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| United Kingdom |
| Royal Marines |
| Special Boat Service |
| "By Strength And Guile" |
This organisation is the Naval equivalent of the Army's SAS
(Special Air Service). Personnel are all volunteers from the
mainstream Royal Marines and vacancies are few with competition
for entry intense.
Following an rigorous two week selection course which weeds out
90% of volunteers, the surviving Marines undertake a one-year
training course. Generally speaking only about 30 per cent of
volunteers who start the SBS course at Poole complete it.
Their selection includes survival test in the wilds of Scotland
and grueling underwater exercises. In the diving phase they swim
underwater for miles in the dark and mud. It includes tests of
map reading skills, underwater demolitions and maritime
antiterrorism training.
The SBS specialises in mounting clandestine operations against
targets at sea, in rivers or harbours and against occupied
coastlines. beach reconnaissance, sabotage, oil platform and
large ship assault.
Training includes canoe and boat handling, demolitions,
parachuting, high-speed rope deployments from helicopters,
sniping, swimming, diving (SCUBA), signals and intelligence
gathering. Among the boat handling skills in which they are
trained and tested, two men must paddle a canoe 30 miles in
the open sea and in another exercise they carry the
Klepper canoes cross country over ten miles.
Those who pass the selection course then undergo a Swimmer
Canoeist Grade 3 training course. During this course the
candidates still considered to be 'on probation'.
Those who do pass this course receive the qualification
'Swimmer Canoeist ' and become a member of the SBS. At this
stage they are assigned to one of the three squadrons.
The swimmer canoeists join C Squadron and those who have
ability with small boats, mini-submarines and delivery
vehicles join S Squadron. The Marines tasked with maritime
counter-terrorist operations and shipboard operations join
M Squadron. Within M Squadron 'Black Troop' specialises in
fast roping and abseiling from Sea King helicopters onto
ship's decks and oil rigs.
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Charles E. Geck III
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Special Forces Assn.
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