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Armed Forces of the Philippines The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) ( fil, Sandatahang Lakas ng Pilipinas) are the military forces of the Philippines. It consists of three main service branches; the Army, the Air Force, and the Navy (including the Marine Corps). The ...
Special Operations Command (AFPSOCOM) is the unified special operations command of the AFP. It is responsible for planning, conducting, and supporting special operations. Although the current command was established in April 2018, the date marked as the official anniversary of AFPSOCOM is January 16, 1978 - the same date the Philippine Army Special Warfare Brigade (ASWABde) was organized, to which AFPSOCOM traces its origins.


History

The AFPSOCOM traces its roots to the Philippine Army Special Warfare Brigade (ASWABde) that was organized in January 1978. The Army Special Warfare Brigade was the first attempt to unify the specialties of two army units with the most highly trained personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), the
Special Forces Special forces and 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 equi ...
and the Scout Rangers, and structure their collective efforts into a highly effective army unit. Disbanded in 1986, it was reactivated as the Philippine Army Special Operations Command (PA-SOCOM) in 1995. It has been headquartered in
Fort Magsaysay Fort Ramon Magsaysay, also known as Fort Magsaysay Military Reservation (FMMR) and Fort Mag, is the largest military reservation in the Philippines, and is a key training area of the Philippine Armed Forces. Fort Magsaysay straddles the provinc ...
,
Nueva Ecija Nueva Ecija, officially the Province of Nueva Ecija ( tgl, Lalawigan ng Nueva Ecija , also ; ilo, Probinsia ti Nueva Ecija; pag, Luyag/Probinsia na Nueva Ecija; Kapampangan: ''Lalawigan/Probinsia ning Nueva Ecija''), is a landlocked province ...
since its reactivation, and was expanded in 2004 to accommodate the then newly activated Light Reaction Company. On April 6, 2018, the PA-SOCOM was elevated to an Armed Forces combatant command and became the AFPSOCOM. The
AFP Joint Special Operations Group The Armed Forces of the Philippines Joint Special Operations Group (abbrv. as JSOG or AFP-JSOG) was one of the AFP's Wide Support Units tasked in conducting counter-terrorism, unconventional-guerrilla warfare, asymmetrical warfare, and highly spec ...
(AFP-JSOG) was also disbanded and its officers, enlisted personnel and units was transferred to form the core of the new command. The units transferred from the AFP-JSOG included not just the Light Reaction Regiment, but also the
Naval Special Operations Group A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It include ...
and the
710th Special Operations Wing The 710th Special Operations Wing is the rapid deployment force of the Philippine Air Force (PAF), which is divided into ten-man airborne attack teams as most of its members are airborne qualified. The wing also controls the 772nd Explosives Ord ...
. The AFP-JSOG K-9 Platoon was also included into the new command.


Unit mission

The mission of the AFPSOCOM is to plan, conduct and support special operations in all operational environments in support of the fundamental missions of the entire Armed Forces of the Philippines.


Unit core capabilities

SOCOM forces are employed based on the following core capabilities: * Unconventional Warfare * Direct Action * Special Reconnaissance * International and domestic Counter-terrorist Operations * HVT Raids * Sabotage * Humanitarian Assistance/ Disaster Response * Security Assistance


Units

The current AFP Special Operations Command is organized into: *
Scout Ranger Regiment The Scout Rangers, known officially as the First Scout Ranger Regiment,https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2011/11/26/751758/scout-rangers-legend-continues is a Philippine Army unit specializing in anti-guerrilla jungle warfare, raids, ambushes, c ...
- Organizes, trains, equips and provides rapidly deployable forces and conducts special operations in support of SOCOM's mission. The unit was modeled after the intelligence-gathering American
Alamo Scouts The Alamo Scouts (U.S. 6th Army Special Reconnaissance Unit) was a reconnaissance unit of the Sixth United States Army in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II. The unit is best known for its role in liberating American prisone ...
and the combat-ready
US Army Rangers United States Army Rangers, according to the US Army's definition, are personnel, past or present, in any unit that has the official designation "Ranger". The term is commonly used to include graduates of the US Army Ranger School, even if t ...
. The regiment's core capabilities are: direct action, jungle warfare, special reconnaissance, and sniping operations against hostile positions. *
Special Forces Regiment (Philippine Army) The Special Forces Regiment (Airborne) is a Special Operations Forces unit of the Philippine Army. The unit is based on and continually trains with its American counterpart, the U.S. Army Special Forces (Green Berets). The basic combat organiza ...
- Organizes, trains, equips and provides rapidly deployable forces and conducts unconventional warfare in all types of operational environment in support of SOCOM's mission. The Special Forces specializes on the following: unconventional warfare, direct action; special reconnaissance; psychological warfare and mass base operations. * Light Reaction Regiment - The premier
counter-terrorist Counterterrorism (also spelled counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, incorporates the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, business, and intelligence agencies use to combat or el ...
unit of the Philippine Army and the
Special operations force Special forces and 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 Armed Forces of the Philippines. It was formerly known as the Light Reaction Battalion and the Light Reaction Company before finally being upgraded into a regimental unit. Due to its specialization in counter-terrorism operations and its formation with the assistance of American advisers, the Light Reaction Regiment has been sometimes referred to as the Philippines' Delta Force. *
Naval Special Operations Command The Naval Special Operations Command (NAVSOCOM) is a separate command of the Philippine Navy trained in special operations, sabotage, psychological and unconventional warfare and is heavily influenced by the United States Navy SEALs. NAVSOCOM is h ...
- The Naval Special Operations Command (NAVSOCOM) is a unit of the
Philippine Navy The Philippine Navy (PN) ( tgl, Hukbong Dagat ng Pilipinas, , Sea Army of the Philippines) ( es, Armada de Filipinas, , Ejército del Mar de las Filipinas) is the naval warfare service branch of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. It has an ...
trained in special operations, sabotage, psychological and unconventional warfare and is heavily influenced by the United States Navy SEALs. *
Marine Special Operations Group The Marine Special Operations Group (also known as the Force Reconnaissance Group), formerly known as the Force Recon Battalion, is the Philippine Marine Corps' elite special forces unit for unconventional warfare and special operations. It spe ...
- The Marine Special Operations Group (MARSOG) was formerly known as the Force Reconnaissance Battalion of the
Philippine Marine Corps The Philippine Marine Corps (PMC) ( fil, Hukbong Kawal Pandagat ng Pilipinas) is the marine corps of the Philippines, a naval infantry force under the command of the Philippine Navy. The PMC conducts amphibious, expeditionary, and special op ...
. It served similar missions to the now defunct Philippine Navy Special Operations Group. *
710th Special Operations Wing The 710th Special Operations Wing is the rapid deployment force of the Philippine Air Force (PAF), which is divided into ten-man airborne attack teams as most of its members are airborne qualified. The wing also controls the 772nd Explosives Ord ...
- The 710th SPOW is the Special operations unit of the
Philippine Air Force The Philippine Air Force (PAF) ( tgl, Hukbong Himpapawid ng Pilipinas, , Army of the Air of the Philippines) ( es, Ejército Aérea del Filipinas, , Ejército de la Aérea de la Filipinas) is the aerial warfare service branch of the Armed Fo ...
handling hostage rescue and counter-terrorist operations. *AFP SOCOM K-9 Platoon - Highly trained
canine Canine may refer to: Zoology and anatomy * a dog-like Canid animal in the subfamily Caninae ** ''Canis'', a genus including dogs, wolves, coyotes, and jackals ** Dog, the domestic dog * Canine tooth, in mammalian oral anatomy People with the surn ...
unit transferred from the deactivated
AFP Joint Special Operations Group The Armed Forces of the Philippines Joint Special Operations Group (abbrv. as JSOG or AFP-JSOG) was one of the AFP's Wide Support Units tasked in conducting counter-terrorism, unconventional-guerrilla warfare, asymmetrical warfare, and highly spec ...
.


Training


Some types of training in AFPSOCOM

* Basic Airborne Course * Jumpmaster Course * Parachute Packing, Maintenance and Air Delivery Course * Military Freefall Course * Combat Diver’s Course * Scout Ranger Target Interdiction Course * Close Quarter Combat Training * Basic Naval Special Warfare Course


References


Bibliography

* The Philippine Army Public Affairs Office, ''The Philippine Army: First 100 Years'', 1997, OTAPA. * The Special Forces School, ''Philippine Army Special Forces Operations Manual PAM 3-071'', 2008, SFR(A). * Dennis V. Eclarin, ''Scout Ranger Combat Guide (Third Edition)'', 2003, The Philippine Star. * Pobre, Cesar P. (2006). ''History of the Armed Forces of the Filipino People''. New Day Publishers.. * Ryan, Mike (2008). ''The Operators: Inside the World's Special Forces''. Skyhorse Publishing. . * Southby-Tailyour, Ewen (2005). ''Jane's Special Forces Recognition Guide''. HarpersCollins Publishers. . * Conboy, Ken. ''South-East Asian Special Forces''. London, UK: Osprey Publishing, 1991 {{Authority control Commands of the Philippine Army Special forces of the Philippines nn:Spesialoperasjonskommando (Filippinene)