Delta Force

The **1st Special Forces Operational Detachment–Delta** (**1st SFOD-D**), referred to variously as **Delta Force**, **Combat Applications Group** (**CAG**), **Army Compartmented Elements** (**ACE**), "**The Unit**", or within Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), **Task Force Green**, is a special operations force of the United States Army, under operational control of JSOC. The unit's missions primarily involve counterterrorism, hostage rescue, direct action, and special reconnaissance, often against high-value targets.

Delta Force, along with its Navy and Air Force counterparts, DEVGRU and the 24th Special Tactics Squadron, are the U.S. military's tier one special mission units that are tasked with performing the most complex, covert, and dangerous missions directed by the President of the United States and the Secretary of Defense.

Delta Force soldiers are selected primarily from the Army Special Operations Command's elite 75th Ranger Regiment and Special Forces, though members can be selected from other special operations units and conventional forces across the Army and sometimes other military branches.

## Oganization

The unit is under the organization of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC), but is controlled by the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC). Command of 1st SFOD-D is a colonel's billet. Virtually all information about the unit is highly classified and details about specific missions or operations generally are not available publicly. The unit is headquartered at Fort Liberty, North Carolina.

Delta Force's structure is similar to the British 22 SAS Regiment, which inspired Delta's formation. In *Not a Good Day to Die: The Untold Story of Operation Anaconda*, *Army Times* staff writer Sean Naylor describes Delta as having, at the time (in 2001), nearly 1,000 soldiers, of whom about 250 to 300 are trained to conduct direct action and hostage rescue operations. The rest are combat support and service support personnel who are among the very best in their fields.

Naylor further details Delta Force's structure in his book *Relentless Strike: The Secret History of Joint Special Operations Command*. He describes a few formations in Delta, primarily the following operational squadrons:

* A Squadron (Assault)
* B Squadron (Assault)
* C Squadron (Assault)
* D Squadron (Assault)
* E Squadron (Aviation)
* G Squadron (Advanced Force Operations (AFO), formerly known as Operational Support Troop (OST))
* Signal Squadron
* Combat Support Squadron
* Computer Network Operations Squadron (CNOS)
* Tactical Evaluation and Operational Research Squadron (TEOR)
* Selection and Training Squadron

A, B, C, and D Squadrons are sabre squadrons (assault). C Squadron was activated in 1990 and D Squadron in 2006. Combat Support Squadron was activated in 2005. E Squadron was activated in 1989 and is stationed separately in Fort Eustis, Virginia, where it is known as the Aviation Technology Office. An earlier forerunner of the unit was known as SeaSpray.

Within each squadron there are three troops: two assault troops for direct action, and a reconnaissance and surveillance troop. Each squadron is commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel (O-5) and troops are led by Majors (O-4). Each troop has four teams, each one led by a team leader, a Master Sergeant (E-8) or Sergeant First Class (E-7), and an assistant team leader who can also have the same rank. Each team can have as many as twelve, or as few as one or two operators.

### Recruitment[edit]

Since the 1990s, the Army has posted recruitment notices for the 1st SFOD-D. The Army, however, has never released an official fact sheet for the elite force. The recruitment notices in Fort Bragg's newspaper, *Paraglide*, refer to Delta Force by name, and label it "...the U.S. Army's special operations unit organized for the conduct of missions requiring rapid response with surgical application of a wide variety of unique special operations skills...". The notice states that applicants must be male, in the grade of E-4 through E-8, have at least two and a half years of service remaining in their enlistment, be 22 years or older, and have a Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery GT score of 110 or higher to attend a briefing to be considered for admission. Candidates must be airborne qualified or volunteer for airborne training. Officer candidates need to be O-3 or O-4. All candidates must be eligible for a security clearance level of "Secret" and have not been convicted by court-martial or have disciplinary action noted in their official military personnel file under the provisions of Article 15 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

On 29 June 2006 during a session of the Committee on Armed Services, General Wayne Downing testified before the U.S. House of Representatives that the Delta Force is probably 70 percent Rangers who have come out of either a Ranger to Special Forces track or directly from the Ranger Regiment to Delta".