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Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) is a training program, best known by its
military acronym List of initialisms, acronyms ("words made from parts of other words, pronounceable"), and other abbreviations used by the government and the military of the United States. Note that this list is intended to be specific to the United States gover ...
, that prepares U.S. military personnel,
U.S. Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national secur ...
civilians Civilians under international humanitarian law are "persons who are not members of the armed forces" and they are not "combatants if they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war". It is slightly different from a non-combatant, b ...
, and private military contractors to survive and "return with honor" in survival scenarios. The curriculum includes
survival skills Survival skills are techniques that a person may use in order to sustain life in any type of natural environment or built environment. These techniques are meant to provide basic necessities for human life which include water, food, and shelte ...
, evading capture, application of the military code of conduct, and techniques for escape from captivity. Formally established by the
U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...
at the end of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
and the start of the
Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
, it was extended to the
Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
and
United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
and consolidated within the Air Force during the
Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
with greater focus on "resistance training." During the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
(1959–1975), there was clear need for "Jungle" survival training and greater public focus on American
POWs A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war ...
. As a result, the U.S. military expanded SERE programs and training sites. In the late 1980s, the
U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
became more involved with SERE as Special Forces and "Spec Ops" grew. Today, SERE is taught to a variety of personnel based upon risk of capture and exploitation value with a high emphasis on
aircrew Aircrew, also called flight crew, are personnel who operate an aircraft while in flight. The composition of a flight's crew depends on the type of aircraft, plus the flight's duration and purpose. Commercial aviation Flight deck positions ...
,
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 ...
, and foreign diplomatic and intelligence personnel.


History


Origins

The origins of SERE are rooted in the leadership of Britain's
MI9 MI9, the British Directorate of Military Intelligence Section 9, was a highly secret department of the War Office between 1939 and 1945. During World War II it had two principal tasks: (1) assisting in the escape of Allied prisoners of war (P ...
Evasion and Escape ("E&E") organization, formed at the onset of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
(1939–1945). Led by World War I veteran Colonel (later Brigadier) Norman Crockatt, MI9 were formed to train air crew and
Special Forces Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...
in evading enemy troops following bail-out, forced landings, or being cut off behind enemy lines. A training school was established in London, and officers and instructors from MI9 also began visiting operational air bases, providing local training to air crews unable to be detached from their duties to attend formal courses. MI9 went on to devise a multitude of evasion and escape tools; These tools included overt items to aid immediate evasion after bailing out and covert items for use to aid escape following capture which were hidden within uniforms and personal items (concealed compasses, silk and tissue maps, etc.). Once the United States entered the war in 1941, MI9 staff traveled to Washington, D.C., to discuss their now mature E&E training, devices, and proven results with the
United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
("USAAF"). As a result, the United States initiated their own Evasion and Escape organization, known as
MIS-X MIS-X was a section of the United States Department of War that operated during World War II. It aided U.S. servicemen held as prisoners of war and those evading capture in enemy territory. The section, which was modeled after the British MI9, wa ...
, based at
Fort Hunt Fort Hunt is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. The area is named after Fort Hunt, which was built on the bank of the Potomac River in 1897 to defend Washington, D.C. from naval attack and is now a public ...
, Virginia. There were also several unofficial private "clubs" created during World War II by British and American pilots who had escaped from German forces during the war and returned to friendly lines. One such club was the "Late Arrivals' Club". This strictly nonmilitary club had a flying boot which was worn under the left collar of a uniform as its identifying symbol. USAAF General
Curtis LeMay Curtis Emerson LeMay (November 15, 1906 – October 1, 1990) was an American Air Force general who implemented a controversial strategic bombing campaign in the Pacific theater of World War II. He later served as Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air ...
realized that it was cheaper and more effective to train aircrews in Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape techniques than to have them lost in the arctic (or ocean) or languishing (or lost) in enemy hands. Thus, he supported the establishment of formal SERE training at several bases/locations (from July 1942 to May 1944) hosting the 336th Bombardment Group (now the 336th Training Group), including a small program for Cold Weather Survival at RCAF Station Namao in
Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...
, Alberta where American, British, and Canadian B29 aircrews received basic survival training. In 1945, a consolidated survival training center was initiated at
Fort Carson Fort Carson is a United States Army post located directly south of Colorado Springs in El Paso, Pueblo, Fremont, and Huerfano counties, Colorado, United States. The developed portion of Fort Carson is located near the City of Colorado Springs i ...
, Colorado, under the 3904th Training Squadron, and, in 1947, the Arctic Indoctrination Survival School (colloquially known as "the Cool School") opened at
Marks Air Force Base Marks Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force facility located two nautical miles (4  km) west of the central business district of Nome, a city in the Nome Census Area of the U.S. state of Alaska. It was named in honor of Maj ...
in Nome, Alaska. During WWII, the U.S. Navy discovered that 75% of its pilots who had been shot or forced down came down alive, yet barely 5% of them survived because they could not swim or find sustenance in the water or on remote islands. Since the ability to swim was an essential survival skill for Navy pilots, training programs were developed to ensure pilot trainees could swim (requiring cadets to swim one mile and dive 50 feet underwater to be able to escape bullets and suction from sinking aircraft). Soon, the training was expanded to include submerged aircraft escape. During the
Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
(1950–1953), the Air Force moved their survival school to Stead AFB,
Reno Stead Airport Reno Stead Airport is a large public and military general aviation airport located in the North Valleys area, 10 nautical miles (19  km) northwest of the central business district of Reno, in Washoe County, Nevada, United States. A for ...
as the 3635th Combat Crew Training Wing. In 1952, the United States
Department of Defense Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to: Current departments of defence * Department of Defence (Australia) * Department of National Defence (Canada) * Department of Defence (Ireland) * Department of National Defense (Philipp ...
(DoD) designated the United States Air Force (USAF) as executive agent (EA, as below) for joint escape and evasion. The
Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
showed that traditional notions about captives during wartime were no longer valid as North Koreans, with Chinese backing, ignored the Geneva Conventions regarding treatment of POWs. This mistreatment was especially true for American airmen because of North Korean hatred of bombardments and airmen's prestige among soldiers. North Koreans were interested in the propaganda value of American captives given their new methods for gaining compliance, extracting confessions, and gathering information, which proved successful against American soldiers.


A change in focus

Soon after the Korean War ended, the DoD initiated the Defense Advisory Committee on Prisoners of War to study and report on the problems and possible solutions regarding the Korean War POW fiasco. The charter of the committee was to find a suitable approach for preparing the U.S. armed forces to deal with the combat and captivity environment. The committee's key recommendation was the implementation of a military "Code of Conduct" that embodied traditional American values as moral obligations of soldiers during combat and captivity. Underlying this code was the belief that captivity was to be thought of as an extension of the battlefield; i.e., as a place where soldiers were expected to accept death as a possible duty. President Eisenhower then issued Executive Order 10631 which stated: "Every member of the Armed Forces of the United States are expected to measure up to the standards embodied in the Code of Conduct while in combat or in captivity." The U.S. military likewise began the process for training and implementing this directive. While it was accepted that the Code of Conduct would be taught to all U.S. soldiers at the earliest point of their military training, the Air Force believed more was needed. At the USAF "Survival School" (Stead AFB), the concepts of evasion, resistance, and escape were expanded and new curricula were developed as "Code of Conduct Training". Those curricula have remained the foundation of modern SERE training throughout the U.S. military. The Navy also recognized the need for new training, and by the late 1950s, formal SERE training was initiated at "Detachment SERE"
Naval Air Station Brunswick Naval Air Station Brunswick , also known as NAS Brunswick, was a military airport located southeast of Brunswick, Maine, with a number of Navy-operated maritime patrol aircraft. As of November 28, 2009, the last aircraft ( P-3 Orions) left. The ...
in Maine with a 12-day Code of Conduct course designed to give Navy pilots and aircrew the skills necessary to survive and evade capture, and if captured, resist interrogation and escape. Later, the course was expanded so that other Navy and Marine Corps troops, such as SEALs, SWCC, EOD, RECON / MARSOC, and Navy Combat Medics would attend. Subsequently, a second school was opened at
Naval Air Station North Island Naval Air Station North Island or NAS North Island , at the north end of the Coronado peninsula on San Diego Bay in San Diego, California, is part of the largest aerospace-industrial complex in the United States Navy – Naval Base Coronado (N ...
. The Marine Corps opened their Pickel Meadow camp (initially established by
Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton is the major West Coast base of the United States Marine Corps and is one of the largest Marine Corps bases in the United States. It is on the Southern California coast in San Diego County and is bordered by Oc ...
) in 1951, where Marines would be trained in outdoor survival and, later, opened the
Mountain Warfare Training Center The Mountain Warfare Training Center (MWTC) is a United States Marine Corps installation located in Pickel Meadows on California State Route 108 at above sea level in the Toiyabe National Forest, northwest of Bridgeport, California. The train ...
(MCMWTC) in
Bridgeport, California Bridgeport is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Mono County, California, United States. It is the Mono county seat. The population was 553 at the 2020 census. The first post office at Bridgeport opened in 1864. The ...
, where training could be done in Level A SERE (as below). "Survival training" for soldiers has ancient origins as survival is a goal of combat. Survival training was not distinct from "combat training" until navies realized the need to teach sailors to swim. Such training was not related to combat and was intended solely to help sailors survive. Similarly, firefighting training has long been a navy focus and remains so today (although survival of the ship may be the primary goal). Water survival training has been a distinct and formal part of Navy basic training since World War II, although its importance was greatly increased with the advent and expansion of naval aviation. In 1953, the Army established the "Jungle Operations Training Center" at
Fort Sherman Fort Sherman is a former United States Army base in Panama, located on Toro Point at the Caribbean (northern) end of the Panama Canal, on the western bank of the Canal directly opposite Colón (which is on the eastern bank). It was the primary d ...
in Panama (known as "Green Hell"). Operations there were ramped up during the 1960s to meet the demand for jungle-trained soldiers in Vietnam. In 1958, the Marine Corps opened Camp Gonsalves in northern
Okinawa, Japan is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 Square kilometre, km2 (880 sq mi). ...
, where jungle warfare and survival training was offered to soldiers headed for Vietnam. As the Vietnam War progressed, the Air Force also opened a "Jungle Survival School" at
Clark Air Base Clark Air Base is a Philippine Air Force base on Luzon Island in the Philippines, located west of Angeles City, about northwest of Metro Manila. Clark Air Base was previously a United States military facility, operated by the U.S. Air Forc ...
in the Philippines. When Stead AFB closed in 1966, the USAF "survival school" was moved to
Fairchild Air Force Base Fairchild Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force base, located in the northwest United States in eastern Washington, approximately southwest of Spokane. The host unit at Fairchild is the 92nd Air Refueling Wing (92 ARW) assigned t ...
in Washington State (where it is centered today). The Air Force also had other survival schools including the "Tropical Survival School" at Howard Air Force Base in the Panama Canal Zone, the "Arctic Survival School" at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, and the "Water Survival School" at Homestead Air Force Base, Florida, which operated under separate commands. In April 1971, these schools were brought under the same Group and squadrons were organized to conduct training at Clark, Fairchild and Homestead, while detachments were used for other localized survival training (the acronym "SERE" was not used extensively in the Air Force until later in the 1970s). In 1976, following accusations and reports of abuses during Navy SERE training, DoD established a committee (i.e., "Defense Review Committee") to examine the need for changes in Code of Conduct training. After hearing from experts and former POWs, they recommended the standardization of SERE training among all branches of the military and the expansion of SERE to include "lessons learned from previous US Prisoner of War experiences" (intending to make the training more "realistic and useful"). In late 1984, the Pentagon issued DoD Directive 1300.7 which established three levels of SERE training with the "resistance portion" incorporated at "Level C". That level of training was specified for soldiers whose "assignment has a high risk of capture and whose position, rank, or seniority make them vulnerable to greater than average exploitation efforts by a captor". While initially only four military bases (
Fairchild AFB Fairchild Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force base, located in the northwest United States in eastern Washington, approximately southwest of Spokane. The host unit at Fairchild is the 92nd Air Refueling Wing (92 ARW) assigned to ...
, SERE),
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, often called the Portsmouth Navy Yard, is a United States Navy shipyard in Kittery on the southern boundary of Maine near the city of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Founded in 1800, PNS is U.S. Navy's oldest continuo ...
,
Naval Air Station North Island Naval Air Station North Island or NAS North Island , at the north end of the Coronado peninsula on San Diego Bay in San Diego, California, is part of the largest aerospace-industrial complex in the United States Navy – Naval Base Coronado (N ...
, and
Camp Mackall Camp Mackall is an active U.S. Army training facility located in eastern Richmond County and northern Scotland County, North Carolina, south of the town of Southern Pines. The facility is in close proximity to and is a sub-installation of Fort ...
(at
Fort Bragg Fort Bragg is a military installation of the United States Army in North Carolina, and is one of the largest military installations in the world by population, with around 54,000 military personnel. The military reservation is located within Cum ...
) were officially authorized to conduct Level C training, other bases have been added (such as
Fort Rucker Fort Rucker is a U.S. Army post located primarily in Dale County, Alabama, United States. It was named for a Civil War officer, Confederate General Edmund Rucker. The post is the primary flight training installation for U.S. Army Aviators and ...
). Individual bases may conduct SERE courses which include C-level elements (see "Schools" below). The required (every 3 years) Level C refresher course is commonly taught by USAF "detachments" (often just one SERE specialist/instructor) stationed at a base or a traveling specialist. As the designated executive agency for U.S. military SERE training, the USAF's 336th Training Group continues to provide the only U.S. military career SERE specialists and instructors who are part of Air Force Special Warfare Operations and are utilized in varied roles throughout the Air Force and DoD. See USAF "Survival Instructors".


Selecting an Executive Agency

The DoD defines Executive Agency as "the Head of a DOD Component to whom the Secretary of Defense (SECDEF) or the Deputy Secretary of Defense (DEPSECDEF) has assigned specific responsibilities, functions, and authorities to provide defined levels of support for operational missions, or administrative or other designated activities that involve two or more of the DOD Components." DoD chose the U.S. Air Force as its Executive Agency for joint escape and evasion in 1952 and it was therefore the candidate to be chosen as the EA for SERE and CoC training in 1979. The Air Force remained EA for most survival, evasion, escape and rescue related matters until 1995. But, with the growing importance of
personnel recovery The United States Armed Forces, in Joint Publication 3-50 Personnel Recovery, defines personnel recovery as "the sum of military, diplomatic, and civil efforts to prepare for and execute the recovery and reintegration of isolated personnel." The ...
(PR), the United States Department of Defense established the Joint Services Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) Agency (JSSA) in 1991 and designated it the DoD EA for DoD Prisoner of War / Missing in Action (POW / MIA) matters. In 1994 the JSSA was designated as the central organizer and implementer for PR and the USAF as the EA for Joint Combat Search and Rescue (JCSAR)
Combat search and rescue Combat search and rescue (CSAR) are search and rescue operations that are carried out during war that are within or near combat zones. A CSAR mission may be carried out by a task force of helicopters, ground-attack aircraft, aerial refuelin ...
. In 1999, the JPRA
Joint Personnel Recovery Agency The Joint Personnel Recovery Agency (JPRA) is a Chairman's Controlled Activity and is designated as DoD's office of primary responsibility for DoD-wide personnel recovery (PR) matters, less policy. JPRA is headquartered in Fort Belvoir, Virginia w ...
was created as an agency under the Commander in Chief, US Joint Forces Command (USJFCOM) and was named the Office of Primary Responsibility (OPR) for DoD-wide PR matters. JPRA has been designated a Chairman's Controlled Activity since 2011. JPRA has its headquarters at
Fort Belvoir Fort Belvoir is a United States Army installation and a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. It was developed on the site of the former Belvoir plantation, seat of the prominent Fairfax family for whom Fair ...
and as organizing agency (OA) for all DoD "resistance" training, it has close ties with the 336th Training Group (which was given the role of organizing and operating the Personnel Recovery Academy or PRA). JPRA and the PRA now coordinate PR activities and train PR/SERE globally with American allies making extensive use of USAF SERE experts.


USAF "Survival Instructors"/SERE Specialists

The first USAF "survival instructors" were experienced civilian wilderness volunteers and USAF personnel with prior instructor experience (and they included a small cadre of "USAF Rescuemen", i.e.
United States Air Force Pararescue Pararescuemen (also known as PJs) are United States Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) and Air Combat Command (ACC) operators tasked with recovery and medical treatment of personnel in humanitarian and combat environments. These speci ...
). When the Army Air Force formed the Air Rescue Service (ARS) in 1946, the 5th Rescue Squadron conducted the first Pararescue and Survival School at
MacDill Air Force Base MacDill Air Force Base (MacDill AFB) is an active United States Air Force installation located 4 miles (6.4 km) south-southwest of downtown Tampa, Florida. The "host wing" for MacDill AFB is the 6th Air Refueling Wing (6 ARW), assig ...
in Florida. With the move to Stead AFB and the opening of a full-time survival school, the USAF initiated the military's only full-time, career survival instructor program (with the Air Force Specialty Code 921). By the time the Air Force opened the survival school at Fairchild AFB in 1966, it also opened a separate "Instructor Training Branch" (ITB) under the 3636th Combat Crew Training Squadron where all Air Force Survival Instructors received their specialist training, composed of six months of classroom and field training, and initial qualification rating, which was "Global Survival Instructor". They then had to complete six months of On-the-Job Training (OJT) before they were qualified to teach SERE (aka "Combat Survival Training" or "CST"). Years of additional training for added specialties (such as arctic, jungle, tropics, and water survival, "resistance training", and "academic instruction") yield some of the most trained personnel in the U.S. military. Currently, USAF SERE specialist/instructor training is conducted under the 66th Training Squadron at Fairchild AFB. After selection and qualification conducted at
Lackland Air Force Base Lackland Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located in Bexar County, Texas. The base is under the jurisdiction of the 802d Mission Support Group, Air Education and Training Command (AETC) and an enclave of the city of Sa ...
, Texas via a SERE specialist orientation course, potential SERE instructors are assigned to the 66th Training Squadron to learn how to instruct SERE in any environment: the "field" survival course at Fairchild, the non-ejection water survival course at Fairchild AFB (which trains aircrew members of non-parachute-equipped aircraft), and the resistance training orientation course (which covers the theories and principles needed to conduct Level C Code of Conduct resistance training laboratory instruction). USAF SERE specialists also earn their jump wings at the
United States Army Airborne School The United States Army Airborne School – widely known as Jump School – conducts the basic paratrooper (military parachutist) training for the United States Armed Forces. It is operated by the 1st Battalion (Airborne), 507th Infantry, Unit ...
. SERE Specialists who work in the "dunker" portion of the water survival course at Fairchild are certified through the Navy Salvage Dive Course. The SERE training instructor "7-level" upgrade course is a 19-day course that provides SERE instructors with advanced training in barren Arctic, barren desert, jungle, and open-ocean environments. The Air Force's SERE instructors play key roles in DoD-wide training and in implementing other branches SERE training programs; both the Navy and Army send their SERE instructors to take the basic 9-day SERE course (SV-80-A) taught by the 22nd TS since these other branches have no career option for SERE. Because the Air Force has the largest and best trained SERE staff, it assumes diverse roles DoD wide, such as furnishing SERE training for Red Flag exercises.


Curriculum

SERE curriculum has evolved from being primarily focused on "outdoor survival training" to increasingly focus upon "evasion, resistance, and escape". Military survival training differs from typical civilian programs in several key areas: # The anticipated military survival situation almost always begins with exiting a vehiclean aircraft or ship. Thus, the scenario begins with exit strategies, practices, and means (ejecting, parachuting, underwater escape, etc.). # Military survival training has greater focus on specialized military survival equipment, survival kits, signaling, rescue techniques, and recovery methods. # Military personnel are almost always better prepared for survival situations because of obvious inherent risk in their activities (and their training and equipment). Conversely, military personnel are subject to a much wider variety of likely scenarios as any given mission may expose them to a wide variety of risks, environments, and injuries. # In almost all military survival situations someone knows you're missing and will be looking for you with advanced equipment and pre-established protocols. # Military survival often involves exposure to an enemy. The basic survival skills taught in SERE programs include common outdoor/wilderness survival skills such as firecraft, sheltercraft, first aid, water procurement and treatment, food procurement (traps, snares, and wild edibles), improvised equipment, self-defense (natural hazards), and navigation (map and compass, etc.). More advanced survival training focuses on mental elements such as will to survive, attitude, and "survival thinking" (situational awareness, assessment, prioritization). Military survival schools also teach unique skills such as parachute landings, basic and specialized signalling, vectoring a helicopter, use of rescue devices (forest-tree penetrators, harnesses, etc.), rough terrain travel, and interaction with indigenous peoples.


Combat survival

The military "has an obligation to the American people to ensure its soldiers go into battle with the assurance of success and survival. This is an obligation that only rigorous and realistic training, conducted to standard, can fulfill".FM 7-21.13 ("The Soldier's Guide"), p. 5-2 The U.S. Army has long taken survival training as an integral part of combat readiness (per FM 7-21.13 "The Soldier's Guide") and combat training is largely about an individual soldier's survival as opposed to the enemy's non-survival. "Survival", as a distinct part of modern military training, largely emerges in special environment operations (as shown in "Mountain Operations", FM 3-97.6, "Jungle School", the Marine Corps' mountain warfare training center, the Air Force's Desert and Arctic Survival Schools (as above), and the Navy's
Naval Special Warfare Cold Weather Detachment Kodiak The Special Operations Forces Cold Weather Maritime Training Facility, Naval Special Warfare Cold Weather Detachment Kodiak is a United States Navy base near Kodiak, Alaska used to train United States Navy SEALs The United States Navy Sea, ...
). Certain skills have been identified that enhance every soldier's chance for survival (whether they are on the battlefield or not): # Use weapons properly and effectively # Move safely and efficiently through various terrains # Navigate from one point to another given point on the ground # Communicate as needed # Perform first aid (evaluate, stabilize, and transport) # Identify and react properly to hazards # Select and utilize offensive and defensive positions # Maintain personal health and readiness # Evade, resist, and escape (aka "kidnapping and hostage survival") # Know and utilize emergency procedures, survival equipment, and recovery systems


Military survival

Military personnel are often subject to enhanced risks and unique situations and, therefore, beyond basic combat skills and specialty skills, many U.S. military personnel receive training in survival skills specific to their assignment. Such general survival training may include the basics listed above along with: # Special survival equipment and procedures (specific vehicle exiting, first aid kits, etc.) # Communication devices, practices, and procedures # Navigation devices (e.g. GPS) # Specialty rescue devices (e.g. forest penetrator, personal lowering and hoisting devices, etc.) # Special survival practices and procedures (shipboard firefighting, abandon ship procedures, liferafts, etc.) # Preparing for survival (mission briefings, personal survival gear/kits, special knowledge, etc.) # Situational awareness and assessment / Understanding the mission environment: hazards and opportunities # Prioritizing needs and planning actions for personal protection, survival, and recovery (survival decisions) # If an enemy is involvedevasion (camouflage, travel techniques, et al.). # Signaling (radios, mirrors, fire/smoke, flares, markers) # Rescue contact and recovery procedures


Evasion, resistance, and escape

Evading an enemy consists of certain well-known basic skills, but the military has an interest in not openly discussing its practices since this may assist an enemy. Major militaries spend considerable time and energy preparing for evasion with extensive planning (routes, practices, pick-up points, methods, "friendlies", "chits", weapons, etc.). Some elements of hostile survival preparedness and teaching are classified. This is especially true for "resistance" training where one hopes to prepare those who might be captured for hardship, stress, abuse, torture, interrogation, indoctrination, and exploitation. The foundation for capture preparedness lies in knowing one's duty and rights if taken prisoner. For American soldiers, this begins with the
Code of the United States Fighting Force The Code of the U.S. Fighting Force is a code of conduct that is an ethics guide and a United States Department of Defense directive consisting of six articles to members of the United States Armed Forces, addressing how they should act in combat ...
. It is: # I am an American, fighting in the forces which guard my country and our way of life. I am prepared to give my life in their defense. # I will never surrender of my own free will. If in command, I will never surrender the members of my command while they still have the means to resist. # If I am captured, I will continue to resist by all means available. I will make every effort to escape and to aid others to escape. I will accept neither parole nor special favors from the enemy. # If I become a prisoner of war, I will keep faith with my fellow prisoners. I will give no information nor take part in any action which might be harmful to my comrades. If I am senior I will take command. If not, I will obey the lawful orders of those appointed over me and will back them up in every way. # When questioned, should I become a prisoner of war, I am required to give
name A name is a term used for identification by an external observer. They can identify a class or category of things, or a single thing, either uniquely, or within a given context. The entity identified by a name is called its referent. A personal ...
,
rank Rank is the relative position, value, worth, complexity, power, importance, authority, level, etc. of a person or object within a ranking, such as: Level or position in a hierarchical organization * Academic rank * Diplomatic rank * Hierarchy * H ...
,
service number A service number is an identification code used to identify a person within a large group. Service numbers are most often associated with the military; however, they may be used in civilian organizations as well. National identification numbers may ...
, and
date of birth A birthday is the anniversary of the birth of a person, or figuratively of an institution. Birthdays of people are celebrated in numerous cultures, often with birthday gifts, birthday cards, a birthday party, or a rite of passage. Many reli ...
. I will evade answering further questions to the utmost of my ability, I will make no oral or written statements disloyal to my country and its allies or harmful to their cause. # I will never forget that I am an American, fighting for freedom, responsible for my actions, and dedicated to the principles which made my country free. I will trust in my God and in the United States of America. Training on how to survive and resist an enemy in the event of capture is generally based on past experiences of captives and
prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold priso ...
. Thus, it is important to know who one's captors are likely to be and what to expect from them. Intelligence regarding such things is sensitive, but in the modern era, captives are less likely to enjoy the status of "prisoner of war" and so to gain protections under the
Geneva Conventions upright=1.15, Original document in single pages, 1864 The Geneva Conventions are four treaties, and three additional protocols, that establish international legal standards for humanitarian treatment in war. The singular term ''Geneva Conven ...
. American soldiers are still taught the standards of international law for humanitarian treatment in war, but they are less likely to receive those protections than to offer them. Because details cannot be offered, a few examples of well-known resistance methods provide clues as to the nature of resistance techniques: # Use of a
tap code The tap code, sometimes called the knock code, is a way to encode text messages on a letter-by-letter basis in a very simple way. The message is transmitted using a series of tap sounds, hence its name. The tap code has been commonly used by pri ...
to secretly communicate between captives. # When U.S. Navy Commander
Jeremiah Denton Jeremiah Andrew Denton Jr. (July 15, 1924 – March 28, 2014) was an American politician and military officer who served as a U.S. Senator representing Alabama from 1981 to 1987. He was the first Republican to be popularly elected to a Sena ...
was forced to appear at a televised press conference, he repeatedly blinked the word "T-O-R-T-U-R-E" with
Morse code Morse code is a method used in telecommunication to encode text characters as standardized sequences of two different signal durations, called ''dots'' and ''dashes'', or ''dits'' and ''dahs''. Morse code is named after Samuel Morse, one of ...
. # The "code" of prisoners at the "Hanoi Hilton"
Hỏa Lò Prison Hỏa Lò Prison (, Nhà tù Hỏa Lò; french: Prison Hỏa Lò) was a prison in Hanoi originally used by the French colonists in Indochina for political prisoners, and later by North Vietnam for U.S. prisoners of war during the Vietnam War. ...
: "Take physical torture until you are right at the edge of losing your ability to be rational. At that point, lie, do, or say whatever you must do to survive. But you first must take physical torture." # A pilot POW who gave the name of comic book heroes when his captors demanded the name of his fellow pilots. # Much from
The Great Escape (book) ''The Great Escape'' is a 1950 book by Australian writer Paul Brickhill that provides an insider's account of the 1944 mass escape from the German prisoner of war camp Stalag Luft III for British and Commonwealth airmen. As a prisoner in the ca ...
. The teaching of "resistance" is typically done in a "simulation laboratory" setting where "resistance training" instructors act as hostile captors and soldier-students are treated as realistically as possible as captives/POWs with isolation, harsh conditions, close confinement, stress, mock interrogation, and torture "simulations". While it is impossible to simulate the reality of hostile captivity, such training has proven very effective in helping those who have endured captivity know what to expect of their captivity and themselves under such conditions.


Code of Conduct training levels

Under current DoD public policy, SERE Code of Conduct (aka "Resistance") training has three levels: * Level A: Entry level training. These are the Code of Conduct classes (now commonly taken online) required for all military personnelnormally at recruit training, "basic" and "OCS"
Officer Candidate School An officer candidate school (OCS) is a military school which trains civilians and Enlisted rank, enlisted personnel in order for them to gain a Commission (document), commission as Commissioned officer, officers in the armed forces of a country. ...
. * Level B: For those operating or expected to operate forward of the
division Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...
rear boundary and up to the forward line of own troops (FLOT). Normally limited to
aircrew Aircrew, also called flight crew, are personnel who operate an aircraft while in flight. The composition of a flight's crew depends on the type of aircraft, plus the flight's duration and purpose. Commercial aviation Flight deck positions ...
of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force. Level B focuses on survival and evasion, with resistance in terms of initial capture. * Level C: For troops at a high risk of capture and whose position, rank, or seniority make them vulnerable to greater than average exploitation efforts by any captor. Level C training focuses on resistance to exploitation and interrogation, survival during isolation and captivity, and escape from hostiles (e.g., "prison camps"). "Escape Training" has elements similar to evasion and resistance trainingif details are revealed, it potentially helps adversaries. Much of this training has to do with observation, planning, preparation, and contingencies. And much of this comes from historical experience so public sources are revealing (such as the movies
The Great Escape (film) ''The Great Escape'' is a 1963 American war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violen ...
and
Rescue Dawn ''Rescue Dawn'' is a 2006 American epic war drama film written and directed by Werner Herzog, based on an adapted screenplay written from his 1997 documentary film ''Little Dieter Needs to Fly''. The film stars Christian Bale and is based on the ...
).


Special survival situations

1. Water (ocean, river, littoral) Survival: Military personnel are much more likely to find themselves in a water survival situation than others. How to survive in water is taught at Navy Recruit Training, Navy SUBSCOL Submarine Escape Training, the Air Force Water Survival Course and at a separate SoF
Special Forces Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...
Professional Military Education Professional Military Education (PME) refers to the professional training, development, and schooling of military personnel. It encompasses many schools, universities, and training programs designed to foster leadership in military service members. ...
(PME) courses. Featured in such courses are topics and exercises such as: # Underwater escape from vessel/vehicle (from submarines to aircraft) # Water parachute landing # Swimming out from under a parachute # Dealing with rough water # Boarding and getting out of a life raft # Life in a raft # Use of aquatic survival gear # Aquatic environment hazards # Aquatic environment first aid (seasickness, immersion injuries, animal injuries) # Food and water procurement and preparation # Drown-proofing, swimming, flotation # Special Psychological Concerns 2.
Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...
(
sea ice Sea ice arises as seawater freezes. Because ice is less dense than water, it floats on the ocean's surface (as does fresh water ice, which has an even lower density). Sea ice covers about 7% of the Earth's surface and about 12% of the world's oce ...
,
tundra In physical geography, tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. The term ''tundra'' comes through Russian (') from the Kildin Sámi word (') meaning "uplands", "treeless moun ...
) Survival: Air Force aircrews spend considerable time flying over arctic regions Polar Routes and while modern arctic survival situations are rare, the training remains useful and worthwhile because its content obviously relates to winter survival anywhere. All U.S. military branches have some type of cold/winter/mountain survival training originating from hard-learned lessons during the Korean War (see above and below). Dealing with cold conditions presents several unique content areas: # Cold injuries: frostbite, hypothermia,
chilblains Chilblains, also known as pernio, is a medical condition in which damage occurs to capillary beds in the skin, most often in the hands or feet, when blood perfuses into the nearby tissue resulting in redness, itching, inflammation, and possibly b ...
, immersion foot # Snow/Ice/Cold Issues: snow blindness, avalanches/ice fall, icebergs, wind chill, shock therapy (internal or external) # Staying Warm # Why an igloo or snow cave is far better than a tent # Firecraft # Saving calories, burning calories, and finding calories. # Arctic/Snow Travel # Water # Hazards of moisture/Keeping dry 3.
Desert A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...
Survival: While desert survival training was part of U.S. military survival courses since their inception (see Air Forces Manual No. 21) the focus of survival training went that direction in 1990 with
Operation Desert Shield The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...
Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
(1990-1991). Desert survival training is likely to remain a major focus in the foreseeable future. While there is a common mistake to think of deserts as hot, much of the
Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...
(and
Antarctic The Antarctic ( or , American English also or ; commonly ) is a polar region around Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica, the Kerguelen Plateau and other ...
) is also
polar desert Polar deserts are the regions of Earth that fall under an ice cap climate (''EF'' under the Köppen classification). Despite rainfall totals low enough to normally classify as a desert, polar deserts are distinguished from true deserts (' or ' un ...
. And under the definition of
desert climate The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk''), is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in desert ...
(a climate in which there is an excess of evaporation over precipitation), some deserts are deemed "cold weather deserts" such as the
Gobi Desert The Gobi Desert (Chinese: 戈壁 (沙漠), Mongolian: Говь (ᠭᠣᠪᠢ)) () is a large desert or brushland region in East Asia, and is the sixth largest desert in the world. Geography The Gobi measures from southwest to northeast an ...
. Because the unifying feature of all deserts is a lack of water, that is the focus for desert survival: # Conserve water (but don't over-do it): If it's hot, avoid perspiration; if it's cold, avoid dehydrating respiration # Understanding dehydration # Water sources in
arid A region is arid when it severely lacks available water, to the extent of hindering or preventing the growth and development of plant and animal life. Regions with arid climates tend to lack vegetation and are called xeric or desertic. Most ar ...
regions # Hot desertshelter by day, move/act by night # Cold deserttrap breath moisture # Desert shelters (above or below surface) # Desert garb # Desert hazards and treatments # Desert signaling # Desert travel 4.
Jungle A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅ ...
/
Tropics The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...
Survival: Staying alive in the jungle is relatively easy, but doing so comfortably can be very difficult. There are good reasons why soldiers deemed JWS (Jungle Warfare School) in Panama "Green Hell": # The jungle environment: conditions (wet, wetter, wettest)
heat index The heat index (HI) is an index that combines air temperature and relative humidity, in shaded areas, to posit a human-perceived equivalent temperature, as how hot it would feel if the humidity were some other value in the shade. The result is als ...
# Jungle hazards # Jungle ailments: trench foot, insect bites, bad food, bad water, parasites, snake bite # Food # Water preparation/treatment # Jungle shelter(s) # Firecraft # Jungle improvisation # Jungle signalling and rescue 5. Isolation Survival: Isolation is not just "being alone", it's being away from the familiar and comforting. Isolation survival has long been part of SERE in the "resistance" portion of training, but has more recently been recognized as worthy of broader attention. The psychological impact of suddenly finding yourself alone, lost, or outside your "comfort zone" can be debilitating, seriously depressing, and even fatal (via panic). Isolation survival also focuses upon the broader view of captivity to include kidnapping and non-combatant captivity. Isolation survival training has more focus on psychological preparedness and less upon "skills". # Understanding and avoiding panic # The importance of "keeping your wits about you" # Focus, Observe, Plan, and Envision ("FOPE") # Stress "fight or flight" coping response, the "stress cycle", and things to help you stay calm. # The psychology of captivity


U.S. military SERE/Survival Schools and courses

The vast majority of SERE/Survival Schools mentioned in "History" above are still operating. There has also been growth in private sector SERE Schools and training (which are not relevant herein). However, there has been a significant change in military use of private sector SERE training that is relevant here. That change has produced one odd outcomethe military has found it difficult to keep their well-trained and highly experienced SERE instructors because of lucrative private sector opportunities. The vast majority of those jobs require military SERE training. Branch distinctions for SERE have become less clear or relevant since the creation of the
Joint Personnel Recovery Agency The Joint Personnel Recovery Agency (JPRA) is a Chairman's Controlled Activity and is designated as DoD's office of primary responsibility for DoD-wide personnel recovery (PR) matters, less policy. JPRA is headquartered in Fort Belvoir, Virginia w ...
(JPRA, as above). Because the JPRA has "primary responsibility for DoD-wide personnel recovery matters," (which specifically includes Level C SERE training), it integrates, coordinates, mandates, and draws from all military branches as needed. It is also worthy to note that much of military SERE is viewed as "joint operations" and cross-branch training is common (or required). SERE training detachments (usually, USAF) often work with different branches, especially where bases have been combined as "Joint Bases" and for update/review training. In that regard, designating schools by branch may be less meaningful. # SERE 100.2 (J3TA-US1329) is a joint services Level A SERE education and training course supporting the military-wide "Code of Conduct" training requirement. It is 4 hour course available on-line or as an on-base classroom course. It is common practice for joint operation SERE training to be conducted at, through, or in conjunction with individual military bases.


U.S. Army

The Army position statement on SERE training is clear: "The Army has an obligation to the American people to ensure its soldiers go into battle with the assurance of success and survival. This is an obligation that only rigorous and realistic training, conducted to standard, can fulfill." Like all military branches, the Army operates under DOD Directive 1300.7 which requires and specifies Code of Conduct training for military personnel. Because the Army views a large portion of its training as "survival" related and since the Army has more soldiers than the other branches, there are many modes and schools for survival and SERE training (as indicated above and below). Army Airborne School, for example is largely about surviving parachute jumps but is not deemed a "survival school". US Army Green Berets, Army Rangers, Delta Force and other SoF soldiers receive extensive survival training as an inherent part of their overall combat training (as well as specific SERE training). The mission of the United States Army SERE training is "to ensure each student gains the ability to effectively employ the SERE tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) necessary to return with honor regardless of the circumstances of separation, isolation or capture." The major "specialized schools" and courses for Army SERE training include: #
John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School The U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School (SWCS) – known informally as "Swick" – primarily trains and educates United States Army personnel for the United States Army Special Operations Command and United States Specia ...
(SWCS) at
Camp Mackall Camp Mackall is an active U.S. Army training facility located in eastern Richmond County and northern Scotland County, North Carolina, south of the town of Southern Pines. The facility is in close proximity to and is a sub-installation of Fort ...
where Army Special Operations Forces (ARSOF) personnel complete their Special Forces Qualification Course (SFQCPhase III "SF Tactical Combat Skills") with a 19-day SERE course (including the Special Operations Forces' (ARSOF) Resistance Training Laboratory (RTL)) that includes Level C training. #
Army Aviation School An Army Aviation School is a military Military education and training, educational establishment responsible for the training and development of the personnel and equipment of the aviation element in those army, armies that have a separate Army av ...
at
Fort Rucker Fort Rucker is a U.S. Army post located primarily in Dale County, Alabama, United States. It was named for a Civil War officer, Confederate General Edmund Rucker. The post is the primary flight training installation for U.S. Army Aviators and ...
where 21 days of SERE training is included in the Army aviators curriculum. The program has a Level C course with both academics and resistance training labs. The Basic Officer's Leadership Course (BOLC) includes introductory SERE training including Helicopter Over-water Survival Training (HOST). The SERE Level C course exposes students to various captor exploitation efforts including interrogation (eight methods), indoctrination, propaganda, video propaganda, concessions, forced labor, and reprisals. A simulated captivity environment provides experience which includes wartime, peacetime governmental detention, and hostage detention scenarios with content involving resistance postures, techniques and strategies, establishing overt and covert organizations, establishing overt and covert communications, and planning and executing escapes in captivity environments. #
Northern Warfare Training Center The United States Army Northern Warfare Training Center (NWTC) is the name of a United States Army Alaska (USARAK) special skills training unit and facility located in Black Rapids, Alaska, managed out of Fort Wainwright. It is the Active Army's ...
(NWTC) at Black Rapids, Alaska (administered from
Fort Wainwright Fort Wainwright is a United States Army installation in Fairbanks, Alaska. Fort Wainwright is part of the Fairbanks North Star Borough and the coterminous Fairbanks Metropolitan Statistical Area. The installation is managed by U.S. Army Garrison ...
) where several courses are intended to maintain the U.S. Army's abilities in cold weather and mountain warfare. The Cold Weather Orientation Course (CWOC), Cold Weather Indoctrination Course (CWIC), and Basic Military Mountaineering Course (BMMC) each have specific "survival" sections. # Desert Warrior Course outside of Fort Bliss, Texas where a 20-day course emphasizes the "individual strain on the body from the heat, sun, high winds and dryness." There is also special focus on desert hazards ("rattlesnakes, cobras, vipers, scorpions, tarantulas, camel spiders, coyotes, camels, big cats and antelope") and related medical skills.


U.S. Navy

The USN
Center for Security Forces The Navy's Center for Security Forces (CENSECFOR) is one of eleven learning centers of the United States Navy's Naval Education and Training Command that is headquartered on Joint Expeditionary Base–Little Creek, in Virginia Beach, Virginia. T ...
(CENSECFOR) of the
Naval Education and Training Command The Naval Education and Training Command (NETC) is an enterprise level shore command of the United States Navy with more than 19,000 military and staff personnel at more than 1,640 subordinate activities, sites, districts, stations, and detachmen ...
(NETC) at
Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek–Fort Story Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek–Fort Story (JEBLC-FS), established October 1, 2009, is a Joint Base of the United States military that is located in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The installation is made up of former U.S Army post Fort Story a ...
promulgates the Navy's SERE training. The mission of the Command is "to educate and train those who serve, providing the tools and opportunities which enable life-long learning, professional and personal growth and development, ensuring fleet readiness and mission accomplishment; and to perform such other functions and tasks assigned by higher authority". This includes basic survival training for all Navy sailors and DOD Directive 1300.7 requiring "Code of Conduct" training (as above). The major Navy SERE schools and courses include: # The Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) School (A-2D-4635 or E-2D-0039) at CENSECFOR Detachment SERE East,
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, often called the Portsmouth Navy Yard, is a United States Navy shipyard in Kittery on the southern boundary of Maine near the city of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Founded in 1800, PNS is U.S. Navy's oldest continuo ...
, New Hampshire offers several SERE courses including the outdoor/field course at the Navy Remote Training Site,
Kittery, Maine Kittery is a town in York County, Maine, United States. Home to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on Seavey's Island, Kittery includes Badger's Island, the seaside district of Kittery Point, and part of the Isles of Shoals. The southernmost town in t ...
, a "Risk of Isolation Brief" course, and the SERE Instructor Under Training course. The school employs approximately 100 military and civilian personnel and trains an average of 1,200 students per year. # Cold Weather Environmental Survival Training (CWEST) at Rangeley, Mainethe US Navy's only cold weather survival school. # The Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) School (A-2D-4635 or E-2D-0039) at CENSECFOR Detachment SERE West,
Naval Air Station North Island Naval Air Station North Island or NAS North Island , at the north end of the Coronado peninsula on San Diego Bay in San Diego, California, is part of the largest aerospace-industrial complex in the United States Navy – Naval Base Coronado (N ...
, California provides all levels of "Code of Conduct" training for Recon Marines, Marine Corps Scout Snipers, MARSOC Marines,
Navy SEALs The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the United States Navy, U.S. Navy's primary special operations force and a component of the United States Naval Special Warfare Command, Naval Special Wa ...
, enlisted Navy and Marine aircrew,
Naval Aviator Naval aviation is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. Naval aviation is typically projected to a position nearer the target by way of an aircraft carrier. Carrier-based a ...
s,
Naval Flight Officer A naval flight officer (NFO) is a commissioned officer in the United States Navy or United States Marine Corps who specializes in airborne weapons and sensor systems. NFOs are not pilots (naval aviators), but they may perform many "co-pilot" or ...
s, Naval Flight Surgeons,
Navy EOD United States Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal technicians render safe all types of ordnance, including improvised, chemical, biological, and nuclear. They perform land and underwater location, identification, render-safe, and recovery (or disp ...
, and Navy SWCC. The school operates the Navy Remote Training Site at Warner Springs where sailors and marines learn basic skills necessary for worldwide survival, facilitating search and rescue efforts, and evading capture by hostile forces. Additional Level C Code of Conduct training includes a five-day Peacetime Detention and Hostage Survival (PDAHS) course providing skills to survive captivity by a hostile government or terrorist cell during peacetime. # Recruit Training Command's Water Survival Division at
Naval Station Great Lakes Naval Station Great Lakes (NAVSTA Great Lakes) is the home of the United States Navy's only recruit training, boot camp, located near North Chicago, Illinois, North Chicago, in Lake County, Illinois. Important tenant commands include the Recruit ...
(NAVSTA Great Lakes), Illinois offers introductory survival training including: basic sea survival training; lifeboat organization, survival kit contents and usage, abandon ship procedures, and swim qualification (3rd class). # Naval Special Warfare (NSW) SERE (K-431-0400),
Naval Special Warfare Center The Phil Bucklew Naval Special Warfare Center (NSWC, also known as "The Center") is a component command of the United States Naval Special Warfare Command, United States Navy. It is sited within Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, California. The N ...
, Coronado, California (mostly classified personnel recovery TTPs). # Naval Aviation Survival Training Centers: The Navy operates eight water survival training centers for its aviators (Miramar, Jacksonville, Norfolk, Cherry Point, Pensacola, Patuxent River, Lemorre, and Whidbey Island). # Naval Special Warfare Advanced Training Command (NSWATC) courses (4) providing advanced training related to SERE and Personnel Recovery (PR) to Naval Special Warfare (NSW) trainees (SEAL/Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewman pipeline students and Combat Support/Combat Service Support (CS/CSS) personnel) and other select groups at Kodiak, Alaska and Virginia Beach, Virginia.


U.S. Air Force

The
Air Education and Training Command Air Education and Training Command (AETC) is one of the nine Major Commands (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force (USAF), reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force. It was established 1 July 1993, with the realignment of Air Training ...
(AETC) has over 60,000 personnel and is responsible for all Air Force training programs, including SERE training. In AETC, the 336th Training Group at Fairchild AFB, Washington has the mission to "provide high risk of isolation personnel with the skills and confidence to "Return With Honor" regardless of the circumstances of isolation." It is also the largest U.S. Military SERE training provider training more than 20,000 students, in 19 different courses, each year." As with the other branches, the Air Force offers a wide scope of survival training within other courses, but unique to the Air Force is the stationing of career SERE specialists at bases around the world as renewal and upgrade SERE instructors, advisors, and PR specialists. In the mid-80s, the USAF Combat "Desert" Survival Course was established by the 3636th Combat Crew Training Wing and USAF Survival Training Schools began emphasizing "Combat SERE Training" (CST) instead of "Global SERE Training". The primary Air Force survival schools/courses are: # Arctic Survival Schoolthe "Cool School" offered by the 66th TRS, Det. 1, at
Eielson AFB Eielson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located approximately 26 miles (42 km) southeast of Fairbanks, Alaska and just southeast of Moose Creek, Alaska. It was established in 1943 as Mile 26 Satellite Field and redes ...
, Alaskaa five-day course consisting of both classroom instruction and a 3-day field experience where students from all military branches along with "the Coast Guard, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and other organizations that find their members operating in arctic conditions" get to build snow shelters, trap rabbits, and deal with being cold. # SERE Specialist Selection Course offered by the 66th TRS, Det. 3, at
Lackland AFB Lackland Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located in Bexar County, Texas. The base is under the jurisdiction of the 802d Mission Support Group, Air Education and Training Command (AETC) and an enclave of the city of Sa ...
, Texasa rigorous pre-screening intended to save the Air Force time and money, and students needless pain and suffering. # Evasion and Conduct After Capture (ECAC) Course, also conducted by the 66th TRS, Det. 3 at Lackland. A Level B code of Conduct course that may act as partial/preparation course for Level C Code of Conduct (completed elsewhere). # Non-ejection Water Survival offered by the 22d TRS at Fairchilda 2-day course with an obvious focus. # SV-80-Athe USAF aircrew SERE course is the largest in the military with 6,000+ attendees in an average year. This 19-day course mixes classroom, field, and "laboratory" (captive simulation) experiences to prepare students to "Return with Honor". The course is the "standard" for Level C Code of Conduct training and is offered broadly beyond the Air Force. # JPRA courses: The Personnel Recovery Academy is located with the SERE school at Fairchild and there is significant overlap in instruction and facility. The west coast JPRA facility is just across the highway at White Bluffs where separate Level C(+) training is offered (mostly classified). # SV-81-Athe U.S. military's only career SERE Specialist Course is offered by the 66th TRS at the Air Force Survival School at
Fairchild Air Force Base Fairchild Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force base, located in the northwest United States in eastern Washington, approximately southwest of Spokane. The host unit at Fairchild is the 92nd Air Refueling Wing (92 ARW) assigned t ...
, Washington and other regional locations. After a grueling selection process, successful students relocate to Fairchild, where they experience what they will teach by completing the SV-80-A course. Then they undertake a series of challenging field training exercises over a 5 month period to develop broad first-hand knowledge and experience in different terrains, weather, and situations (and differing gear). Those who graduate (less than 10%) are awarded the Sage Beret (with insignia pin), SERE Arch and SERE Flashonly to enter another 45 weeks of intensive on-the-job training. At some point, graduates must complete
Airborne School The United States Army Airborne School – widely known as Jump School – conducts the basic paratrooper (military parachutist) training for the United States Armed Forces. It is operated by the 1st Battalion (Airborne), 507th Infantry, Uni ...
. After completion of 3–4 years as a "field instructor," specialists may be tasked to train students worldwide. USAF SERE specialists are encouraged to complete an associate degree in survival and rescue sciences through the USAF Community College to continue to advance in the SERE career field. (SERE Specialists complete additional qualification training at specialized schools as required. Examples are Scuba Courses, Military Freefall Parachuting, Altitude chamber, etc. Assignment to each of the outlying schools requires additional training by the SERE Specialist. Upon reporting to the new assignment, each SERE specialist must first complete that school's course (the same as an aircrew member), and then be trained by the school's cadre in the specialized subject matter (and carry crews under supervision) before the newly assigned specialist is "qualified" to teach without supervision. At Edwards AFB, USAF SERE specialists are tasked as "test parachutists" and required to perform multiple jumps on newly introduced / modified rescue systems, aircraft, and parachuting and / or ejection systems. This includes test parachuting newly designed canopies, harnesses, etc. Currently, they are the only test parachutists in the Department of Defense. USAF SERE specialists are considered DOD-wide subject matter experts in their field and are assigned to base level and command staff as advisers). # Combat Survival Training (CST) taught at the
Air Force Academy An air force academy or air academy is a national institution that provides initial officer training, possibly including undergraduate level education, to air force officer cadets who are preparing to be commissioned officers in a national air forc ...
(AFA) in Colorado. Since 2011, this program has been significantly reduced (following problems and controversies detailed below). With most academy graduates now required to attend the SV-80-A course at Fairchild, the AFA program is limited to some survival and Level B Code of Conduct training.


Marine Corps

"Preserving the lives and well-being of U.S. military, Department of Defense (DoD) civilians, and DoD contractors authorized to accompany the force (CAAF) who are in danger of becoming, or already are beleaguered, besieged, captured, detained, interned, or, otherwise missing or evading capture (hereafter referred to as "isolated") while participating in U.S.-sponsored activities or missions, is one of the highest priorities of the DoD. The DoD has an obligation to train, equip, and protect its personnel, to prevent their capture and exploitation by adversaries, and to reduce the potential for the use of isolated personnel as leverage against U.S. security objectives. Personnel Recovery (PR) is the sum of military, diplomatic, and civil efforts to prepare for and execute the recovery and reintegration of isolated personnel." MSGID/GENADMIN/CG MCCDC QUANTICO VA REF/A/DODI O-3002.05//REF/B/CJCSM 3500.09//REF/C/MCO 3460.3, MARADMINS Number: 286/18 23 May 2018 announcing that "Training and Education Command (TECOM) in a joint effort with U.S. Army Forces Command, and with the assistance of the Joint Personal Recovery Agency, has developed a SERE Level A Training Support Package (TSP) that enables deploying units to self-train SERE Level A in an instructor guided group setting." The U.S. Marine Corps operates jointly with the Navy and cooperatively with the other branches in much of its SERE training, but operates its own Level C course at the Full Spectrum SERE Course, U.S. Marines Special Operations School (MSOS),
Camp Lejeune Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune () is a United States military training facility in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Its of beaches make the base a major area for amphibious assault training, and its location between two deep-water ports ( Wilmingt ...
, North Carolina. Marine Spec Ops often train with Navy Spec Ops and utilize Navy training when it fits their needs and there is no equivalent USMC course. The Corps like to stand apart and have their own specifications for required "Code of Conduct" training: Level A is taught to recruits and candidates in Officer Candidate School and the Recruit Depots, or under professional military education (but note the JPRA note above). Level B is taught at the Marine Corps
Mountain Warfare Training Center The Mountain Warfare Training Center (MWTC) is a United States Marine Corps installation located in Pickel Meadows on California State Route 108 at above sea level in the Toiyabe National Forest, northwest of Bridgeport, California. The train ...
,
Bridgeport, California Bridgeport is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Mono County, California, United States. It is the Mono county seat. The population was 553 at the 2020 census. The first post office at Bridgeport opened in 1864. The ...
, and at the North Training Area, Camp Gonsalves,
Okinawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city o ...
,
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. Level C is held at Camp Lejeune, as above, although some Marine personnel are trained at the Navy facilities listed above. USMC courses or training with survival focus include: # Full Spectrum SERE Training taught by the MARSOC Personnel Recovery (PR)/ SERE Branch at
Camp Lejeune Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune () is a United States military training facility in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Its of beaches make the base a major area for amphibious assault training, and its location between two deep-water ports ( Wilmingt ...
provides 19 days of full spectrum Level C SERE training to MARSOC personnel encompassing Tactics, Techniques and Procedures (TTP) to plan for evasion, effect personnel recovery, survive and evade capture in austere environments and resist exploitation appropriately, in accordance with the Code of Conduct, should they become captured or detained. The training consists of classroom academic instruction, vicarious learning evolutions consisting of Academic Role-Play Laboratories (ARL), field survival exercises, an evasion exercise, experiential resistance training laboratories (RTL), an urban movement phase and a course debrief. #
Mountain Warfare Training Center The Mountain Warfare Training Center (MWTC) is a United States Marine Corps installation located in Pickel Meadows on California State Route 108 at above sea level in the Toiyabe National Forest, northwest of Bridgeport, California. The train ...
(MWTC) at Pickel Meadows in the Toiyabe National Forest (~20 miles northwest of Bridgeport, California) offers "specialized training in technical climbing, military mountaineering, snow mobility, field craft, survival, CASEVAC, navigation, use of pack animals and high angle marksmanship. Medical challenges include treatment of high altitude and cold weather illness and injuries, and casualty transport in a snow covered mountainous environment." # Special Operations Training Course (SOTC) is taught at the Marine Raider Training Center (MRTC) at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina in four phases under the general title Individual Training Course (ITC). The entire course includes six months of unhindered, realistic, challenging basic and intermediate Special Operations Forces (SOF) war fighting skills training. In the ten-week Phase I portion, Marines learn basic Spec Ops skills including SERE (Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape), TCCC (Tactical Combat Casualty Care), fire support training and communications. Survivability is a focus in all phases of the ITC course. # Jungle Warfare Training Center (JWTC) offers various courses taught by the 3d Marine Division at Camp Gonsalves, Okinawa, Japan. The skills, leaders, and endurance courses intend to teach Marines the skills they need should they become separated from their units in a combat zone and must survive off the land while evading the enemy. The Jungle Tracking, Trauma, and Medicine Courses have more specific goals. The rigorous eight-day Basic Skills Course teaches skills such as first aid, communication, booby traps, knot tying, rappelling, and land navigation. Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape training (SERE) is conducted monthly and includes a 12-day course, 3 days of classroom learning of the basics of survival (how to identify and catch food, build tools, start fires and construct shelter), 5 days on a beach where the Marines survive on their own (with nothing but a knife, a canteen and the uniforms on their backs), and 4 days of "team" evasion through the muddy and tangled jungle (to avoid being captured by students from the man-tracking course). Captured student get placed into an improvised POW camp and the instructors interrogate them to test their "resistance" skills. Marines often participate in "exercises" and some of them have a survival focus.


"Erroneous Conflation of "SERE Techniques" with "Detainee" Interrogation/Torture"?

President George W. Bush's declaration (February 5, 2002) that the Geneva Convention(s) regarding POWs did not apply to the conflict with al-Qaida or the Taliban as those "detainees" were not entitled to POW status or those legal guarantees of humane treatment has led to serious problems for SERE training. The military Code of Conduct, based upon American adherence to the Geneva Conventions related to treatment of prisoners of war, gave American soldiers some legal and moral argument for their right to such protections. To soldiers who are legally required to follow the directives of their Commander-in-Chief, this declaration offered a potential excuse for harsh techniques or even torture by American personnel or those who captured Americans. (A soldier's claim that this was an "unlawful order" would be a difficult defense because the legal definition of torture - "intended to inflict severe physical or mental pain or suffering" - is less than resolved. The intent is hard to prove and the meaning of "severe" in this application is debated). From its origins in the 1950s, the "Resistance" portion of SERE was based upon a firm belief in and commitment to the protections of the Geneva conventions (as above). That opposing forces chose to ignore those protections was the very reason for creating the Code of Conduct and the ensuing development of "Resistance Training" (as above). While it has since been thoroughly emphasized and shown through compelling evidence (as below) that some NON-SERE military personnel who falsely claimed to be U.S. "SERE Instructors" engaged in the unlawful taking of and misuse of SERE "training materials" (which were created for the purpose of helping U.S. Military personnel prepare for and resist the unlawful and immoral torture techniques being used by enemies) and then used those materials as "training guides" for developing torture and "enhanced interrogation" methods supported by President Bush, there remain some who persist in conflating "SERE Techniques" with "Detainee Interrogation/Torture" by misguided CIA and other U.S. military personnel. By definition, there are NO "SERE Techniques" involving torture as the "R" in SERE is about "Resistance training" to assist American POWs (or captives) in resisting unlawful force or methods intended to compel them to act against their fellow prisoners or their honor as soldiers.


"SERE"?

An online magazine article from June 2006 referenced a 2005 document obtained by the
American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1920 "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States". T ...
through the
Freedom of Information Act Freedom of Information Act may refer to the following legislations in different jurisdictions which mandate the national government to disclose certain data to the general public upon request: * Freedom of Information Act 1982, the Australian act * ...
in which the former chief of the Interrogation Control Element at Guantanamo Bay said "SERE instructors" taught their methods to interrogators of the prisoners in Cuba. The article also stated that physical and mental techniques used against some detainees at
Abu Ghraib Abu Ghraib (; ar, أبو غريب, ''Abū Ghurayb'') is a city in the Baghdad Governorate of Iraq, located just west of Baghdad's city center, or northwest of Baghdad International Airport. It has a population of 189,000 (2003). The old road t ...
are similar to the ones SERE students are taught to resist. According to
Human Rights First Human Rights First (formerly known as the Lawyers Committee for International Human Rights) is a nonpartisan, 501(c)(3), international human rights organization based in New York City and Washington, D.C. In 2004, Human Rights First started its " ...
, the interrogation that led to the death of
Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
i Major General
Abed Hamed Mowhoush Abed Hamed Mowhoush (Arabic "عبد حمد مهاوش") was an air vice-marshal believed to be in command of the transport, logistics and airlifting division of the Iraqi Air Force during the regime of Saddam Hussein immediately prior to the 2003 ...
involved the use of techniques used in SERE training. According to the organization "Internal FBI memos and press reports have pointed to SERE training as the basis for some of the harshest techniques authorized for use on detainees by the Pentagon in 2002 and 2003." On 17 June 2008,
Mark Mazzetti Mark Mazzetti (born May 13, 1974) is an American journalist who works for the ''New York Times''. He is currently a Washington Investigative Correspondent for the Times. Life Mazzetti was born in Washington, D.C. He attended Regis High School ...
of ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' reported that the senior Pentagon lawyer Mark Schiffrin requested information in 2002 from the leaders of the Air Force's captivity-resistance program, referring to one based in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. The information was later used on prisoners in military custody. In written testimony to the Senate Armed Forces Committee hearing, Col. Steven Kleinman of the
Joint Personnel Recovery Agency The Joint Personnel Recovery Agency (JPRA) is a Chairman's Controlled Activity and is designated as DoD's office of primary responsibility for DoD-wide personnel recovery (PR) matters, less policy. JPRA is headquartered in Fort Belvoir, Virginia w ...
said a team of trainers whom he was leading in Iraq were asked to demonstrate SERE techniques on uncooperative prisoners. He refused, but his decision was overruled. He was quoted as saying "When presented with the choice of getting smarter or getting tougher, we chose the latter." Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice Condoleezza Rice ( ; born November 14, 1954) is an American diplomat and political scientist who is the current director of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served as the 66th Uni ...
has acknowledged that the use of the SERE program techniques to conduct interrogations in Iraq was discussed by senior
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...
officials in 2002 and 2003. It has been subsequently confirmed that in 2002 JPRA was asked by the CIA to provide advisors on topics such as "deprivation techniques... exploitation and questioning techniques, and developing countermeasures to resistance techniques". What has never been revealed is who the JPRA instructors actually were, but almost every source continues to deem them "SERE instructors". JPRA is not SERE and many of its resistance training instructors are not SERE instructors (they are from the Air Force Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Agency). The techniques they taught the CIA are not SERE resistance training methods (although they are related) - they are the work product of
Bruce Jessen John Bruce Jessen (born July 28, 1949) is an American psychologist who, with James Elmer Mitchell, created the so-called " enhanced interrogation techniques" that were used in the interrogation and torture of CIA detainees and outlined in the Un ...
and
James Elmer Mitchell James Elmer Mitchell (born 1952) is an American psychologist and former member of the United States Air Force. From 2002, after his retirement from the military, to 2009, his company Mitchell Jessen and Associates received $81 million on contrac ...
. For example, "
waterboarding Waterboarding is a form of torture in which water torture, water is poured over a cloth covering the face and breathing passages of an immobilized captive, causing the person to experience the sensation of drowning. In the most common method ...
" (probably the most controversial of the "
enhanced interrogation techniques "Enhanced interrogation techniques" or "enhanced interrogation" is a euphemism for the program of systematic torture of detainees by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and various components of the U.S. A ...
" proposed by Jessen and Mitchell) has never been used in resistance training as part of Air Force SERE training and therefore, neither psychologist had any experience with it. (Waterboarding was reintroduced to the curriculum for both Air Force and Navy SERE training in 2018.) While "Resistance" is clearly part of SERE training, not all resistance training is part of SERE. The SERE community is about TRAINING and, within SERE, "Resistance" is about teaching others methods and techniques to help them deal with captivity and avoid exploitation. SERE instructors use "role-playing" exercises to allow students to experience simulated abuse, stress, and exploitation as might be expected if captured. Interrogation is something captives should expect and SERE instructors role-play as interrogators. While this means that such instructors must know how real interrogations might be conducted, their RT training focuses on effective role-playing in a VERY tightly controlled environment. Col. Steven Kleinman, a top intelligence officer at Fairchild AFB who was named the director of intelligence for JPRA in 2004, calls the "mistaking of role-playing resistance training as a basis for actual interrogations" a "critical disconnect" in the misinformation Jessen and Mitchell were "selling" to the CIA. When Col. Kleinman was ordered by the commander of JPRA to teach non-SERE soldiers the techniques that were used by role-playing "interrogators" in resistance training at SERE schools, he refused. (Note: Col. Kleinman was NOT a SERE officer, he was an "ISR" Air Force Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Agency officer).


Senate Intelligence Committee report on CIA torture

On 9 December 2014, the
United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence The United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (sometimes referred to as the Intelligence Committee or SSCI) is dedicated to overseeing the United States Intelligence Community—the agencies and bureaus of the federal government of ...
released a report ("SASC report", hereafter) which detailed how contractors who developed the "enhanced interrogation techniques" used by U.S. personnel received 81 million for their services and identified the contractors, who were referred to in the report via pseudonyms, as principals in Mitchell, Jessen & Associates from
Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the Canada ...
. Two of them were psychologists, John "Bruce" Jessen and James Mitchell. Jessen was a senior psychologist at the Defense Department who had worked with Army special forces in resistance training. The report states that the contractor "developed the list of enhanced interrogation techniques and personally conducted interrogations of some of the CIA's most significant detainees using those techniques. The contractors also evaluated whether the detainees' psychological state allowed for continued use of the techniques, even for some detainees they themselves were interrogating or had interrogated." Mitchell, Jessen & Associates developed a "menu" of 20 potential enhanced techniques including waterboarding, sleep deprivation and stress positions. Over the six years following their hiring by friends at the CIA (Kirk Hubbard), Mitchell, Jessen & Associates would hire over 100 staff, bill the CIA for over $80,000,000, and lead the American military (and other parts of the government) into perhaps their greatest public relations fiasco. When
60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who chose to set it apart from other news programs by using a unique styl ...
aired pictures from Abu Ghraib in May 2004, the shock was "heard around the world". Americans (for the most part) began hearing of "SERE" for the first time and still hear it today as more and more information about American torture becomes known. While Mitchell, Jessen & Associates hired ex-"SERE instructors" we don't know how many, if any, were actually "SERE", how many were private contractors who used the title "SERE Instructor", how many were CIA that called themselves "SERE interrogators" merely because they used Mitchell's and Jessen's stolen (classified) library materials that have been repeatedly misrepresented as "SERE" training techniques". They came from classified training materials (historical and instructional) used for curriculum development in military and JPRA Level-C "resistance training".


SERE abuses and scandals

# USAFA "sex abuse" during resistance training: See
2003 United States Air Force Academy sexual assault scandal The Air Force Academy sexual assault scandal in 2003 involved allegations of sexual assault at the United States Air Force Academy, as well as allegations that the alleged incidents had been ignored by the academy's leadership. Context President ...
. The
United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and Uni ...
has had several sex/sex abuse scandals, some involving SERE. In 1993 a female cadet that she was particularly selected as a participant in a simulated rape and exploitation scenario where, while hooded and other cadets stood by, she had to lie on the ground with her shirt removed and her legs pried apart. The subsequent investigations failed to affirm the allegations and she filed a lawsuit that was confidentially settled out-of-court. In 1995, abuse allegations were made by one male cadet: "They dressed me up as a woman. They put me in a skirt, put makeup all over my face, and made me follow around one of the nstructorslike his little toy." The cadet also claimed that while he was tied to a bench, another cadet was forced to "get on top of me and act like he's having sex with me.". Following this allegation, cadet SERE training was suspended until 1998 when it resumed without the "Sexual Exploitation" element. # USN
waterboarding Waterboarding is a form of torture in which water torture, water is poured over a cloth covering the face and breathing passages of an immobilized captive, causing the person to experience the sensation of drowning. In the most common method ...
during resistance training (ordered stopped in 2007 by JPRA): "For years, the U.S. military used waterboarding, a centuries-old torture technique, to train American troops to resist interrogation if captured." JPRA (the controlling agency) compelled the Army and Navy to discontinue simulated waterboard training in 2007. However, waterboarding at SERE was reinstated in 2018 and is still incorporated into the training today. # Claims of psychological and/or physical harm from resistance training: It has been suggested that training exercises during SERE courses are harsh enough to cause students to become "psychologically defeated" and impaired in the ability to develop "psychological hardiness." I # Claims of resistance training involving "torture": "The experience of torture at SERE choolsurely plays a role in the minds of the graduates who go on to be interrogators, and it must on some level help them rationalize their actions." The most credible claim of simulations escalating into torture come from an Internal JPRA memorandum regarding North Island SERE school waterboarding, which says, in part: "Out of the four water boards we observed, the instructor did not stop watering students when they started tapping their toes, but instead continued watering until stopped by the watch officer or until the totally defeated student gave an answer through the water. In one case two full canteen cups were poured after the student started tapping..." (The tapping of toes is an instructional signal given to students so they may temporarily stop the training simulation).


See also

*
Survival skills Survival skills are techniques that a person may use in order to sustain life in any type of natural environment or built environment. These techniques are meant to provide basic necessities for human life which include water, food, and shelte ...
*
Prisoner of War A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...
*
Special Forces Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...
*
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 ...
*
Personnel recovery The United States Armed Forces, in Joint Publication 3-50 Personnel Recovery, defines personnel recovery as "the sum of military, diplomatic, and civil efforts to prepare for and execute the recovery and reintegration of isolated personnel." The ...
*
Enhanced interrogation techniques "Enhanced interrogation techniques" or "enhanced interrogation" is a euphemism for the program of systematic torture of detainees by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and various components of the U.S. A ...
*
Resistance to interrogation Resistance to interrogation, RTI or R2I is a type of military training to British and other NATO soldiers to prepare them, after capture by the enemy, to resist interrogation techniques such as humiliation and torture. The trainees undergo pract ...
*
Special Activities Division The Special Activities Center (SAC) is a division of the United States Central Intelligence Agency responsible for covert operation, covert and paramilitary operations. The unit was named Special Activities Division (SAD) prior to 2015. Within S ...
*
Torture and the United States Torture in the United States includes documented and alleged cases of torture both inside and outside the United States by members of the government, the military, law enforcement agencies, intelligence agencies, health care services, and other pu ...
*
Survive, Evade, Resist, Extract The Defence Survive, Evade, Resist, Extract (SERE) Training Organisation (DSTO), is a military training organisation based at RAF St Mawgan, Cornwall, in the United Kingdom. It is tri-service and trains personnel in Survival skills, survival tec ...
an analogous training program used by the armed forces of the United Kingdom


References


Further reading

* "Department of Justice to Guantanamo Bay: From the Department of Justice to Guantanamo Bay : administration lawyers and administration interrogation rules : hearing before the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties of the Committee on the Judiciary, One Hundred Tenth Congress, second session", United States. Congress. House. Committee on the Judiciary. Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties, U.S. Government Printing Office, 2008 * "Special Operations Forces Reference Manual", Fourth Edition, The JSOU Press, MacDill AFB, Florida, June 2015 at https://www.socom.mil/JSOU/JSOUPublications/2015SOFRefManual_final_cc.pdf * '' Remembered Prisoners of a Forgotten War: An Oral History of Korean War POWs'' by Lewis H. Carlson, Macmillan (2002) – first-hand accounts of POWs.
"Training Success for U.S. Air Force Special Operations and Combat Support Specialties: An Analysis of Recruiting, Screening, and Development Processes" by Maria C. Lytell, Sean Robson, David Schulker, Tracy C. McCausland, Miriam Matthews, Louis T. Mariano, Albert A. Robbert, RAND Corporation (2018)
* ''Beyond Survival: Building on the Hard Times'', Gerald Coffee, Putnam (1990).


External links

* SERE Survival Training (Navy) - YouTube
Airmen Against the Sea: An Analysis of Sea Survival Experiences" by George Albert Llano (1956) Free Google Books

Survival, Evasion, and Recovery – Multiservice Procedures for Survival, Evasion, and Recovery FM 21-76-1

Army Regulation for Code of Conduct/ SERE Training

Air Force Policy Directive (AFPD) 16-13 - SERE

Instruction implementing Air Force Policy Directive 16-13 - SERE

"Survival, Evasion. Resistance, and Escape (SERE) Training: Preparing Military Members for the Demands of Captivity", by Anthony P. Duran, Gary Hoyt, and Charles A. Morgan III, in Military Psychology: Clinical and Operational Applicalions, edited by Carrie H. Kennedy and Eric A. Zillmer, Guilford (2006)


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