- published: 25 May 2013
- views: 3434426
Special forces, or special operations forces are terms used to describe highy-trained military units trained to perform unconventional, often high-risk missions.
Special forces, as they would now be recognised, emerged in the early 20th century, with a significant growth in the field during the Second World War.
Special forces capabilities include the following:
Special forces have played an important role throughout the history of warfare whenever the aim has been to achieve disruption by "hit and run" and sabotage, rather than more traditional conventional army combat. Other significant roles lay in reconnaissance, providing essential intelligence from close to or among the enemy, and increasingly in combating terrorists, their infrastructure and activities.
Chinese strategist Jiang Ziya, in his Six Secret Teachings, describes recruiting talented and highly-motivated men for serving in specialized elite units with such functions as commanding heights and making rapid long-distance advances.Hamilcar Barca in Sicily (249 BC) had specialized troops trained to launch several offensives per day. In the late Roman or early Byzantine period, Roman fleets used small, fast camouflaged ships crewed by selected men for scouting and commando missions. Similarly, Muslim forces also had several naval special operations units, including one which used camouflaged ships to gather intelligence and launch raids, and another which consisted of soldiers who could pass for Crusaders who would use ruses to board enemy ships and then capture and destroy them. While more commonly known as spies and assassins, Japanese ninja were sometimes used as assault troops or fortress guards, or otherwise fought alongside more conventional soldiers. During the Napoleonic wars, rifle and sapper units were formed who held more specialised roles in reconnaissance and skirmishing and were not committed to the formal battle lines.
Sergeant ‘Andy McNab’ DCM MM (born 28 December 1959) is the pseudonym of an English novelist and former SAS operative and soldier.
McNab came into public prominence in 1993, when he published his account of the Special Air Service (SAS) patrol, Bravo Two Zero for which he was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal in 1991. He had previously received the Military Medal in 1980, awarded for an action whilst serving with the Royal Green Jackets in Northern Ireland during 1979.
In addition to Bravo Two Zero he has written two other autobiographies and a number of fiction books.
McNab was born on 28 December 1959. Found abandoned on the steps of Guy's Hospital in Southwark, he was brought up in Peckham, with his adoptive family. He did not do well in school so dropped out and worked at various odd jobs, usually for friends and relatives, and was partly inspired to join the British Army because of his brother's time in the army.
He was involved in petty criminality until being arrested for burglary. In 1976, shortly after his arrest, he aspired to a career as an army pilot, but failed the entry test. In the same year, he enlisted with the Royal Green Jackets at the age of sixteen.
Actors: Lee Nicholas Harris (actor), David Frampton (actor), Brian William Woodward (actor), Cengiz Dervis (actor), Vic Waghorn (actor), Marissa Llano (producer), Victor Stephanopoli (writer), Rachelle Payne (actor), Victor Stephanopoli (producer), Victor Stephanopoli (director), Luke Weller (producer), Karencho Khachatrian (actor), Robert Sean-Riaz (actor), Luke Weller (editor), Ronin Traynor (actor),
Plot: Voltage is an action-packed sci-fi film, set in a not too distant dystopian future. With the country under the strict new regime of The Shakti, citizens are seeing their worlds crumble. Money has become a depleted commodity, and has been replaced with energy units, making the struggle for survival a much harder challenge than ever before. We follow our hero, Adrian, as he battles against this new regime, psychopathic energy harvesters, and a group of rebels aiming to overthrow the system, in order to revert the system back to a prehistoric state. A fast-paced, high-octane thrill ride, Voltage uses its vibrant energy and its underlying political messages to keep audiences enthralled and entertained throughout.
Genres: Action, Sci-Fi, Short, Thriller,Actors: Lee Nicholas Harris (actor), David Frampton (actor), Brian William Woodward (actor), Cengiz Dervis (actor), Vic Waghorn (actor), Marissa Llano (producer), Victor Stephanopoli (writer), Rachelle Payne (actor), Victor Stephanopoli (producer), Victor Stephanopoli (director), Luke Weller (producer), Karencho Khachatrian (actor), Robert Sean-Riaz (actor), Luke Weller (editor), Ronin Traynor (actor),
Plot: Voltage is an action-packed sci-fi film, set in a not too distant dystopian future. With the country under the strict new regime of The Shakti, citizens are seeing their worlds crumble. Money has become a depleted commodity, and has been replaced with energy units, making the struggle for survival a much harder challenge than ever before. We follow our hero, Adrian, as he battles against this new regime, psychopathic energy harvesters, and a group of rebels aiming to overthrow the system, in order to revert the system back to a prehistoric state. A fast-paced, high-octane thrill ride, Voltage uses its vibrant energy and its underlying political messages to keep audiences enthralled and entertained throughout.
Genres: Action, Sci-Fi, Short, Thriller,Actors: Lee Nicholas Harris (actor), David Frampton (actor), Brian William Woodward (actor), Cengiz Dervis (actor), Vic Waghorn (actor), Marissa Llano (producer), Victor Stephanopoli (writer), Rachelle Payne (actor), Victor Stephanopoli (producer), Victor Stephanopoli (director), Luke Weller (producer), Karencho Khachatrian (actor), Robert Sean-Riaz (actor), Luke Weller (editor), Ronin Traynor (actor),
Plot: Voltage is an action-packed sci-fi film, set in a not too distant dystopian future. With the country under the strict new regime of The Shakti, citizens are seeing their worlds crumble. Money has become a depleted commodity, and has been replaced with energy units, making the struggle for survival a much harder challenge than ever before. We follow our hero, Adrian, as he battles against this new regime, psychopathic energy harvesters, and a group of rebels aiming to overthrow the system, in order to revert the system back to a prehistoric state. A fast-paced, high-octane thrill ride, Voltage uses its vibrant energy and its underlying political messages to keep audiences enthralled and entertained throughout.
Genres: Action, Sci-Fi, Short, Thriller,Actors: Lee Nicholas Harris (actor), David Frampton (actor), Brian William Woodward (actor), Cengiz Dervis (actor), Vic Waghorn (actor), Marissa Llano (producer), Victor Stephanopoli (writer), Rachelle Payne (actor), Victor Stephanopoli (producer), Victor Stephanopoli (director), Luke Weller (producer), Karencho Khachatrian (actor), Robert Sean-Riaz (actor), Luke Weller (editor), Ronin Traynor (actor),
Plot: Voltage is an action-packed sci-fi film, set in a not too distant dystopian future. With the country under the strict new regime of The Shakti, citizens are seeing their worlds crumble. Money has become a depleted commodity, and has been replaced with energy units, making the struggle for survival a much harder challenge than ever before. We follow our hero, Adrian, as he battles against this new regime, psychopathic energy harvesters, and a group of rebels aiming to overthrow the system, in order to revert the system back to a prehistoric state. A fast-paced, high-octane thrill ride, Voltage uses its vibrant energy and its underlying political messages to keep audiences enthralled and entertained throughout.
Genres: Action, Sci-Fi, Short, Thriller,Actors: Gavin ap' Morrygan (producer), David Paul Baker (actor), Tom Chamberlain (actor), Torey Byrne (actress), Oklahoma Ward (editor), Andre Relis (producer), Oklahoma Ward (writer), Oklahoma Ward (director), Oklahoma Ward (producer), Nicole Alonso (actress), Nicole Alonso (producer), Howard Brodsky (producer), Arlo Ihrig (miscellaneous crew), Jonathan Dixon (miscellaneous crew), Jonathan Dixon (actor),
Plot: An elite security team assigned the task of protecting the last known woman who can become pregnant, find themselves caught in an endless claustrophobic underground tunnel system. The team soon learns - the real horror is not the unstoppable force chasing them, but the ever growing smaller tunnel itself.
Genres: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller,Actors: Gavin ap' Morrygan (producer), David Paul Baker (actor), Tom Chamberlain (actor), Torey Byrne (actress), Oklahoma Ward (editor), Andre Relis (producer), Oklahoma Ward (writer), Oklahoma Ward (director), Oklahoma Ward (producer), Nicole Alonso (actress), Nicole Alonso (producer), Howard Brodsky (producer), Arlo Ihrig (miscellaneous crew), Jonathan Dixon (miscellaneous crew), Jonathan Dixon (actor),
Plot: An elite security team assigned the task of protecting the last known woman who can become pregnant, find themselves caught in an endless claustrophobic underground tunnel system. The team soon learns - the real horror is not the unstoppable force chasing them, but the ever growing smaller tunnel itself.
Genres: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller,Actors: Gavin ap' Morrygan (producer), David Paul Baker (actor), Tom Chamberlain (actor), Torey Byrne (actress), Oklahoma Ward (editor), Andre Relis (producer), Oklahoma Ward (writer), Oklahoma Ward (director), Oklahoma Ward (producer), Nicole Alonso (actress), Nicole Alonso (producer), Howard Brodsky (producer), Arlo Ihrig (miscellaneous crew), Jonathan Dixon (miscellaneous crew), Jonathan Dixon (actor),
Plot: An elite security team assigned the task of protecting the last known woman who can become pregnant, find themselves caught in an endless claustrophobic underground tunnel system. The team soon learns - the real horror is not the unstoppable force chasing them, but the ever growing smaller tunnel itself.
Genres: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller,Actors: Gavin ap' Morrygan (producer), David Paul Baker (actor), Tom Chamberlain (actor), Torey Byrne (actress), Oklahoma Ward (editor), Andre Relis (producer), Oklahoma Ward (writer), Oklahoma Ward (director), Oklahoma Ward (producer), Nicole Alonso (actress), Nicole Alonso (producer), Howard Brodsky (producer), Arlo Ihrig (miscellaneous crew), Jonathan Dixon (miscellaneous crew), Jonathan Dixon (actor),
Plot: An elite security team assigned the task of protecting the last known woman who can become pregnant, find themselves caught in an endless claustrophobic underground tunnel system. The team soon learns - the real horror is not the unstoppable force chasing them, but the ever growing smaller tunnel itself.
Genres: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller,Actors: Gavin ap' Morrygan (producer), David Paul Baker (actor), Tom Chamberlain (actor), Torey Byrne (actress), Oklahoma Ward (editor), Andre Relis (producer), Oklahoma Ward (writer), Oklahoma Ward (director), Oklahoma Ward (producer), Nicole Alonso (actress), Nicole Alonso (producer), Howard Brodsky (producer), Arlo Ihrig (miscellaneous crew), Jonathan Dixon (miscellaneous crew), Jonathan Dixon (actor),
Plot: An elite security team assigned the task of protecting the last known woman who can become pregnant, find themselves caught in an endless claustrophobic underground tunnel system. The team soon learns - the real horror is not the unstoppable force chasing them, but the ever growing smaller tunnel itself.
Genres: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller,Actors: Carl Weathers (actor), François Truffaut (actor), James Keane (actor), François Truffaut (actor), Bill Thurman (actor), Howard K. Smith (actor), Lance Henriksen (actor), John Dennis Johnston (actor), Basil Hoffman (actor), Josef Sommer (actor), Bob Balaban (actor), George DiCenzo (actor), Richard Dreyfuss (actor), Teri Garr (actress), Melinda Dillon (actress),
Plot: Roy Neary sets out to investigate a power outage when his truck stalls and he is bathed in light from above. After this, strange visions and five musical notes keep running through his mind. Will he find the meaning of the visions, and who - or what - placed them in his mind?
Keywords: air-traffic-control, air-traffic-controller, airplane, alien, alien-abduction, alien-contact, alien-invasion, animate-toy, astronaut, blackout