Air force ground forces and special forces are ground forces, and may include
special operations
Special operations (S.O.) are military activities conducted, according to NATO, by "specially designated, organized, selected, trained, and equipped forces using unconventional techniques and modes of employment". Special operations may include ...
units that are part of a nation's
air force
An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...
. Airmen assigned to such units may be trained, armed and equipped for
ground combat
Land warfare or ground warfare is the process of military operations eventuating in combat that takes place predominantly on the battlespace land surface of the Earth, planet.
Land warfare is categorized by the use of large numbers of combat pe ...
and
special operation
Special operations (S.O.) are military activities conducted, according to NATO, by "specially designated, organized, selected, trained, and equipped forces using unconventional techniques and modes of employment". Special operations may include ...
s.
Rationale
![Royal Air Force Regiment in Afghanistan](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Royal_Air_Force_Regiment_in_Afghanistan.JPG)
Traditionally the primary rationale for air force ground forces is for
force protection
Force protection (FP) refers to the concept of protecting military personnel, family members, civilians, facilities, equipment and operations from threats or hazards in order to preserve operational effectiveness and contribute to mission succes ...
. Aircraft are most vulnerable when on the ground, to
offensive counter air
Offensive counter-air (OCA) is a military term for the suppression of an enemy's military air power, primarily through ground attacks targeting enemy air bases: disabling or destroying parked aircraft, runways, fuel facilities, hangars, air traffi ...
operations, and most cannot operate without fixed infrastructure, consumables, and trained personnel. An adversary may hope to achieve
air supremacy
Aerial supremacy (also air superiority) is the degree to which a side in a conflict holds control of air power over opposing forces. There are levels of control of the air in aerial warfare. Control of the air is the aerial equivalent of comm ...
or protect itself from air attack first by attacking
airbases, aircraft and other assets on the ground. Such attacks can be made by, for example, aircraft, cruise missiles and short range ballistic missiles. However, an adversary at a numerical, technological or other disadvantage may choose to attempt to disrupt flight operations by aiming to overrun or raid enemy air bases as early as possible, using blitzkrieg like tactics, for example
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...
, or through the use of special forces and unconventional attacks, such as the Taliban
raid on Camp Bastion.
To protect against attacks against airbases, and from being overrun, some air forces have a
force dispersal
Force dispersal is the practice of spreading out soldiers and vehicles in an army. It is used to minimize the effects of collateral damage, such as from bombs and artillery, and increases the number of artillery rounds needed to neutralize or des ...
doctrine that sees aircraft dispersed to secondary and emergency air bases, such as
highway strip
A highway strip, road runway or road base is a section of a highway, motorway or other form of public road that is specially built to act as a runway for (mostly) military aircraft and to serve as an auxiliary military air base. These runways a ...
s, and, as was the case with the Royal Air Force's vertical take off
Harriers, dispersals in forest clearings or the
Bas 60
Bas 60 (''Flygbassystem 60'', Air Base System 60) was an air base system developed and used by the Swedish Air Force during the Cold War. The system was based around defensive force dispersal of aircraft and its supporting ground operations acros ...
and
Bas 90
Bas 90 (''Flygbassystem 90'', Air Base System 90) was an air base system used by the Swedish Air Force during the Cold War. Bas 90 was developed during the 1970s and 1980s from the existing Bas 60 system in response to the new threats and needs th ...
systems of the
Swedish Air Force. However, when dispersed in such a way, aircraft and personnel are even more vulnerable to ground attacks.
To defend against ground attacks, most air forces train certain airmen in basic weapons handling skills and tactics; some train units as
infantry
Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...
.
Other than base and asset defence roles, air force ground forces may have other roles such as
Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) defence, training other air force personnel in weapon skills and basic ground defence tactics, traditional combat operations, as well as providing leadership to other airmen in base defence roles. In addition to protecting their home bases and dispersals, air force ground forces will also provide force protection when air expeditionary forces are deployed abroad and of
airheads
''Airheads'' is a 1994 American comedy film written by Rich Wilkes, directed by Michael Lehmann, and starring Brendan Fraser, Steve Buscemi, Adam Sandler, Chris Farley, Ernie Hudson, Michael McKean, Judd Nelson, Michael Richards, Amy Locane and ...
during
air bridge operations, usually being some of the first air force personnel on the ground. Moving towards the special operations spectrum of operations, is assaulting, capturing and securing of airfields for use by one's own aircraft.
Not all air forces possess their own ground units and whether or not they do or is sometimes due to other factors such as political considerations and
inter-service rivalry
Interservice rivalry is the rivalry between different branches of a country's armed forces, in other words the competition for limited resources among a nation's land, naval, coastal, air, and space forces. The term also applies to the riva ...
. Such units act as a force multiplier allowing the secure operation of
forward airbases and thereby increasing the availability and responsiveness of aviation assets.
Special forces
Some air forces also possess
special forces, who perform roles on land in support of air force operations. These include units and individual personnel who operate independently or, with other military units.
The chief missions in such units are
combat search and rescue, including rescuing downed aircrews in hostile territory;
long-range reconnaissance,
direct action
Direct action originated as a political activist term for economic and political acts in which the actors use their power (e.g. economic or physical) to directly reach certain goals of interest, in contrast to those actions that appeal to oth ...
and
forward air control in support of air to ground operations, for example illuminating targets for attack by laser-guided bombs.
Other common roles include military weather forecasting,
pathfinding
Pathfinding or pathing is the plotting, by a computer application, of the shortest route between two points. It is a more practical variant on solving mazes. This field of research is based heavily on Dijkstra's algorithm for finding the sh ...
, domestic counter terrorism and hostage rescue missions; capturing airbases, establishing advanced airfields and conducting air traffic control.
Doctrine
In most forces a layered approach is used to deliver a defense in depth. Peacetime doctrine is to maintain the integrity of the perimeter through the use of watch posts and/or remote sensors, and if deemed necessary patrols within the perimeter. In the event of the perimeter being penetrated, heavily armed and mobile fast response units, often using armored vehicles, will attempt to intercept, identify and if necessary suppress the incursion. If attackers manage to gain entry into the working areas of the airbase, by subterfuge or other means, then the role of air force ground forces is to remove them using
close quarter battle.
Wartime doctrine, in for example the
RAF Regiment and USAF Security Forces, sees the addition of another layer through the use of aggressive patrolling outside the perimeter to deter, detect and destroy would be attackers. The area around the airbase is mapped and prearranged fire plans are put in place to allow patrols to call down rapid and accurate indirect fire from attached mortars and other
crew served weapons.
History
World War I
The
Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS), one of the two British air arms that was amalgamated to create the RAF, operated an
armoured car wing that grew in size to some 20 squadrons. Using at first unarmoured vehicles to pick up downed aircrew and for
line of communications security duties, it was the RNAS which created the
Rolls-Royce armoured cars, which it also used to raid and harass the Germans, thus beginning the tradition of RAF armoured car operations. These were then disbanded in 1915 and the vehicles transferred to the British Army.
World War II
![Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-265-0026A-30, Russland, leichte Flak und Panzer](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/df/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-265-0026A-30%2C_Russland%2C_leichte_Flak_und_Panzer.jpg)
During World War II, Luftwaffe doctrine was to operate as a tactical air force in support of the army providing air defence and close air support against ground targets. Due to political considerations all German air defences were placed in the hands of the Luftwaffe, and Luftwaffe Flak units were attached to army units to provide ground-based air defence. In addition to self-protection and air defence roles, these Luftwaffe troops, of for example the
Flak corps, were also called upon to use their Flak guns in fire support and anti-armour roles, and it was in the hands of Luftwaffe airmen that the German
88mm gun
The 8.8 cm Flak 18/36/37/41 is a German 88mm anti-aircraft and anti-tank artillery gun, developed in the 1930s. It was widely used by Germany throughout World War II and is one of the most recognized German weapons of the conflict. Develo ...
was first used against tanks.
Flying units were also expected to closely follow the advancing army and as such could be expected to encounter enemy combatants during counterattacks or who had not been cleared; because of this, all Luftwaffe personnel were trained to a higher level in infantry skills and tactics than was normal in other air forces of the time. Also because of political considerations German paratroopers, the
Fallschirmjäger
The ''Fallschirmjäger'' () were the paratrooper branch of the German Luftwaffe before and during World War II. They were the first German paratroopers to be committed in large-scale airborne operations. Throughout World War II, the commander ...
, were part of the air force. Later in the war with Germany facing a manpower shortage, rather than release its personnel to the German Army, Göring chose instead to create the
Luftwaffe Field Divisions The Luftwaffe Field Divisions (German: ''Luftwaffen-Feld-Divisionen'' or LwFD) were German military formations during World War II.
History
The divisions were originally authorized in October 1942, following suggestions that the German Army could ...
, using personnel surplus to the needs of flying operations; as
cadre
Cadre may refer to:
*Cadre (military), a group of officers or NCOs around whom a unit is formed, or a training staff
*Cadre (politics), a politically controlled appointment to an institution in order to circumvent the state and bring control to th ...
for these units, officers and non commissioned officers were transferred from the Flak and paratroop units.
One of the great successes of the German forces in World War II was the destruction of enemy air forces by over running them on the ground, and the use of airborne forces in advance and in support of ground operations. One of the vulnerabilities of this time was the loss of one's own airfields, which if captured would give the enemy the infrastructure needed to build an air-bridge, during the
Battle of Crete
The Battle of Crete (german: Luftlandeschlacht um Kreta, el, Μάχη της Κρήτης), codenamed Operation Mercury (german: Unternehmen Merkur), was a major Axis airborne and amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island ...
the airfields were a key objective for the Germans, and their capture by paratroopers allowed their use by the gliders and transports of the main air landing force. The casualties in the ''Fallschirmjager'' were such that they were largely used as ground troops thereafter.
To guard against British airfields falling to German paratroops as
Maleme
Maleme ( el, Μάλεμε) is a small village and military airport to the west of Chania, in north western Crete, Greece. It is located in Platanias municipality, in Chania regional unit.
History
Bronze Age
A Late Minoan tholos tomb has been ...
had,
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...
demanded that RAF airmen should be trained and equipped to defend themselves against ground attack. In a condemning memo to the
Secretary of State for Air and to the
Chief of the Air Staff dated June 29, 1941, Churchill stated he would no longer tolerate the shortcomings of the Royal Air Force (RAF), in which half a million RAF personnel had no combat role. He ordered that all airmen be armed and ready to "fight and die in defence of their airfields" and that "every airfield should be a stronghold of fighting air-ground men, and not the abode of uniformed civilians in the prime of life protected by detachments of soldiers". Amongst the measures implemented were
improvised armoured cars, such as the
Armadillo or
Bison, and
pillboxes, most notably the
Pickett-Hamilton fort
A Pickett-Hamilton fort is a type of hardened field fortification built in Britain during the invasion crisis of 1940–1941. The Pickett-Hamilton fort was designed to be lowered into the ground while it was not in use, to become inconspicuous ...
, which could be raised to block a runway. However, rather than training all airmen as infantry on the German model, the RAF created instead the RAF Regiment.
During the planning of the second front which became the invasion of Normandy, it was foreseen that as the allied armies advanced, aircraft operating from airfields in England would be decreasingly effective and that to maintain air cover allied fighter squadrons would need to accompany the advancing divisions. The
RAF Commandos
Royal Air Force Commandos were formed from units of the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War. They were formed in 1942 and served in the European and Far Eastern theatres of war before being disbanded in 1946. In 1944 RAF Commandos of ...
were created to service aircraft from newly built or captured airfields. However, they were fully commando trained and because of the forward nature of their operations, they were expected to help secure, make safe and defend from counterattack the airfields from which they operated.
Vietnam
In the face of US air superiority, North Vietnam resorted to attacking the United States Air Force on the ground, with infiltrators striking from both within and outside the perimeter. The United States Air Force Security Police defended against them.
First formed during World War II, the United States Air Force Security Police were dramatically reduced in scope following the war. Post war the newly established United States Air Force (USAF) saw its primary role as a strategic one. Its base defense doctrine thus was one of security policing. United States involvement in Vietnam, however, brought a real and sustained threat of ground attack. To meet these threats the
Phu Cat Air Base Security Forces
Phu Cat Air Base Security Forces of the United States Air Force were United States Air Force Security Forces, Air Police and Security Police squadrons responsible for the air base ground defense of Phù Cát Air Base in South Vietnam during the V ...
pioneered the
Air Base Ground Defense {{Unreferenced, date=December 2009
Air Base Ground Defense (ABGD) is the operational term used by the United States Air Force to denote ground combat operations in defense of U.S. Air Force bases. This specialty is filled by members of the Air For ...
doctrine that informs USAF practice to this day.
In a demarcation of combat roles the United States Army was primarily responsible for security outside of airbases, and the
Republic of Vietnam Air Force
The South Vietnam Air Force, officially the Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF; vi, Không lực Việt Nam Cộng hòa, KLVNCH; french: Force aérienne vietnamienne, FAVN) (sometimes referred to as the Vietnam Air Force or VNAF) was the aer ...
for patrolling the internal perimeter. However, rather than just rely upon
static defense, the United States Air Force pioneered the use of remote detection equipment, such as seismic detectors and ground surveillance radar, to detect infiltrators. Rifle squads responded, mounted in heavily armed
Cadillac Gage Commando and
M113 armored personnel carriers.
List of air force ground and special forces units
![Flygbasjägarpatrull](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Flygbasj%C3%A4garpatrull.JPG)
*
Special Operations Group
*
Airfield Defence Guards
Airfield Defence Guards (ADG) are a mustering of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) that are dedicated to the security and ground defence of airbases and other military aviation assets. Defence Jobs website Accessed on 22 June 2008 Other dutie ...
*
No. 4 Squadron RAAF
No. 4 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force squadron composed of the air force special forces Combat Controllers, aircrew who operate the Pilatus PC-21 aircraft and instructors for the Australian Defence Force Joint Terminal Attack Controlle ...
*
No. 41 Squadron BAF
* Force Protection Squadron
*
Air Force Infantry
Air force ground forces and special forces are ground forces, and may include special operations units that are part of a nation's air force. Airmen assigned to such units may be trained, armed and equipped for ground combat and special operati ...
*
Para-SAR
The Esquadrão Aeroterrestre de Salvamento (EAS) ( en, Airborne Rescue Squadron), known by its nickname Para-SAR, is a Brazilian Air Force special operations search and rescue squadron, based in the city of Campo Grande.
The unit has no aircraf ...
* ''
Agrupación Antisecuestros Aéreos
The Anti Aircraft Hijacking Group ( es, Agrupación Antisecuestros Aéreos) is Chilean Air Force's Special Forces group whose main function is to intervene during any aircraft hijackings on Chilean territory. Its members are recognised for their p ...
''
* ''
Comandos de Aviación
file:Royal_Marines_in_Sangin_MOD_45151554.jpg, Royal Marines from 40 Commando on patrol in the Sangin area of Afghanistan are pictured
A commando is a combatant, or operative of an elite light infantry or special operations force, specially tr ...
''
*
PLAAF Airborne Corps
The People's Liberation Army Air Force Airborne Corps () is an airborne corps under direct command of the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF). It was reorganized and renamed from the 15th Airborne Corps in May 2017 and now comprises six ...
* ''
Agrupación de Comandos Especiales Aéreos''
* Czech Air Force Security Squadrons
* Estonian Air Force Base Defense Operations Center
* ''
Fusiliers Commandos de l'Air
The ''Fusiliers Commandos de l'Air'' (French for "Fusilier commandos of the Air (force)") of the French Air and Space Force are equivalent to the United Kingdom's RAF Regiment, German Air Force Regiment or the United States Air Force Security For ...
''
*
German Air Force Regiment
* ''
Kampfretter''
*
31st Search and Rescue Operations Squadron (special force)
*
Hellenic Air Force Police
*
Garud Commando Force
The Garud Commando Force is the special forces unit of the Indian Air Force. It was formed in September 2004 and has a current strength of over 1500 personnel. The unit derives its name from ''Garuda'', a divine bird-like creature in Hindu cultur ...
*
Bravo Detachment 90
The Bravo Detachment 90 is a counter-terrorism unit whose personnel are specialists recruited and chosen from the Indonesian Air Force's Kopasgat. It is the youngest special operations unit of the Indonesian Air Force. The unit specialises in t ...
*
Paskhas Corps
*
Unit 669
Airborne Combat Rescue And Evacuation Unit 669 ( he, יחידת החילוץ והפינוי הקרבי בהיטס 669,''Yechidat HaHilu'tz VeHaPinu'i HaKravi Behetes 669'') is the Israel Defense Forces heliborne Combat Search and Rescue extract ...
* ''
Unit 5101''
* ''
16º Stormo'' ''(Battaglione Fucilieri dell'Aria'' - Air Force Fusiliers Battalion)
* ''
17º Stormo Incursori'' (17th Raiders Wing)
* Base Defense Development & Training Squadron
*
RMAF Special Force
* Montenegrin Air Force Air Base Security Platoon
*
RNZAF Security Forces
RNZAF Security Forces is the Royal New Zealand Air Force unit responsible for base security, ground defence, weapons training, and Air Transport Security on RNZAF aircraft. RNZAF Security Forces operates under the RNZAF Operations Squadron.
RN ...
*
Nigerian Air Force Regiment
The Nigerian Air Force Regiment (NAF Regiment) is component of the Nigerian Air Force that serves as a specialist airfield and defense corps.
Operations
They serve to defend NAF bases, airfields and aircraft as well as protect VIPs. After the ...
* Royal Norwegian Air Force Base Defense Squadron
*
Special Service Wing
The Pakistan Air Force Special Service Wing is a special operations forces who specialised in all aspects of air-to-ground communication, including air traffic control, fire support (including fixed and rotary wing close air support), and comman ...
*
710th Special Operations Wing
The 710th Special Operations Wing is the rapid deployment force of the Philippine Air Force (PAF), which is divided into ten-man airborne attack teams as most of its members are airborne qualified.
The wing also controls the 772nd Explosives Or ...
* ''
JW GROM
JW GROM (full name: ''Jednostka Wojskowa GROM im. Cichociemnych Spadochroniarzy Armii Krajowej'', English: ''Military Unit GROM named in honour of the Silent Unseen of the Home Army'') is a Polish special forces unit and forms part of the Spe ...
''
* ''
JW Komandosów
The Jednostka Wojskowa Komandosów, commonly called ''JWK'' and formerly known as ''1 Pułk Specjalny Komandosów'' (''1 PSK''), is one of six special forces units currently operating within Poland's ''Centrum Operacji Specjalnych - Dowództwo Ko ...
''
* ''
Polícia Aérea
The ''Polícia Aérea'' ( Portuguese for "Air Police") or PA is the military police and ground combat force of the Portuguese Air Force.
The Air Police has as its main symbol the Blue Beret with the Emblem of the Air Force.
Missions
The ''Políc ...
''
* 6th Search & Rescue Air Group
* Combat Control Team
*
Sri Lanka Air Force Regiment
*
Parachute Reconnaissance Company 17
The Parachute Reconnaissance Company 17 (german: Fallschirmaufklärer Kompanie 17, Fsch Aufkl Kp 17; french: Compagnie d'éclaireurs parachutistes; it, Compagnia di esploratori paracadutisti), also known as the ''Fernspäh-Grenadiers'', is Switze ...
*
Swedish Air Force Rangers
The Swedish Air Force Rangers (SAFR) ( sv, Flygbasjägarna, FBJ), is an elite specialist ground unit of the Swedish Air Force. The name "Flygbasjägare" originates in the unit's old role during the cold war of conducting security operations aroun ...
* Swedish Air Force Force Protection (''Flygbassäk'')
*
RTAF Security Force Regiment
*
RTAF Special Operations Regiment
"Royal Thai Air Force March"
, mascot =
, anniversaries = 9 April 1937 (Royal Thai Air Force Day)
, equipment =
, equipment_label =
, battles ...
*
Combat Search and Rescue (Turkish Armed Forces)
The Personnel Rescue ( tr, ) is a combat search and rescue and advanced air controller unit affiliated to the Turkish Air Force whose task is to recover pilots and other military personnel stranded behind enemy lines and qualified service member ...
*
RAF Regiment
*
United States Air Force Security Forces
The United States Air Force Security Forces (SF) are the ground combat force and military police service of the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force. USAF Security Forces (SF) were formerly known as Military Police (MP), Air Police (AP), and Se ...
*
United States Air Force Air Support Operations Squadrons
*
United States Air Force Rescue Squadrons
*
United States Air Force Special Tactics Squadrons
*
United States Air Force Special Reconnaissance
Special Reconnaissance (SR)—formerly Special Operations Weather Technician or Team (SOWT)—is conducted by trained Air Force personnel assigned to Special Tactics Squadrons of the United States Air Force Special Operations Command who op ...
Historic
* ''
Fallschirmjäger
The ''Fallschirmjäger'' () were the paratrooper branch of the German Luftwaffe before and during World War II. They were the first German paratroopers to be committed in large-scale airborne operations. Throughout World War II, the commander ...
''
* ''
1st Fallschirm-Panzer Division Hermann Göring''
*
Luftwaffe Field Division The Luftwaffe Field Divisions (German: ''Luftwaffen-Feld-Divisionen'' or LwFD) were German military formations during World War II.
History
The divisions were originally authorized in October 1942, following suggestions that the German Army could ...
s
*
Royal Air Force Commandos
Royal Air Force Commandos were formed from units of the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War. They were formed in 1942 and served in the European and Far Eastern theatres of war before being disbanded in 1946. In 1944 RAF Commandos of ...
*
:it: Arditi distruttori della Regia Aeronautica (Destroyer Commando Royal Air Force)
* ''
Caçadores Paraquedistas''
*
Air Force
An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...
Air Defense Artillery and Security Guards Command
*
Unit 684
209th Detachment, 2325th Group ( ko, 2325부대 209파견대), commonly known as Unit 684 (684부대), was a black operations unit of the Republic of Korea Air Force formed to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Il-sung in 1968, in retaliation fo ...
See also
*
List of military special forces units
This is a list of military special forces units, also known as special operations forces (SOF), currently active with countries around the world, that are specially organised, trained and equipped to conduct special operations.
These are dist ...
*
List of paratrooper forces
*
Marines
Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...
References
External links
The Air Force’s New Ground WarCurrent air base ground defense doctrine:are we postured to meet the expectations of AEF
{{Air force infantry
Air force ground defence units and formations
Infantry units and formations
Special
Special or specials may refer to:
Policing
* Specials, Ulster Special Constabulary, the Northern Ireland police force
* Specials, Special Constable, an auxiliary, volunteer, or temporary; police worker or police officer
Literature
* ''Specia ...