What We Know About the Military’s Secret Commando Team

Delta Force: the US military’s most secretive and highly trained unit.

Published 6 days ago in Ftw

The US military’s most secretive and highly trained unit is Delta Force, also known as D-Boys, Task Force Green, or simply The Unit.

They’ve been involved in many conflicts around the world since their creation in the 70s, including Mogadishu, Afghanistan, Panama, and many others that we will likely never know about. Not much about Delta Force is known for sure, and the military doesn’t even publicly acknowledge their existence. But over the past 50 years, information has seeped through the cracks.

Here are some facts about the Army’s top-secret task force.

1
Delta Force was originally formed as a counter-terrorism unit
Delta Force was mainly formed by Charles Beckwith, an officer in the Green Berets. He had served with the British SAS (Special Air Service) during the Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation in the 60s, which led him to suggest a similar unit for the US Army. His advice wasn’t followed until the 70s, when a wave of terrorist threats led to Delta Force’s formation.

2
It took two years to get Delta Force off the ground
Charles Beckwith and Colonel Thomas Henry established Delta Force on November 19th, 1977. Its initial members were put through rigorous training and a special selection process. These trials meant that Delta Force wasn’t mission-ready until 1979.

3
Delta Force’s first mission was a failure
Delta Force’s first mission was Operation Eagle Claw, to assault the US embassy in Tehran and rescue the American hostages during the Iran hostage crisis of 1979. The poor condition of the helicopters at the staging area forced Jimmy Carter to abort the mission. As the forces withdrew, they collided with a plane, resulting in 8 deaths.
4
Delta Force were involved in the invasion of Grenada
Though most Delta Force missions remain classified, they publicly received the Joint Meritorious Unit Award for their role in the US invasion of Grenada in 1983. The invasion followed a military coup and resulted in occupation of the island nation.

5
Delta Force is shrouded in secrecy
Most of Delta Force’s operations are highly classified, and not even its members usually speak about them. The Army has never even released an official fact sheet for Delta Force.
6
Delta Force has a rivalry with the Navy SEALs
The mission to eliminate Osama Bin Laden undertaken by SEAL Team 6, was originally assigned to Delta Force. Supposedly members of Delta Force were “rolling their eyes” at SEAL Team 6’s bragging about their role in the operation.
7
Delta Force were involved in the Black Hawk Down incident
The infamous ‘Black Hawk Down’ incident, probably best known by the 2001 Ridley Scott movie based on it, happened in Somalia in 1993. Delta Force was ordered to capture Somali leader Mohamed Farrah Aidid and to rescue a crashed army pilot.

8
Plainclothes bodyguards
Delta Force rarely wear uniforms, instead usually opting for civilian clothing both on and off duty to obscure their identities. In this picture, Delta Force bodyguards wearing civilian clothing provide personal protection to General Norman Schwarzkopf during the Persian Gulf War in 1991.
9
Small and secretive
According to Army Times writer Sean Naylor, there are likely about 1,000 members of Delta Force, around 75% of which are support and service personnel. That means about 250 are ‘operators’, or combat personnel.
10
Outwitting the FBI
Retired Delta Force member Eric L. Haney wrote a book about his experiences called Inside Delta Force. In it, he claims that new Delta Force members had to evade the FBI as a part of their training. They would have to find a way to make it to Washington DC and meet with a contact without being apprehended by the FBI, who had been given their identifying information and told they were dangerous criminals.

11
Qualifying for Delta Force is no joke
While Delta Force draws candidates from throughout the military, usually from the Army Rangers or Green Berets, qualifying for the elite team is not easy. In addition to grueling physical fitness, Delta Force operators must prove they are psychologically fit for intense operations. They must also learn skills like marksmanship, covert trade craft, and espionage.
12
The Long Walk
Another trial potential Delta Force operators must pass is ‘The Long Walk’, a 40-mile walk with a 45-pound rucksack that must be completed within a certain time limit, which is kept secret. Roughly 9 out of 10 candidates fail the selection process.
13
Delta Force captured El Chapo
In 2016, Delta Force operators participated in Operation Black Swan, which led to the capture of El Chapo, the leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, on a raid in Mexico.