The Jaeger Corps also known as the Huntsmen Corps () is an elite

special operations force Special forces or 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 ...

of the Danish Armed Forces part of Special Operations Command, formerly of the

Royal Danish Army The Royal Danish Army (; ; ) is the land-based branch of the Danish Armed Forces, together with the Danish Home Guard. For the last decade, the Royal Danish Army has undergone a massive transformation of structures, equipment and training methods ...

, based at Aalborg Air Base.

History

The Jaeger Corps traces its origins to 1785 when the corps was first formed as the " Jaeger Corps of Zealand". Facing emerging threats from

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

, and

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

, Denmark created a light infantry force from hunters and woodsmen. The corps existed in various forms until it was remade in its current form in 1962 when Major P.B. Larsen and First Lieutenant Jørgen Lyng became the first two to complete the training. Throughout the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

, the Jaegers' primary tasking was that of a long-range reconnaissance unit, with wide renown for their skills in parachute operations. In the post-Cold War era, the Jaegers deployed for the first time in 1995 to

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

with a six-man counter-sniper team. Following the

September 11 terrorist attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

and the beginning of the

United States invasion of Afghanistan Shortly after the September 11 attacks in 2001, the United States declared the war on terror and subsequently led a multinational military operation against Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. The stated goal was to dismantle al-Qaeda, which had exe ...

in October 2001, the Jaegers' training programme changed. As such, the Jaegers increased their proficiency in counter-terrorism skills, while still maintaining their excellence at reconnaissance operations. In 2002, the Jaegers were deployed to Afghanistan as part of the Danish contribution (Task Group Ferret) to Task Force K-Bar, along with the Frogman Corps. During these operations, the Jaegers took part in reconnaissance, observations, capturing of high-value targets, and direct-action raids on

Taliban , leader1_title = Supreme Leader of Afghanistan, Supreme leaders , leader1_name = {{indented plainlist, * Mullah Omar{{Natural Causes{{nbsp(1994–2013) * Akhtar Mansour{{Assassinated (2015–2016) * Hibatullah Akhundzada (2016–present) ...

and

al-Qaeda , image = Flag of Jihad.svg , caption = Jihadist flag, Flag used by various al-Qaeda factions , founder = Osama bin Laden{{Assassinated, Killing of Osama bin Laden , leaders = {{Plainlist, * Osama bin Lad ...

positions. As part of Task Force K-Bar, the Jaeger Corps was awarded the American Presidential Unit Citation on 7 December 2004 for its effort as part of the joint special operations task force in Afghanistan. The first Jaeger to be killed in combat was in 2013 when a Jaeger was hit by an explosion in Afghanistan. Four Jaegers had previously died during training accidents.

Selection and training

The selection course to become a Jaeger is very demanding, both mentally and physically. To be accepted into the Corps, a candidate must complete the following: * Pre-course 1 (5 days) :Introduces the candidate to the subjects covered in the patrol course, and identifies the areas in which the candidate must improve (orienteering, swimming, etc.). * Pre-course 2 (2 days) :More training and evaluation in the above covered subjects. * Pre-course 3 (2 days) :More training and evaluation in the above covered subjects with tougher requirements. * Patrol Course (8 weeks) :Basic medical, demolition, and marksmanship using basic direct-action and special reconnaissance training events to assess candidates. This course must be completed at a satisfactory level to continue to the aspirant course. * Selection Course (8 weeks) :Candidates receive training in advanced breaching, close-quarters battle, demolition, and sniping. If passed the candidate is awarded his or her "bugle" for the beret. * Basic parachuting course (2 weeks) * Combat Swimming Course (2 weeks) Approximately 10% of candidates successfully complete the program and become a full member of the Jaeger Corps. The successful Jaeger continues in the training wing for individual training during their first (probationary) year. During this time they will receive High Altitude Parachute Operations (HAPO) training in High Altitude Low Opening (HALO) and High Altitude High Opening (HAHO), environmental training (desert and winter), advanced infiltration training (mountain, nontactical vehicle, ski and

rotary-wing A rotary-wing aircraft, rotorwing aircraft or rotorcraft is a heavier-than-air aircraft with rotor wing, rotary wings that spin around a vertical mast to generate lift (force), lift. Part 1 (Definitions and Abbreviations) of Subchapter A of Chapt ...

), attain

Joint Terminal Attack Controller Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) is the term used in the United States Armed Forces and some other military forces for a qualified service member who directs the action of military aircraft engaged in close air support and other offensive ...

(JTAC) certification, and gain additional communications skills. New Jaeger Corps members are also taught a hand-to-hand combat system called MTM (man-to-man) combat, which was developed in 1992 by Peter Hedegaard in collaboration with two of the Corps's own close-combat instructors.

Insignia and status

The Jaeger Corps wear a frogberet also and the

maroon beret The maroon beret in a military configuration has been an international symbol of airborne forces since the World War II, Second World War. It was first officially introduced by the British Army in 1942, at the direction of Major-general (Uni ...

with a brass emblem depicting a hunter's bugle on a black felt liner. After one year of satisfactory service and training in corps the wearer is issued the shoulder patch "JÆGER" and may call himself by this name. The unit's insignia features a hunting horn from their origin as hunters and woodsmen. The Jaeger Corps is composed of around 150 highly trained soldiers with special expertise in

counter-terrorism Counterterrorism (alternatively spelled: counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, relates to the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, businesses, and intelligence agencies use to co ...

demolition Demolition (also known as razing and wrecking) is the science and engineering in safely and efficiently tearing down buildings and other artificial structures. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction (building), deconstruction, which inv ...

parachuting Parachuting and skydiving are methods of descending from a high point in an atmosphere to the ground or ocean surface with the aid of gravity, involving the control of speed during the descent using a parachute or multiple parachutes. For hu ...

, and combat swimming, HAHO and HALO parachuting, infiltration,

sabotage Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening a polity, government, effort, or organization through subversion, obstruction, demoralization (warfare), demoralization, destabilization, divide and rule, division, social disruption, disrupti ...

reconnaissance In military operations, military reconnaissance () or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, the terrain, and civil activities in the area of operations. In military jargon, reconnai ...

and more. The corps regularly trains with similar units from different countries, such as the US Navy SEALs, US Army DELTA, British SAS and the Danish naval special forces group, the Frogman Corps. The corps is based on the structure and

modus operandi A (often shortened to M.O. or MO) is an individual's habits of working, particularly in the context of business or criminal investigations, but also generally. It is a Latin phrase, approximately translated as . Term The term is often used in ...

of the British SAS. Their slogan, which is Latin, ''Plus esse, quam simultatur'' translates to ''Hellere at være, end at synes'' ("Rather to be, than to seem") in Danish, meaning that the soldier's capabilities do not have to be widely recognized or boasted—they are only more effective if unknown.

International Joint Training

Like most western Special Operations Forces, the Jaegers regularly take part in joint training operations with other NATO and Coalition SOFs. These exercises include reconnaissance patrols throughout Europe, arctic survival training, helicopter insertion techniques, parachute insertion techniques, hostage rescue training, Close Air Support training, medical training, and other SOF-specific skills. Allied units as the Jaegers regularly practice with include: * US Army Special Forces * US Navy SEALs * US Army Delta Force * 22nd Special Air Service Regiment *

Forsvarets Spesialkommando (FSK) Forsvarets Spesialkommando (FSK) (English: Special Operations Commando) is a special operations forces, special operations force unit in the Norwegian Armed Forces. The unit was established in 1982Monica RikollForsvarets spesialkommando feiret 5 ...

Särskilda operationsgruppen The Swedish Special Operations Task Group ( (''SOG''), ), is a special forces unit within the Swedish Armed Forces which has been active since 2011. The unit is headquartered at Karlsborg Fortress in Karlsborg, Västra Götaland County. Histo ...

Kommando Spezialkräfte The Kommando Spezialkräfte (KSK) (, alternatively Special Operations Forces Command (SOFCOM)) is a unified combatant command and a large brigade-level unit of the German Army (Heer) designated to perform Covert operation, covert operations, ca ...

* Army Ranger Battalion * Netherlands Special Operations Command * Special Operations Regiment (Belgium)

Well known jaegers

* Poul Kjeld Larsen: Jaeger Nr. 1 – Co-found and first CO of the Corps * Jørgen Lyng: Jaeger Nr. 2 – Co-found and first XO of the Corps and later

Chief of Defence A chief of defence (or head of defence) is the highest ranked Officer (armed forces), commissioned officer of a nation's armed forces. The acronym CHOD is in common use within NATO and the European Union as a generic term for the highest national ...

* Helge Adam Møller: Jaeger Nr. 157 – Danish politician for the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

and former MP * Poul Dahl: Jaeger Nr. 160 – Author, Danish politician for Venstre and former MRC. Dahl served as CO of the Corps in start of the 1990's * B. S. Christiansen: Jaeger Nr. 163 – Author, lecturer, coach and media personality. * Carsten Mørch: Jaeger Nr. 173 – Author, lecturer and coach * Lars Møller: Jaeger Nr. 200 – Author * Lothar Friis: Jaeger nr. 215 - Expeditions leader in the tv show ''"Ingen kære mor"'' TV2. * Thomas Rathsack: Jaeger Nr. 229 – Author, debater and media personality. * Nicolai Moltke-Leth: Jaeger Nr. 243 – Author, lecturer, coach and expeditions leader in the tv show ''"56° Nord"'' Kanal 5 * Michael Hyldgaard: Jaeger Nr. ? CO of the Corps 2007-10 and

2024- * René Brink Jakobsen: Jaeger Nr. 353 – First (and only) Jaeger to be killed in combat.

References

External links

Official webpage of Jægerkorpset

Danish Defence official videos of Jægerkorpset
{{Authority control Denmark in the Iraq War Military counterterrorist organizations Military units and formations established in 1961 Special forces of Denmark Aalborg