By Harold Hutchison,We Are the Mighty
When we think of Green Berets, we think of tough, highly-trained troops that have been groomed to take on high-priority missions. Seeing as the military is home to a number of unique specializations, it’s easy to assume that when it comes to any kind of amphibious assault or landing, you’ve entered Navy or Marine Corps territory — right? Not necessarily.
The U.S. Army does some of its own diving. In fact, the U.S. Army actually operates a number of its own ships, too, for moving stuff around. In an instance of Hollywood actually getting it right, the 1986 film The Delta Forcetouched on one instance in which dive training proved very useful: infiltrating a target.
Chuck Norris prepares to infiltrate a terrorist base in ‘The Delta Force.’ The diving is not Hollywood BS.
(Cannon Films)
So, how do Green Berets learn how to carry out such missions? Well, to even get into the Combat Diver Qualification Course at the Special Forces Underwater Operations School, soldiers must first demonstrate outstanding physical fitness and pass swim tests. Once a Green Beret has arrived in Key West, Florida, they face seven weeks of training.
The training is extremely tough — one of three candidates who attend the school will not pass the course. After another series of tests (known collectively as “Zero Week”), Special Forces diving students learn how to handle SCUBA gear and re-breathers and learn all the skills required for an amphibious insertion. Then, It all culminates in a field training exercise.
One-third of the soldiers training will wash out of the Combat Divers Qualification Course.
(U.S. Army photo by Linda L. Crippen)
Check out the video below to see an old-school video about Green Berets putting their dive training to good use.
More from We Are the Mighty:
America’s top strategic bomber once had devastating tail guns
Why Germany could buy the Marines’ new helicopter
This helicopter will be the new Marine One
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