Rangers
vs SF
The
Chief of Staff of the Army asked his Sergeant Major,
who was both Ranger and Special Forces qualified,
which organization he would recommend to form a new
anti-terrorist unit. The Sergeant Major responded
to the General's question with this parable: If there
were a hijacked Boeing 747 being held by terrorists
along with its passengers and crew and an anti-terrorist
unit formed either by the Rangers or the Special Forces
was given a Rescue/Recovery Mission; what would you
expect to happen?
Ranger
Option
Forces/Equipment
Committed: If the Rangers went in, they would send
a Ranger company of 120 men with standard army issue
equipment.
Mission
Preparation: The Ranger Company First Sergeant would
conduct a Hair Cut and Boots Inspection.
Infiltration
Technique: They would insist on double timing, in
company formation, wearing their combat equipment,
and singing Jody cadence all the way to the site
of the hijacked aircraft.
Actions
in the Objective Area: Once they arrived, the Ranger
company would establish their ORP, put out security
elements, conduct a leaders recon, reapply their
face cammo, and conduct final preparations for Actions
on the OBJ.
Results
of Operation: The Rescue/Recovery Operation would
be completed within one hour; all of the terrorists
and most of the passengers would have been killed,
the Rangers would have sustained light casualties
and the 747 would be worthless to anyone except
a scrap dealer.
Special
Forces Option
Forces/Equipment
Committed: If Special Forces went in, they would
send only a 12 man team (all SF units are divisible
by 12 for some arcane historical reason) however,
due to the exotic nature of their equipment the
SF Team would cost the same amount to deploy as
the Ranger Company.
Mission
Preparation: The SF Team Sergeant would request
relaxed grooming standards for the team.
Infiltration
Technique: The team would insist on separate travel
orders with Max Per Diem, and each would get to
the site of the hijacking by his own means. At least
one third of the team would insist on jumping in.
Actions
in the Objective Area: Once they arrived , the SF
Team would cache their military uniforms, establish
a Team Room, use their illegal Team Fund to stock
the unauthorized Team Room Bar, check out the situation
by talking to the locals, and have a Team Meeting
to discuss the merits of the terrorists' cause.
Results
of Operation: The Rescue/Recovery Operation would
take two weeks to complete and by that time all
of the terrorists would have been killed, (and would
have left signed confessions); the passengers would
be ruined psychologically for the remainder of their
lives; and all of the women passengers would be
pregnant. The 747 would be essentially unharmed,
the team would have taken no casualties but would
have used up, lost, or stolen all the "high
speed" equipment issued to them.
