Navy Seals. Are they the best of the best?

Any place where there are currently U.S. troops, you’ll find that SEALs are either there now or were there first. The role that Navy SEAL teams play rev­olves around getting in and out quickly and without being seen, gathering intelligence, destroying targets, and performing rescues, among other things.

U.S. Special Operations Forces, which includes elite commando forces from each branch of the military, such as the Navy SEALs, Army Rangers, Green Berets, and others, have become critical to many U.S. military successes over the past decade. Each branch of the military has its own specially trained teams that can operate in any situation and perform whatever task it takes to get the job done.

What does it take to become a Navy SEAL? Even SEAL instructors can’t predict who will make it all the way. The familiar trait instructors see in future SEALs can’t be defined; they just call it “fire in the gut.” You either have it, or you don’t.

In this article, you’ll see how Navy SEALs operate and what they do, the fantastic determination it takes to become a SEAL, the widely varied skills they need, and the types of equipment they use on missions.­

The SEAL acronym stands for Sea, Air, and Land, which identifies the elements in which they operate. SEALs work in small units — often one to two men, but sometimes in a platoon comprised of up to 16. They are trained to perform specific tasks under any type of circumstance and in any environment. Their training takes place in the desert, the jungle, in extreme hot and cold weather, and urban areas.

SEAL mis­sions require detailed planning and precise execution. SEALs are trained to perform missions that fall into five main categories:

•  mobile combat groups that operate often using “unorthodox” battle methods like destroying enemy supplies, creating diversions, ambushing small enemy units, demolitions, and other “hit and run” types of operations.
• Foreign Internal Defense (FID) – Training is given to foreign nationals to build relationships. During Operation Desert Storm, Navy SEALs trained 13 Kuwaiti operators in maritime infiltration techniques to set up a secret meeting with local resistance contacts within Iraq-occupied Kuwait City.
• Direct Action (DA) – Moving against an enemy target. This may include assaults on land- or water-based targets, hostage rescues, ambushes, etc.
• Counterterrorism (CT) – Includes direct action against terrorist operations, antiterrorist actions for preventing terrorist acts, and protecting citizens and troops.
• Special Reconnaissance (SR) – Includes conducting preliminary surveys to gather information, handling observation posts, and other types of surveillance, both overt and covert, where the goal is to collect information. This may include gathering hydrographic data (beach and water surveys) for landings or following an enemy unit and reporting its position.

When SEALs aren’t deployed, they’re in constant training, both to hone the necessary skills and to learn new skills and techniques that will make a difference when they are implemented.

The above categories overlap when it comes to actual missions, but these are the basis of SEAL training: to be expert in the skills required to perform these various tasks.

SEAL STATS

• Only about 25 percent of trainees make it through training to become SEALs.
• A SEAL has never been left behind on a mission.
• A SEAL has never been taken, prisoner.
• There are currently about 2,290 active-duty SEALs.

In 1941, after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, U.S. troops were forced to invade Japanese territory by sea, often facing landmines and attacks from unseen enemies. As a countermeasure to these hazards, the U.S. Navy began creating teams that were specially trained to go safely ashore and clear the path of obstacles and other dangers and return intelligence on enemy locations. These teams of six men were called Naval Combat Demolition Units. Their training was heavy in physical strengthening and included carrying heavy loads, swimming, running, and maneuvering in small boats. Their training also included handling explosives. Eventually, they evolved into Underwater Demolition Teams (UDT).

The UDTs were organized in 1943. Also known as frogmen, they were responsible during the Korean War for swimming to shore before an invasion and blowing up obstacles in their path, clearing the way for the amphibious U.S. invasion. They also destroyed important targets like bridges and tunnels.

In the 1960s, the Soviet Union’s ally, North Vietnam, was fighting against a U.S. ally, South Vietnam. President Kennedy wanted to send in small teams of guerrilla fighters to help South Vietnam. With the Army’s Green Beret unit already set up, it was time for the Navy to create its own Special Operations unit. Building on the training of the UDTs, the Navy SEALs (an acronym for Sea, Air, and Land) were created. Their training readied them for the work ahead in the jungles, coasts, and rivers of Vietnam. Their task was to go behind enemy lines and raid enemy camps, sabotage supplies, cut off enemy communications, and destroy stored ammunitions. They were very successful in their missions.

With the Vietnam War ending without victory, many cuts were made in military spending, and the number of Special Forces units was, in many cases, cut in half. The success of the SEALs in Vietnam, however, proved their value.

See the SEALs Virtual Museum for more background information.

Hooyah! — the war cry of the Navy SEALs — becomes an automatic response for SEALs during the torturous SEAL training. While there may be other variations in meaning, “Hooyah” generally means “yes,” “understood,” and “I’m not letting this evolution get the best of me.” (Evolution is the term used for each event in the training schedule.)

SEAL training is brutal. It takes over 30 months to train a Navy SEAL to the point at which he will be ready for deployment. The SEALs that emerge are prepared to handle pretty much any task they could be called on to perform, including diving, combat swimming, navigation, demolitions, weapons, and parachuting. The training pushes them to the limit both mentally and physically to weed out those who may not be able to complete the demanding missions and operations with which SEALs are faced. The types of stresses they endure during BUD/S (Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL) are the same stresses they will encounter as SEALs. If they can’t withstand it when lives aren’t on the line, chances are good they won’t be able to endure it when lives are at stake.

From day one in SEAL training, trainees are taught the importance of teamwork. The focus is not on the individual. The fact that the SEALs have never left another SEAL behind on a mission is a testament to this belief system. Throughout their training, they learn more and more why teamwork is necessary for the type of work they will soon be entering: SEALs are performing tasks that may not be possible for a single man to accomplish but can be possible for a team composed of men who have the same training and skills. Their success depends on what they can do together as a team.

Entering training to become a Navy SEAL is voluntary. Anyone can volunteer, and officers and enlisted men train side by side. To begin SEAL training, however, they do have to meet specific requirements. Those wishing to volunteer for SEAL training have to:

• be an active-duty member of the U.S. Navy
• be a man (women aren’t allowed to be Navy SEALs)
• be 28 or younger (although waivers for 29- and 30-year-olds are possible)
• have a good vision — at least 20/40 in one eye and 20/70 in the other (corrective surgery is also possible)
• be a U.S. citizen
• pass the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB)
• Pass a stringent physical screening test that includes the following procedure: swim 500 yards in 12.5 minutes or less, followed by a 10-minute rest; do 42 push-ups in under two minutes, followed by a two-minute rest; do 50 sit-ups in under two minutes, followed by a two-minute rest; do six pull-ups, followed by a 10-minute rest; run 1.5 miles in boots and long pants in less than 11.5 minutes

Once a potential SEAL qualifies for training, the real fun starts.

Essential Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training is divided into several phases:

1. Indoctrination
2. Basic Conditioning
3. SCUBA training
4. Land-warfare training

There is also the infamous Hell Week, which takes place toward the end of Basic Conditioning.

BUD/S lasts seven months. The initial indoctrination comprises five weeks of learning the expectations and ways of Navy SEALS. More important, it is time to prepare physically and mentally for what’s ahead.

Once indoctrination is complete, the remaining time is broken down into eight weeks of essential conditioning, eight weeks of SCUBA training, and nine weeks of land-warfare training. The training takes place at the Naval Amphibious Base at Coronado, CA.

Basic Conditioning is when the going gets rough. This is the phase where most Drops on Request (DOR) happen. For eight weeks, trainees’ days are filled with running, swimming, calisthenics, and learning small-boat operations. One-to-2 mile ocean swims and running the mother of all obstacle courses are daily, and timed events. A trainee’s time for these exercises must continuously improve.

Another critical part of the necessary conditioning is drown-proofing. In this evolution, trainees must learn to swim with both their hands and their feet bound. To pass drown-proofing, trainees enter a 9-foot-deep pool and complete the following steps with their hands and feet tied:

1. bob for 5 minutes
2. float for 5 minutes
3. swim 100 meters
4. bob for 2 minutes
5. do some forward and backward flips
6. swim to the bottom of the pool and retrieve an object with their teeth
7. return to the surface and bob five more times

Another evolution is surf torture, also called “cold water conditioning.” The water temperatures usually hover around 65 degrees Fahrenheit (18 C), and never go above 68 degrees F (20 C). From there, trainees may be ordered to do some calisthenics or run a mile and a half down the beach in their wet clothes and boots. Then, they’re ordered back into the surf. Many drills also require that teams carry their rubber boats over their heads as they run from one task to another.

The fourth week of Basic Conditioning is known as Hell Week. This is when students train for five days and five nights solid with a maximum total of four hours of sleep. Hell Week begins at sundown on Sunday and ends at the end of Friday. During this time, trainees face continuous training evolutions. During Hell Week, trainees get four meals a day — sometimes MREs, but usually hot meals of unlimited quantities. Eating spicy food is a substitute for being warm and dry. It gives a needed psychological boost to tired trainees, many of whom are nearly sleeping while they eat.

Pretty much every evolution during Hell Week involves the team (or boat crew) carrying their boat — inflatable rubber Zodiacs — over their heads. Timed exercises, runs, and crawling through mudflats are interspersed throughout the five-and-a-half days. The most significant number of trainees drops out during Hell Week. This extreme training is critical, though. SEALs on missions must be able to operate efficiently, oblivious to sub-zero temperatures, and their physical comfort. Their lives, as well as the lives of others, may depend on it.

Listening carefully to orders is another critical element of training during BUD/S, particularly during Hell Week, when brains are getting fuzzy from lack of sleep. The instructor may purposely leave out part of an order to see who is listening. For example, during a series of laws requiring trainee teams to do exercises using a 300-pound (136-kg) log, he may leave out mention of the record for one order. Team leaders who are paying attention will catch this, and their team gets a small break in the difficulty of the task by performing it without having to carry the log. The instructor might reward the organization by allowing it to stand by the fire and rest, or sit and sleep for a few minutes.

SCUBA

Since much of a SEAL’s work is done underwater, SCUBA (self-contained underwater breathing apparatus) and combat swimming are top priorities for training.

SEALs train extensively for eight weeks in closed-circuit SCUBA systems and underwater navigation.

Land Warfare

During land-warfare training, SEALs train for nine weeks in intelligence-gathering and structure penetration, long-range surveillance and patrolling, and close-quarters battle. They are also trained to react to sniper attacks and to use “edged” weapons such as knives and other blades. SEALs must be able to drive any vehicle and be skilled in high-speed and evasive driving techniques. Hand-to-hand combat is also taught during this phase of training.

To be prepared for anything, they are taught the tactics small units must use, including handling explosives, infiltrating enemy lines, recovery (snatch-and-grab) techniques, and proper handling of prisoners. SEALs must also be able to survive in extreme environments and provide medical treatment (field medicine).

When BUD/S training is over, those remaining move on to basic parachute training at the Army Airborne School at Fort Benning, GA.

This training lasts for three weeks and is followed by SEAL Qualification Training (SQT). SQT is 15 more weeks of training to continue to improve necessary skills and to learn new tactics and techniques required for assignment to a SEAL platoon.

It is after successful completion of the SQT that trainees are given their Naval Enlisted Code and awarded the SEAL Trident pin. They are now officially Navy SEALs.

Hospital corpsmen require another 30 weeks of training at this stage.

Further training is provided in Special Reconnaissance and Direct Action, where SEALs learn more about completing tasks such as:

• tactical ambushes
• sniper assaults
• close-quarters combat
• underwater demolition
• combat-swimming attacks
• close air support
• Naval gunfire support
• raids
• hydrographic reconnaissance

Naval Special Warfare operators inspect a shipping container at Iraq’s Mina Al Bakar Oil Terminal during an operation to secure the oil platform from being destroyed by the Iraqi military.

OFFICIAL U.S. NAVY PHOTO PHOTOGRAPHERS MATE 1ST CLASS ARLO K. ABRAHAMSON

SEAL Assignments and Deployment

New SEALs report immediately to their operational units and begin 12 to 18 months of extensive individual-, platoon-, and squadron-level training in preparation for deployment with their SEAL platoon. This training/deployment cycle is repeated to make sure SEALs are continually improving and learning new skills that can save lives and help missions succeed.

In the following sections, we’ll take a look at some examples of SEAL missions.

Naval Special Warfare is comprised of SEAL teams, SEAL Delivery Vehicle Teams, and Special Boat Teams that are all deployed worldwide for a variety of operations.

Teams and Platoons

There are eight SEAL teams. Each unit has six platoons and a headquarters element. SEAL platoons consist of 16 SEALs — two officers, one chief, and 13 enlisted men. A detachment is generally the most abundant operational element assigned to a mission. The platoon may also be divided into two squads or four ingredients. Every member of a SEAL platoon is qualified in diving, parachuting, and demolitions.

The teams are split between the East Coast and the West Coast of the United States. The odd-numbered teams fall under the command of Naval Special Warfare Group One and are based on the West Coast in Coronado, CA. The even-numbered teams are under the leadership of Naval Special Warfare Group Two and are based on the East Coast in Little Creek, VA.

SDV Teams and NSW Units

There are other specialized teams of SEALs called SEAL Delivery Vehicle Teams (SDVT). SDV teams operate in areas where it is too far out for a SEAL to swim and carry gear. Using underwater SDV watercraft, these teams increase the areas in which SEALs can operate. SDV teams usually deploy from submarines, but can also deploy from shore-based stations or surface ships.

There are two SDV teams. SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team ONE (SDVT-1) is based in Pearl Harbor, HA, and operates in the Pacific and Central geographic areas. SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team TWO (SDVT-2) is based at Little Creek, VA, and conducts operations throughout the Atlantic, Southern, and European regions.

There are also Naval Special Warfare Units based in locations around the world. These units have several responsibilities, including acting as training commands for SEALs and planning, coordinating, and supporting the activities of SEAL platoons.

Faking SEALdom is not a good idea. Those who falsely claim to be Navy SEALs — to have gone through the rugged training and fought alongside other SEALs on dangerous secret missions — are in for a rough ride. SEALs and SEAL organizations investigate suspicious claims and publicize the names of imposters.

Check out AuthentiSEAL’s Wall of Shame and VeriSEAL’s Hall of Shame.