3rd Special Forces Group ( United States ) The 3rd Special Forces Group ( Airborne ) – abbreviated 3rd SFG ( A ) and often simply called 3rd Group – is an active duty United States Army Special Forces ( SF ) group which was active in the Vietnam Era ( 1963 – 69 ) , deactivated , and then reactivated in 1990 . The 3rd SFG ( A ) was primarily responsible for operations within the AFRICOM area of responsibility , as part of the Special Operations Command , Africa ( SOCAFRICA ) . Its primary area of operations ( AO ) is now Central Asia as part of a 2009 SOCOM directive but 3rd Group has also been involved in the Caribbean and the Greater Middle East . While not quite as seasoned ( inactive from 1969 - 1990 ) as some of the other Special Forces groups , the 3rd SFG ( A ) has seen extensive action in the War on Terror and its members have distinguished themselves on the battlefield in Afghanistan . History . 1960s . 3rd Group was first activated on 5 December 1963 at Fort Bragg , North Carolina . The four colors of the quadrants of 3rd Group ' s beret flash are derived from the flashes of the pre - existing SF units from which 3rd Group ' s members were initially drawn ( hence its original motto : " From the Rest Comes the Best " ) . These colors are : yellow ( 1st SFG ( A ) ) , red ( 7th SFG ( A ) ) , black ( 5th SFG ( A ) ) , and white ( Special Forces Training Group ( A ) ) . 3rd Group was originally oriented towards the Middle East and Africa during the 1960s . The unit trained the armed forces of Mali , Iraq , Ethiopia , the Congo , and Jordan – in addition to supporting the Gemini 6 and 7 space launches in 1965 . 3rd Group also worked with the 5th SFG ( A ) in Vietnam . In 1966 , 3rd Group transferred assumed control of the 403rd Army Security Agency Special Operations Detachment and the 19th PSYOP Company over to 5th Group . With the " Vietnamization " of the conflict , the 3rd SFG ( A ) was deactivated in 1969 and its members were transferred back to the other Special Forces Groups . 1990s . The 3rd Special Forces Group was reactivated in 1990 . Its AO initially consisted of the Caribbean and West Africa . New group members were drawn primarily from the 5th SFG ( A ) . At the outbreak of the Gulf War , 3rd Group ' s only functioning battalion ( 1st BN ) was deployed to Dhahran , Saudi Arabia , for three months . Its A - Teams carried out reconnaissance and sabotage missions into denied areas of Iraq and Kuwait . In February 1991 , 3rd Group was tasked with the mission of securing and occupying the U . S . Embassy in Kuwait City . The 2nd BN and 3rd BN of 3rd Group were reactivated in 1991 and 1992 , respectively . 3rd Group also took part in the restoration of democracy in Haiti in 1994 . In the late 90 ' s , 3rd Group helped train forces in Senegal , Uganda , Malawi , Mali , Ethiopia , and Trinidad and Tobago , among others . 2000s . In the fall of 2000 , the 3rd SFG ( A ) was involved in training and stabilization efforts in West Africa , dubbed " Operation Focus Relief " by the State Department ; the training mission was geared towards combating the Revolutionary United Front . Since 9 / 11 , the 3rd SFG ( A ) has been heavily involved in Afghanistan and Central Asia . Two of 3rd Group ' s battalions spend roughly six months out of every twelve deployed to Afghanistan as part of Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force – Afghanistan . In 2008 , ten members of ODA 3336 were awarded Silver Stars for combat action during the Battle of Shok Valley . It was the largest set of citations for a single battle since the Vietnam War . After the citations were read then - commander of United States Army Special Operations Command , Lieutenant General John F . Mulholland , Jr . , stated : In October 2010 , Staff Sergeant Robert James Miller was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor . On January 25 , 2008 , Miller ' s team was ambushed during a combat reconnaissance patrol in Kunar Province near the Pakistan border . Miller ' s commander was seriously wounded within the first minutes of the attack . Wounded and under intense enemy fire , Miller held his ground and laid down suppressive fire on multiple insurgent positions , which allowed his wounded commander to be pulled out of the line of fire and his teammates to safely reach cover . Miller single - handedly eliminated several insurgents before succumbing to his wounds . The 1st Battalion , 3rd SFG ( A ) were awarded the Canadian Commander - in - Chief Unit Commendation on 23 May 2012 , for their actions during Operation Medusa in 2006 . The ceremony was presided by Major - General Charles Cleveland , the commander of USASOC , and the award presented by CEFCOM Commander , Lieutenant - General Stuart Beare , on behalf of the Governor General of Canada . The 1st Battalion , 3rd SFG ( A ) is the first non - Canadian unit , and seventh overall , to receive this honour . The citation read :