinate units

U.S. Army Special Forces Command (Airborne) (USASFC)

Special Forces units perform seven doctrinal missions: Unconventional Warfare, Foreign Internal Defense, Special Reconnaissance, Direct Action, Combatting Terrorism, Counter-proliferation, and Information Operations. These missions make Special Forces unique in the U.S. military, because they are employed throughout the three stages of the operational continuum: peacetime, conflict and war.

Special Forces Command's Unconventional Warfare capabilities provide a viable military option for a variety of operational taskings that are inappropriate or infeasible for conventional forces, making it the U.S. military's premier unconventional warfare force.

Foreign Internal Defense operations, SF's main peacetime mission, are designed to help friendly developing nations by working with their military and police forces to improve their technical skills, understanding of human rights issues, and to help with humanitarian and civic action projects.

Often SF units are required to perform additional, or collateral, activities outside their primary missions. These collateral activities are coalition warfare/support, combat search and rescue, security assistance, peacekeeping, humanitarian assistance, humanitarian de-mining and counter-drug operations. [cite web
url=http://www.soc.mil/SF/mission.htm
title= U.S. Army Special Forces Command
accessdate=2008-01-08
work=]

= United States Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School (USAJFKSWCS)=

USAJFKSWCS trains USSOCOM and Army Special Operations Forces through development and evaluation of special operations concepts, doctrines and trainings. [cite web
url=http://www.soc.mil/swcs/swcs_default.htm
title=USAJFKSWCS
accessdate=2008-01-08]

= 75th Ranger Regiment (Airborne)=

The 75th Ranger Regiment, composed of three Ranger battalions, is the premier light-infantry unit of the United States Army. Headquartered at Fort Benning, Ga., the 75th Ranger Regiment’s mission is to plan and conduct special missions in support of U.S. policy and objectives. The three Ranger battalions that comprise the 75th Ranger Regiment are geographically dispersed. Their locations are:

* lst Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Hunter Army Airfield, Ga.
* 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Fort Lewis, Wash.
* 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Fort Benning, Ga.

The Army maintains the Regiment at a high level of readiness. Each battalion can deploy anywhere in the world with 18 hours notice. Because of the importance the Army places on the 75th Ranger Regiment, it must possess a number of capabilities. These capabilities include:

* Infiltrating and exfiltrating by land, sea and air
* Conducting direct action operations
* Conducting raids
* Recovery of personnel and special equipment
* Conducting conventional or special light-infantry operations

To maintain readiness, Rangers train constantly. Their training encompasses Arctic, jungle, desert, and mountain operations, as well as amphibious instruction. The training philosophy of the 75th Ranger Regiment dictates the unit's' high state of readiness. The philosophy includes performance-oriented training emphasizing tough standards and a focus on realism and live-fire exercises, while concentrating on the basics and safety. Training at night, during adverse weather, or on difficult terrain multiplies the benefits of training events. Throughout training, Rangers are taught to expect the unexpected. [cite web
url=http://www.soc.mil/75thrr/75thrrfs.html
title=75th Ranger Regiment overview
accessdate=2008-01-08]

= 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) (160th SOAR (A))=

Shortly after a failed hostage rescue mission, Desert One, in Iran, the Army formed a special aviation unit. The unit drew on the best aviators in the Army and immediately began an intensive training program in low-level, night operations. The unit became a battalion of its own on Oct. 16, 1981. Designated the 160th Aviation Battalion, the unit was popularly known as Task Force 160 because of the constant attachment and detachment of units to prepare for a wide variety of missions. Its focus on night operations resulted in the nickname, the "Night Stalkers." On May 16, 1990, the unit was reorganized, designated the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), and assigned to the U.S. Army Special Operations Command.

The 160th SOAR (A) actively seeks and assigns the best-qualified aviators and support soldiers available in the Army. The unique mission of the unit requires that all members be three time volunteers, i.e. Army, Airborne, 160th SOAR (A). Once assigned, incoming officers and enlisted soldiers go through Basic Mission Qualification. The Officer Qualification Course lasts 20-28 weeks while the Enlisted Qualification Course is five weeks in duration. Two other qualification levels exist, Fully Mission Qualified and Flight Lead. Associated progression through these levels are 12-24 months and 36-60 months respectively. [cite web
url=http://www.soc.mil/160soar/soar_home.htm
title=Night Stalkers overview
accessdate=2008-01-08]

4th Psychological Operations Group (Airborne) (4th POG)

Psychological Operations are a vital part of the broad range of U.S. political, military, economic, and ideological activities used by the U.S. government to secure national objectives. PSYOP is the dissemination of truthful information to foreign audiences in support of U.S. policy and national objectives.

Used during peacetime, contingencies, and declared war, these activities are not a form of force, but are force multipliers that use nonviolent means in often violent environments. Persuading rather than compelling physically, they rely on logic, fear, desire or other mental factors to promote specific emotions, attitudes or behaviors. The ultimate objective of U.S. military psychological operations is to convince enemy, neutral, and friendly nations and forces to take action favorable to the United States and its allies. [cite web
url=http://www.soc.mil/psyop/psyop_default.htm
title=4th PSYOP overview
accessdate=2008-01-08]

95th Civil Affairs Brigade (Airborne) (95th CA BDE)

Civil affairs units support military commanders by working with civil authorities and civilian populations in the commander's area of operations during peace, contingency operations and war.

Used during both conventional and special operations, civil affairs forces have a vital role and are capable of assisting and supporting the civil administration during operations. Civil affairs specialists identify critical requirements needed by local citizens in war or disaster situations. They also locate civilian resources to support military operations, help minimize civilian interference with operations, support national assistance activities, plan and execute noncombatant evacuation, support counterdrug operations and establish and maintain liaison with civilian aid agencies and other nongovernmental organizations.

In support of special operations, these culturally-oriented, linguistically-capable soldiers may also be tasked to provide functional expertise for foreign internal defense operations, unconventional warfare operations and direct action missions. [cite web
url=http://www.soc.mil/ca/ca_default.htm
title=95th CA Bde fact sheet
accessdate=2008-01-08]

Special Operations Support Command(Airborne)

Special Operations Support Command (Airborne), activated on Nov. 1, 1995, is the newest major subordinate unit in the U.S. Army Special Operations Command. Its activation realigned the command and control organizational structure of the following units: 112th Special Operations Signal Battalion (Airborne); 528th Special Operations Support Battalion (Airborne); Material Management Center (Airborne) and five Special Operations Theater Support Elements. It also concentrates a dedicated, regionally oriented, combat and health services, communications planning, coordination and liaison base to assure support for all Army Special Operations Forces units.

Specializing in advanced communications and resupply capabilities, members of the 112th SOSB (A) and the 528th SOSB (A), have a difficult mission supporting ARSOF. In their respective fields, signal and support soldiers provide supplies, maintenance, equipment and expertise allowing Special Operation Forces to "shoot, move and communicate" on a continuous basis. Because ARSOF often uses SOF-unique items, soldiers assigned to these units are taught to operate and maintain a vast array of specialized equipment not normally used by their conventional counterparts. To meet the needs of ARSOF, the two battalions have developed logistical and signal packages that are deployable on a moments notice. Soldiers assigned to these units are airborne qualified. [cite web
url=http://www.soc.mil/soscom/soscom_default.htm
title=SOSCOM fact sheet
accessdate=2008-01-08]

Chain of Command

Notes

External links

* [http://www.soc.mil U.S. Army Special Operations Command] - official site.
* [http://shadowspear.com/ ShadowSpear.com - Special Operations Forces Community Website]