Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index SEALs in from the water U.S. Navy SEALs Photo Insignia Official force name U.S. Navy SEALs U.S. Navy BUD/S SEALs Nickname Frogmen Branch U.S. Navy Chain of Command U.S. Navy Special Warfare Command NAVSPECWARCOM Description Versatile Sea, Air or Land Special Operations Force, mainly trained for Basic Underwater Demolition (BUD). Readiness Each team can deploy anywhere in the world with 18 hours notice. Specializations Conducting Airborne operations, conducting direct action operations, conducting raids, counter-terrorism, hydographic recoinnasance, infiltrating and exfiltrating by sea, air or land, intelligence, recovery of personnel and special equipment, support of general purpose forces (GPF), underwater demolition. Headquarters Naval Special Warfare Command San Diego, California United States of America Insertion date Traced back to 1943, but officially commisioned in April 16, 1987. Reason of creation U.S. Navy need for demolition of naval mines and beach obstacles. The United States Navy SEALs are the U.S. Navy premier Special Operations Force (SOF). The force specialize in Basic Underwater Demolition (BUD) and SEa, Air, or Land (SEAL) operations. SEAL Teams go through what is considered by some to be the toughest military training in the world. Table of contents 1 Force fact file 2 Famous Navy SEALs 3 Movies 4 Related Topics 5 External links 5.1 Official sites 5.2 Former Navy SEALs websites 6 References Force fact file The U.S. Navy's premier Special Operations Force are the SEAL (Sea, Air, Land) teams that trace their history to the first group of volunteers selected from the Naval Construction Battalions (SeaBees) in the spring of 1943. These volunteers were organized into special teams called ‘Navy Combat Demolition Units’ (NCDUs). The units were tasked with reconnoitering and clearing beach obstacles for troops going ashore during amphibious landings, and evolved into Combat Swimmer Reconnaissance Units. The NCDUs distinguished themselves during World War II in both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters. In 1947, the Navy organized its first underwater offensive strike units. During the Korean Conflict, these Underwater Demolition Teams (UDTs) took part in the landing at Inchon as well as other missions including demolition raids on bridges and tunnels accessible from the water. They also conducted limited minesweeping operations in harbors and rivers. During the 1960s, each branch of the armed forces formed its own counterinsurgency force. The Navy utilized UDT personnel to form separate units called SEAL teams. January of 1962 marked the commissioning of SEAL Team ONE in the Pacific Fleet and SEAL Team TWO in the Atlantic Fleet. These teams were developed to conduct unconventional warfare, counter-guerrilla warfare and clandestine operations in both blue and brown water environments. SEAL jumps over the side from boat U.S. Navy SEALs Photo Concurrently, Naval Operations Support Groups were formed to aid UDTs, SEALs, and two other unique units —Boat Support and Beach Jumpers— in administration, planning, research, and development. During the Vietnam War, UDTs performed reconnaissance missions and SEALs carried out numerous offensive operations. In 1967, the Naval Operations Support Groups were renamed ‘Naval Special Warfare Groups’ (NSWGs) as involvement increased in limited conflicts and special operations. In 1983, existing UDTs were re-designated as ‘SEAL teams’ or ‘SEAL Delivery Vehicle Teams’ and the requirement for hydrographic reconnaissance and underwater demolition became ‘SEAL missions’. The Naval Special Warfare Command was commissioned April 16, 1987, at the Naval Amphibious Base Coronado in San Diego, California. Its mission is to prepare Naval Special Warfare forces to carry out their assigned missions and to develop special operations strategy, doctrine, and tactics. SEALs (Sea, Air, Land) teams go through what is considered by some to be the toughest military training in the world. Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training is conducted at the Naval Special Warfare Center in Coronado. Students encounter obstacles that develop and test their stamina, leadership and ability to work as a team. Famous Navy SEALs See also: List of actors who played Navy SEALs at movies. Dennis Chalker - former American college football player Jesse Ventura - Governor of Minnesota, actor and former proffesioal wrestler. Richard Marcinko - founder of SEAL Team SIX and author of novels with military themes. Rudy Boesch - competitor in the TV reality show Survivor and Survivor II. Movies GI Jane, Tears of the Sun. Related Topics U.S. Special Operations Forces External links SEALs in woodlands operation U.S. Navy SEALs Photo Official sites U.S. Navy SEALs Information Website U.S. Naval Special Warfare Command Website Former Navy SEALs websites NavySEALs.com SpecialOperations.com: BUD/S Information Page SpecialOperations.com: SEALs Information Page References US Navy. Navy Fact File: Navy SEALs. San Diego, California: Naval Special Warfare Command–Public Affairs Office. March 16, 1996. This article is from Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.