List of defunct special forces units

Australia

• No. 200 Flight RAAF
• Australian Army Training Team Vietnam (AATTV)
• Australian commandos
• Combined Field Intelligence Service
• Far Eastern Liaison Office (FELO)
• M Special Unit
• Rose Force
• Royal Australian Navy Beach Commandos
• Services Reconnaissance Department
• Z Special Unit
• Bushveldt Carbineers

Canada

• 1st Special Service Force
• The Canadian Airborne Regiment
• Amphibious Reconnaissance & Clearance Squadron
• Special Air Service Company

Croatia

• 1st Croatian Guards Brigade
• Zrinski Battalion
• Frankopan Battalion

Ethiopia

• 103rd Commando Division - Derg government, active 1988-89^[1]

 German Democratic Republic

• Diensteinheit IX
• 40. Fallschirmjägerbataillon Willi Sänger

 Greece

• Sacred Band
• 3rd Special Forces Division (Greece)

Fiji

• Counter Revolutionary Warfare Unit^[2] (1987-2000)

Ireland

• Free State Army Intelligence Department

Israel

• Palmach
• Unit 101
• Samson Unit
• Force 100
• Sayeret Haruv
• TAT'ZAM

Kingdom of Italy

• Army : 10th Arditi Regiment (2 rgts)
• Navy : Decima Flottiglia MAS
• Air Force : A.D.R.A. Arditi Distruttori Regia Aeronautica (2 bns)

 Nazi Germany

Division "Brandenburg" Vehicle Insignia

Brandenburgers units, including

• Battalion Brandenburg – December 1939
  • 1. Company
  • 2. Company
  • 3. Company
  • 4. Company
  • Motorcycle platoon
  • Parachute platoon
• Division Brandenburg – February 1943 – March 1944
  • Division staff
  • Jäger Regiment – 1 Brandenburg
  • Jäger Regiment – 2 Brandenburg
  • Jäger Regiment – 3 Brandenburg
  • Jäger Regiment – 4 Brandenburg
  • Tropische Einheiten Brandenburg
  • Coastal Raiders Battalion Brandenburg
  • Parachute Battalion Brandenburg
  • Signal Company Brandenburg
  • Independent Companies –
    • 14.Company
    • 15.Parachute Company
  • Auxiliary Units –
    • Lehrregiment Brandenburg z.b.v Nr.800 (Training Regiment)

• Panzergrenadier-Division Brandenburg – 1944–1945.
  • Division Staff
  • Panzer Regiment Brandenburg
  • Jäger(mot) Regiment 1 Brandenburg
  • Jäger(mot) Regiment 2 Brandenburg
  • Panzerjäger Battalion Brandenburg
  • Artillery Regiment Brandenburg
  • Heeres Flak Battalion Brandenburg
  • Reconnaissance Battalion Brandenburg
  • Pioneer Battalion Brandenburg
  • Signals Battalion Brandenburg
  • Supply Train

 Poland

• Grupa Destrukcyjna Wawelberg

Portugal

• Caçadores Especiais
• Flechas
• Grupos Especiais

Rhodesia

• Selous Scouts
• Rhodesian Special Air Service
• Rhodesian Light Infantry

South Africa

• 1 Reconnaissance Commando
• 2 Reconnaissance Commando (Citizen Force)
• 3 Reconnaissance Commando (consisting of former Selous Scouts)
• 6 Reconnaissance Commando (consisting of former Rhodesian SAS)
• 31 Battalion "the Bushman Battalion" Originally "Alpha Group"
  • 31 Battalion Recce Wing
• 32 Battalion 'The Terrible Ones' Originally "Bravo Group"
  • 32 Battalion Recce Wing
• Civil Cooperation Bureau (CCB)
• Hunter Group
• Koevoet
• 44 Parachute Brigade Pathfinder Company 'The Philistines'

Sri Lanka

• Special Service Group

Syria

• Defense companies
• Struggle Companies

Turkey

• Special Warfare Department (Turkish: Özel Harp Dairesi)

United Kingdom

British Army

• Army Commandos (1940 - 1946)
  • No. 1 Commando
  • No. 2 Commando
  • No. 3 Commando
  • No. 4 Commando
  • No. 5 Commando
  • No. 6 Commando
  • No. 7 Commando
  • No. 8 (Guards) Commando
  • No. 9 Commando
  • No. 10 (Inter-Allied) Commando
  • No. 11 (Scottish) Commando
  • No. 12 Commando
  • No. 14 (Arctic) Commando
  • No. 30 Commando
  • No. 50 Commando
  • No. 51 Commando
  • No. 52 Commando
  • No. 62 Commando
  • Middle East Commando
• Long Range Penetration Group “The Chindits”
• Ferret Force
• Phantom
• Layforce
• Long Range Desert Group (LRDG)
• Popski's Private Army^[3] (PPA)
• Raiding Support Regiment (RSR)
• Special Interrogation Group (SIG)
• T-Force
• V-Force
• Z Force

Royal Air Force

• Royal Air Force Commandos

Royal Marines

• Royal Marine Detachment 385 (Small Operations Group)
• Royal Marines Boom Patrol Detachment
• Sea Reconnaissance Unit (SRU)
• Royal Marine Demolition Unit

Royal Navy

• Royal Navy Commandos - 22 units each consisting of 10 officers and 65 ratings

Combined Operations

• 30 Assault Unit
• Combined Operations Pilotage Parties

Directorate of Military Intelligence

• Special Operations Executive
  • Force 133
  • Force 136
  • Force 137
  • Force 266
  • Force 399
  • Norwegian Independent Company 1
  • Small Scale Raiding Force (SSRF) "62 Commando"

Other

• UK and the Royal Navy Volunteer Group (Korean War unit)
• Special Reconnaissance Unit
• 14 Intelligence Company "The Det"
• The Increment

United States

The Civil War

• Jessie Scouts
• Mosby's Rangers
• Quantrill's Raiders

World War II

• 1st Air Commando Group
• 1st Special Service Force "Devil's Brigade"
• 2nd Air Commando Group
• 3rd Air Commando Group
• 6th Army Special Reconnaissance Unit "Alamo Scouts"
• Alaskan Scouts
• Army Ranger Battalions
• 5307th Composite Unit (provisional) "Merrill's Marauders"
• Marine Parachute Battalions
• Marine Raiders
• Marine Scout and Sniper Companies
  • 6th Marine Division Scout and Sniper Company
• Marine Corps Amphibious Reconnaissance Battalion
• Observer Group
• Sino-American Cooperative Organization
  • Naval Group, China (NGC)
• Naval Scouts and Raiders
• Navy Combat Demolition Units (NCDU)
• US Navy Beach Jumpers
• Office of Strategic Services (OSS)
  • 2641st Special Group
  • 2671st Special Reconnaissance Battalion
  • 2677th Office of Strategic Services Regiment
  • US Army Air Forces Carpetbaggers
  • OSS Detachment 101
  • OSS Detachment 202
  • OSS Detachment 303
  • OSS Detachment 404
  • OSS Detachment 505
  • OSS Jedburgh Teams
  • OSS Operational Groups (OG)
  • OSS Maritime Unit (MU)
    • OSS Maritime Unit, Operational Swimmer Group
  • OSS Weather Observers
• Special Allied Airborne Reconnaissance Force (SAARF)

Korean War

• Air Resupply And Communications Service (ARCS)
  • 580th Air Resupply and Communications Wing (580th ARCS)
  • 581st Air Resupply and Communications Wing (581st ARCS)
  • 582nd Air Resupply and Communications Wing
• Airborne Ranger Companies
• Combined Command Reconnaissance Activities, Korea (CCRAK)
  • 6167th Air Base Group
    • 6167th Operations Squadron
    • B Flight, 6167th ABG
• Detachment 1, 6160th ABG/22nd Crash Boat Rescue Squadron (CBRS), Korea Detachment
• Joint Advisory Commission, Korea (JACK)
• Special Activities Group (SAG)
  • GHQ 1st Raider Company (Provisional)/8227th Army Unit
• Unit 4 21st Troop Carrier Squadron (TCS), 5th AF/Special Air Missions (SAM) Detachment, 21st Troop Carrier Squadron (TCS), 5th AF
• United Nations Partisan Infantry Korea (UNPIK)
  • BAKER Section
  • Partisan Airborne Infantry Regiment (PAIR)
• US Navy Special Operations Group, Korea

Vietnam War

• 46th Special Forces Company
• Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol (LRRP)
• MIKE Force
• Military Assistance Command, Vietnam Studies and Observations Group(MACV-SOG)
• Phoenix Program
• Project 404/Palace Dog
• Project "Leaping Lena" (Vietnam War)
• Project DELTA
• Project GAMMA
• Project Sigma and Project Omega
• Raven Forward Air Controllers
• Tiger Force
• US Navy Boat Support Units (BSU)

Other

• 1st Battalion, 245th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne)
• 5th Force Reconnaissance Company
• 6th Special Forces Group
• 8th Special Forces Group
• 11th Special Forces Group
• 12th Special Forces Group
• 55th Special Operations Squadron
• 129th Air Commando Group
• 129th Special Operations Aviation Company (SOAC)
• 437th Combat Control Squadron
• 617th Special Operations Aviation Detachment
• 1730th Pararescue Squadron
• Army Aviation Support Element (AASE), US Special Operations Command
• Blue Light
• Detachment A (DET A, 39th SFOD)
• HAL-3 "Sea Wolves"
• HAL-4 "Red Wolves"
• HAL-5 "Blue Hawks"
• Marine Corps Special Operations Command Detachment One (MCSOCOM-Det 1) (Operation Iraqi Freedom)
• Red Cell
• SEASPRAY
• Special Forces Groups Aviation Detachments
• Special Warfare Aviation Detachments (SWAD)
  • 22nd Aviation Detachment (Special Forces)
  • 23rd SWAD (Surveillance)
  • 281st Assault Helicopter Company, Airmobile Light (AML)
• Special Boat Unit 11 (SBU 11)
• Special Boat Unit 13 (SBU 13)
• Special Boat Unit 24 (SBU 24)
• Special Boat Unit 26 (SBU 26)
• Special Operations Reconnaissance
• Task Force 5 (forerunner of Task Force 11)
• Task Force 11 (Operation Enduring Freedom)
• Task Force 20 and Task Force 121 (Operation Iraqi Freedom)
• Task Force 98
• Task Force 157 (Covert USN Intelligence unit)
• Task Force Bayonet (Operation Just Cause)
• Task Force Ranger (Operation Gothic Serpent)
• Underwater Demolitions Teams (UDT)
• US Army Special Operations Division
• USAF Special Operations Combat Control Team (SOCCT)
• US Coast Guard Drug Interdiction Assist Team (DIAT)
• Yellow Fruit

Republic of Vietnam

South Vietnamese Rangers At its peak there were 22 ARVN Ranger Battalions organized in 10 Groups.^[4]

• 1st Ranger Group - Da Nang (I Corps/CTZ)
• 2nd Ranger Group - Pleiku (II Corps/CTZ)
• 3rd Ranger Group - Biên Hòa (III Corps/CTZ)
• 4th Ranger Group - Chi Long (initially in the 44 Tactical Zone and later the IV Corps)
• 5th Ranger Group - Biên Hòa (III Corps/CTZ)
• 6th Ranger Group - Biên Hòa (III Corps/CTZ)
• 7th Ranger Group - Saigon, attached to Airborne Division
• 41st Ranger Border Defense Group - Chi Long HQ
• 42nd Ranger Border Defense Group - Chi Long HQ
• 81st Ranger Group (Airborne) - Biên Hòa

Additionally, during the Vietnamization of the CIDG and MIKE Forces, former CIDG units were given Ranger status and organized into groups of 3 battalions each.

• 21st Ranger Group
• 22nd Ranger Group
• 23rd Ranger Group
• 24th Ranger Group
• 25th Ranger Group

South Vietnamese Special Forces (LLDB), later reformed as South Vietnamese Special Mission Service

• Project DELTA
• Project SIGMA
• Project OMEGA
• Project GAMMA
• Project CHERRY

ARVN SEALs (LDNN)

See also

• List of special forces units
• Paratrooper forces around the world
• Marine forces around the world
• Special Police forces from around the world

References

1. John Young (ed)., 'Peasant Revolt in Ethiopia: The Tigray People's Liberation Front, 1975-91,' Cambridge University Press, 2006, ISBN 0521026067, 164.
2. Fijian coup colonel took part in SAS blunder. Retrieved on September 19, 2008.
3. Popski's Private Army,Vladimir Peniakoff,Nelson Doubleday publisjing
4. Shelby Stanton's book Vietnam Order of Battle, page 274