7th Special Forces Group ( United States ) The 7th Special Forces Group ( Airborne ) , an operational unit of the United States Army Special Forces , was activated on 20 May 1960 . It was reorganized from the 77th Special Forces Group , which was also stationed at Fort Bragg , North Carolina . Its purpose is to conduct guerrilla operations and train friendly governments ' armed forces in the South , Central , and North America as well as the Caribbean . 7th Special Forces Group participated in Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada in 1983 , as well as in Operation Just Cause in Panama in 1989 . The 7th SFG has , like all the SFGs , been heavily deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan in the War on Terrorism . History . World War II . The 7th SFG ( A ) traces its lineage to the 1st Company , 1st Battalion , 1st Special Service Force , which was established on 9 July 1942 at Camp William Harrison , Montana . The unit was a combined Canadian - American commando unit , designed to conduct raids against Germany ' s fledgling nuclear capability in northern Europe . However , it was relocated to the Aleutian Islands to fight the Japanese . Upon the successful completion of the Aleutian campaign , the SSF was transferred to the European theater of operations . The unit earned the nickname " The Devil ' s Brigade " for fighting with distinction in Italy and Southern France . It was disbanded in France in 1945 , and reactivated in Fort Bragg on 10 November 1953 as the 77th Special Forces Group . Reorganization as 7th Group . In 1960 , the 77th was reorganized and redesignated as the 7th Special Forces Group . In the 1960s , the need for mobile training teams exceeded the capability of the US military , so the 7th Group provided the cadre for the 3rd and 6th Special Forces Groups Vietnam . The 7th Group was active early in the Vietnam War , first operating in Laos ( Operation White Star ) , and later in other global Cold War operations in addition to South East Asia ( Laos , Thailand , and South Vietnam ) . 7th Group was also the first unit in South Vietnam to have a member earn a Medal of Honor , Captain Roger Donlon . Latin America . At the same time , Special Forces were expanding into Latin America . In May 1962 , the advance party from Company D , 7th Special Forces Group departed for Fort Gulick , Panama , in the Canal Zone , to establish the 8th Special Forces Group . 8th Group was deactivated in 1972 and the unit redesignated as the 3rd Battalion , 7th Special Forces Group . The entire 7th Special Forces Group was scheduled for inactivation on 1 October 1980 , and was unfunded after that in the completed and approved US Army POM . General Edward C . Meyers reversed the decision after USSOUTHCOM briefings and discussions with LTG Wallace H . Nutting , the CINCSOUTH , and LTC Charles Fry , the 3rd Battalion , 7th Special Forces Group commander , regarding the growing threat to Central America and the need for U . S . Army Special Forces to respond to the threat . Throughout the 1980s , 7th Special Forces Group played a critical advisory role for the El Salvadoran armed forces , which grew from a force of 12 , 000 to a total of 55 , 000 men . The Salvadoran military became a highly trained counter - insurgency force under the tutelage of 7th Group . The 7th Special Forces Group also played a very important role in preparing the Honduran military to resist and defeat an invasion from Nicaragua . 7th Group also trained the Honduran military in counter - insurgency tactics , which enabled Honduras to defeat the Honduran communist - backed guerrillas . 7th Special Forces Group also became involved in counter narcotics operations in the Andean Ridge countries of Venezuela , Colombia , Ecuador , Peru , and Bolivia . The goal was not just to stop the flow of drugs into the United States , but to stem the violence that resulted from the drug trade in those countries . During the 3 October 1989 coup against Noriega by some of his troops , members of 7th Group conducted reconnaissance operations near the road that led from the cuartel of Battalion 2000 to Panama City , giving the US Southern Command advanced early warning of the elite Panamanian unit moving to rescue Noriega , who was being held captive in the Panamanian Comandancia . Meanwhile , one 7th Group Company was being readied to take custody of Noriega . When the coup was over and Noriega was released , that company prepared a raid on the Carcelo Modelo where American Kurt Muse was being held for operating an illegal radio station that was broadcasting anti - Noriega programming . That mission was later turned over to 1st SFOD - D and performed on D - Day during Operation Just Cause . From 19 December 1989 to 31 January 1990 , elements of the 7th Special Forces Group participated in Operation Just Cause to restore democracy to Panama . The 7th Group conducted combat operations on D - Day against multiple strategic targets . Over the next two weeks , 7th Special Forces Group conducted many reconnaissance and direct action missions in support of the operation . When combat operations ceased , Operational Detachments - A and - B fanned out over the entire country , living in villages with the people . 7th Group soldiers restored public utilities such as water and power while maintaining a watch on the ( then ) new Panamanian Police Force . Non - commissioned officers served as temporary judges and mayors gaining enormous support from the populace . Global War on Terrorism . Since early 2002 , the 7th SFG has deployed almost nonstop in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan . 7th SFG along with the 3rd Special Forces Group are the two SFGs responsible for conducting operations in Afghanistan . The Group has also deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom numerous times , but not as often as Afghanistan . The 7th SFG has lost more SF soldiers in the Global War on Terrorism than any other SFG . Relocation . In 2011 , 7th SFG ( A ) relocated from Fort Bragg , North Carolina to Eglin Air Force Base , Florida as part of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure ( BRAC ) round .