Spec Ops
Spec Ops

Author: William H. McRaven

Publisher: Presidio Press

Published: 2009-02-04

Total Pages: 433

ISBN-13: 030754723X

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Vice Adm. William H. McRaven helped to devise the strategy for how to bring down Osama bin Laden, and commanded the courageous U.S. military unit that carried it out on May 1, 2011, ending one of the greatest manhunts in history. In Spec Ops, a well-organized and deeply researched study, McRaven analyzes eight classic special operations. Six are from WWII: the German commando raid on the Belgian fort Eben Emael (1940); the Italian torpedo attack on the Alexandria harbor (1941); the British commando raid on Nazaire, France (1942); the German glider rescue of Benito Mussolini (1943); the British midget-submarine attack on the Tirpitz (1943); and the U.S. Ranger rescue mission at the Cabanatuan POW camp in the Philippines (1945). The two post-WWII examples are the U.S. Army raid on the Son Tay POW camp in North Vietnam (1970) and the Israeli rescue of the skyjacked hostages in Entebbe, Uganda (1976). McRaven—who commands a U.S. Navy SEAL team—pinpoints six essential principles of “spec ops” success: simplicity, security, repetition, surprise, speed and purpose. For each of the case studies, he provides political and military context, a meticulous reconstruction of the mission itself and an analysis of the operation in relation to his six principles. McRaven deems the Son Tay raid “the best modern example of a successful spec op [which] should be considered textbook material for future missions.” His own book is an instructive textbook that will be closely studied by students of the military arts. Maps, photos.

Special Operations Case Studies
Special Operations Case Studies

Author: Lt Gen Prakash Katoch

Publisher: Lancer Publishers LLC

Published: 2019-10-21

Total Pages: 193

ISBN-13: 1940988470

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This book in four sections covers the ‘Operational Milieu and Special Operations’, ‘Successful Special Operations’, ‘Failed Special Operations’, and ‘Implications for India’. It covers regular, irregular and mixed operations under the rubric of hybrid warfare of select foreign militaries, and Indian experience in sub-conventional operations. A myriad of successful and failed special operations covering a span of over seven decades from 1943 onwards have been analyzed in detail, drawing lessons from each. The last Section, ‘Implications for India’, covers lessons, challenges and recommendations in three chapters. These highlight India’s adverse strategic asymmetry vis-a-vis China-Pakistan, inability of India to put in place SOF structures to optimize the considerable SF potential for employment at the strategic, operational and tactical levels, and ending up with policy recommendations.

Special Operations and Strategy
Special Operations and Strategy

Author: James D. Kiras

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2006-07-29

Total Pages: 463

ISBN-13: 1135989885

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James D. Kiras shows how a number of different special operations, in conjunction with more conventional military actions, achieve and sustain strategic effect(s) over time. In particular, he argues that the root of effective special operations lies in understanding the relationship existing between moral and material attrition at the strategic level. He also presents a theoretical framework for understanding how special operations achieve strategic effects using a unique synthesis of strategic theory and case studies. This study shows how the key to understanding how special operations reside in the concept of strategic attrition and in the moral and material nature of strategy. It also highlights major figures such as Carl von Clausewitz, Hans Delbrück, and Mao Zedong, who understood these complexities and were experts in eroding an enemy’s will to fight. These and other examples provide a superb explanation of the complexities of modern strategy and the place of special operations in a war of attrition. This book will be of great interest to all students and scholars with an interest in special forces and of strategic and military studies in general.

United States Special Operations Forces
United States Special Operations Forces

Author: Christopher J. Lamb

Publisher: Columbia University Press

Published: 2019-11-19

Total Pages: 490

ISBN-13: 0231545223

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In this book, two national-security experts put the exploits of America’s special operation forces in historical and strategic context. David Tucker and Christopher J. Lamb offer an incisive overview of America’s turbulent experience with special operations. Starting with in-depth interviews with special operators, the authors illustrate the diversity of modern special operations forces and the strategic value of their unique attributes. Despite longstanding and growing public fascination with special operators, these forces and their contribution to national security are poorly understood. With this book, Tucker and Lamb dispel common misconceptions and offer a penetrating analysis of how these unique and valuable forces can be employed to even better effect in the future. The book builds toward a comprehensive assessment of the strategic utility of special operations forces, which it then considers in light of the demands of future warfare. This second edition of United States Special Operations Forces, revised throughout to account for lessons learned in the twelve years since its first publication, includes two new case studies, one on High Value Target Teams and another on Village Stability Operations, and two new appendixes charting the evolution of special operation missions and the best literature on all aspects of U.S. special operation forces.

Improving the Understanding of Special Operations
Improving the Understanding of Special Operations

Author: Linda Robinson

Publisher: RAND Corporation

Published: 2018

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780833098399

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This report examines U.S. decisions related to the development or use of special operations forces. It should assist in future planning and execution by the Army Special Operations Forces, the U.S. Army, and the joint special operations community.

Sea Stories
Sea Stories

Author: Admiral William H. McRaven

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Published: 2019-05-21

Total Pages: 364

ISBN-13: 1538729725

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Following the success of his #1 New York Times bestseller Make Your Bed, which has sold over one million copies, Admiral William H. McRaven is back with amazing stories of bravery and heroism during his career as a Navy SEAL and commander of America's Special Operations Forces. Admiral William H. McRaven is a part of American military history, having been involved in some of the most famous missions in recent memory, including the capture of Saddam Hussein, the rescue of Captain Richard Phillips, and the raid to kill Osama bin Laden. Sea Stories begins in 1963 at a French Officers' Club in France, where Allied officers and their wives gathered to have drinks and tell stories about their adventures during World War II-the place where a young Bill McRaven learned the value of a good story. Sea Stories is an unforgettable look back on one man's incredible life, from childhood days sneaking into high-security military sites to a day job of hunting terrorists and rescuing hostages. Action-packed, humorous, and full of valuable life lessons like those exemplified in McRaven's bestselling Make Your Bed, Sea Stories is a remarkable memoir from one of America's most accomplished leaders.

Psychological Operations
Psychological Operations

Author: Frank L. Goldstein

Publisher:

Published: 1996

Total Pages: 364

ISBN-13: 9781585660162

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This anthology serves as a fundamental guide to PSYOP philosophy, concepts, principles, issues, and thought for both those new to, and those experienced in, the PSYOP field and PSYOP applications. It clarifies the value of PSYOP as a cost-effective weapon and incorporates it as a psychological instrument of U.S. military and political power, especially given our present budgetary constraints. Presents diverse articles that portray the value of the planned use of human actions to influence perceptions, public opinion, attitudes, and behaviors so that PSYOP victories can be achieved in war and in peace.

Deep Maneuver
Deep Maneuver

Author: Jack D Kern Editor

Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform

Published: 2018-10-12

Total Pages: 266

ISBN-13: 9781727846430

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Volume 5, Deep Maneuver: Historical Case Studies of Maneuver in Large-Scale Combat Operations, presents eleven case studies from World War II through Operation Iraqi Freedom focusing on deep maneuver in terms of time, space and purpose. Deep operations require boldness and audacity, and yet carry an element of risk of overextension - especially in light of the independent factors of geography and weather that are ever-present. As a result, the case studies address not only successes, but also failure and shortfalls that result when conducting deep operations. The final two chapters address these considerations for future Deep Maneuver.

Special Operations and Strategy
Special Operations and Strategy

Author: James D. Kiras

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2006-07-29

Total Pages: 257

ISBN-13: 1135989893

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This book argues that the root of effective special operations lies in understanding the relationship between moral and material attrition - this is achieved by examining both strategic theory and real-life case studies.