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The lone Ranger
The SASR are Australia's best known and most elite special
forces. There selection process is the most arduous of all, and it
is hands down the most difficult to get into. That said, there is so
much interest in the SASR and its British equivalent that several
web sites are already developed to provide information on the
regiment. This site does not intend to provide another. Below however are some
very useful links and a brief overview of training and selection for SASR enthusiasts.
 SASR
Websites
Capabilities and Training
|
SF Insertion capabilities |
Humanitarian Assistance |
| Direct Action Assaults (small in scale) |
Counterterrorism (TAG-West) |
| Long Range Reconnaissance |
Combat Diving |
| Sea Air and Land Operations |
Unconventional warfare |
| Intel Gathering including interrogations |
Military Training & Internal foreign Defence |
SASR candidates must complete nearly 18 months of
training before being allowed to wear the regimental beret. Building
a soldiers skills from the ground up, the reinforcement cycle
consists of courses in basic patrolling, SF weapons, parachuting,
combat survival, signaller/medic, heavy weapons, demolition, method
of entry techniques and a 6 week long urban combat course.
A keen eye may have spotted the nearly verbatim
similarities in Commando and SASR training. While this is so, SASR
troopers have compulsory training in all three Commando specialties
(sigs/medic/demo) as well as some of the optional advanced courses
that Commandos can undertake. Moreover, some of the SASRs courses
are longer than commandos, like the Urban Combat course for example.
While this reinforcement cycle is considered the troopers employment
training, it is also, in a sense, part of selection since one can be
dropped at any time for failing to meet the requirements.
Selection
If
you wish to become an SAS trooper you can come from any corps in the
Army, Navy or Air Force. Most of the candidates will come from
Infantry, however navy clearance divers and airfield defence guards
(RAAF) have just a good of chance as the infantry, and Commandos an
excellent chance should they want to join another SF group.
To
join the SAS you cant just wake up in the morning and decide you
want to join just for something a bit different. You will probably
find that most people serving with the SASR don't do it for the
money, they do it for the excitement and challenge.
Preparing yourself for the arduous selection course can take weeks,
but a lot of people have been preparing for months or even years to
meet the high standards. The Army has released training programs for
prospective Commandos and SASR soldiers which can be found in the
News/Info section of this site. The regime runs up to 13 weeks long
- its well worth the effort as instructors can quickly spot who has
and hasn't put in the effort.
Before contemplating trying out for the SASR it would be wise to
consider if one is a team player and yet has the ability to work
independently, if you are extremely physically and mentally fit , a
lateral thinker, have an inordinate amount of self discipline, are
efficient in all infantry skills, and posses a keen desire to learn.
Soldiers who wish to join either Commandos or the SASR must appear
before a pre-selection board composed of officers and senior NCOs.
Prospective recruits have essentially two hurdles to pass. The first
is the Special Forces Entry test, which both Commandos and SASR
applicants must pass. The entry test is run over the course of 2-3
days and recruits are subjected to an intense regime of exercises
and little sleep. If recruits pass the SFET they are then
interviewed by a Selection panel who will assess whether or not the
applicant has the qualities that the SF groups are looking and which
would allow him to excel at his job. Once interviewed by the
selection board, they are told to report at a specific time, when
the next selection course will be conducted - Commandos will then
report to Commando Selection and SASR applicant to SASR selection at
Swanbourne barracks, WA.
The
Army News recently ran an article in which a senior NCO was quoted
remarking on the selection course by saying "You know, it's actually
only 17 days of assessment in total, if you allow for travel,".
During the course the candidates will be put into extremely
stressful conditions. The candidates will be required to do lots and
lots of running carrying a range of different weights plus webbing
and a rifle, they will do countless amounts of situps and pushups,
after a few days of the course the candidates will find themselves
sleep deprived, every muscle will be burning, they will have
blisters on there feet. This is the time where the mental toughness
has to kick in to keep going. The candidates will have to push
themselves to the limit and in most cases this is not enough to even
get through the first week of the course.
The
candidates will be required to swim in both warm or cold conditions
to the point of extreme fatigue, run 14.4km in 90 min, run 32km in 5
hrs, in either a group or an individual task. Keep in mind that
these runs can be conducted first when you’re all fresh or at week 4
when you have blisters all over your feet with no toe nails. There
will be unexpected exercises, the candidates may find that they can
get a 3 hr rest, and in the first 10 min the senior instructor will
tell everyone to get up, go for a 5 km run, there will be a truck
waiting for you, then when they reach 5km the truck drives off, and
they are asked to run another 5km, some candidates quit right there,
the rest that continue may find that the truck is only 1 km away.
This is called a sickener, its mainly to give you the idea that you
should not even be trying the course.
A
lot of the course requires a lot of fitness however you do have to
know how to navigate yourself through any terrain with not so good
maps and a compass, and again, this may sound easy but try doing it
when you have had 4 hrs sleep in 4 days in pitch black in the middle
of nowhere.
The
candidates will also be put under interrogation resistance training,
this is a critical part of the course, as the interrogators will try
to trick you into leaving. They may ask you to sign a form saying
you have passed the course, or they may just say " congratulations
you have passed" and leave you in the room to see if you walk out.
The only way they will know that the interrogation is over is when
they get taken out of the room and have the wet hessian bag taken
off their heads and taken for a cup of tea.
It
is really heartbreaking for the candidates when the senior
instructor comes up to them and says "sorry you’re not what we are
looking for" especially if it is near the end of the course. You get
2 chances to try selection, maybe 3 if your were injured, but that's
it. The candidates may feel disappointed if they don't pass, but if
they look at it from an optimistic point of view they will see that
they have accomplished a lot just buy trying it.
In
total, the average pass rate according to Army News is around 27%
though there was apparently a recent class which graduated 39% of
candidates - an excellent result. Most attrition is due to people
withdrawing by there own request with the balance being made up of
medical failures and terminations at an instructors request.
(Source)
06/06/04-Mercenaries
in 'coup plot' guarded UK officials in Iraq
29/05/04-MoD
censors decide SAS story can be told
17/05/04-Quentin
Hughes
17/04/04-Private
security firms call for more firepower in combat zone
27/03/04-Hoon
blocks move to openness on SAS
12/03/03-Mission:
the truth
10/03/04-Harare
accuses ex-SAS man of links to detained 'mercenaries'
07/03/04-SAS
creates a new squadron to counter threat from al-Qa'eda
29/02/04-SAS
joins fresh bid to snare bin Laden
20/02/04-The
tabloid week
06/01/03-Andy
McNab
16/12/03-SAS
issued with guns that can shoot around corners
15/12/03-Secret
teams were constantly on the trail of 'Number One'
15/12/03-Lieutenant-General
Sir John Watts
30/11/03-Bounty
put on the head of British police chief in Iraq
19/11/03-Gurkhas
in 'vicious attack on boys from Belize'
02/11/03-McNab
finds SAS Iraq memorial to Bravo Two Zero
12/10/03-
Ex-SAS flock to Iraq - and earn £1,000 a day as bodyguards
05/10/03-The
Queen is threatened with terrorist attack on Nigeria visit
28/09/03-The
day the SAS decided 'someone else could do it better'
28/09/03-SAS
chiefs launch biggest shake-up in regiment's history
20/09/03-Change
in the regulations throws troops out of step
04/09/03-Army
says sorry for SAS raid blunder
02/09/03-MoD
reveals aid to Colombian army
01/09/03-Regimental
rubbish
29/08/03-SAS
ejects de la Billiere from wake for friend
27/08/03-A
maverick species has died out with Wilfred Thesiger
15/08/03-Military
leader condemns Iraq war game
12/08/03-Australia
swears in SAS veteran as governor
04/08/03-Gurkhas
on murder charges
02/08/03-MoD
reveals aid to Colombian army
24/07/03-The
secret forces who ensured success of attack
09/07/03-Secret
aid poured into Colombian drug war
03/07/03-Major
John Edwardes
26/06/03-SAS
may raid palaces to test royal security
24/06/03-I'm
not a war hero, says the Queen's man in Australia
23/06/03-Ex-SAS
man to represent Queen
22/06/03-'Grey
Fox' closes in on prize scalp: Saddam
08/06/03-SAS
teaches students to survive gap year perils
06/06/03-US
fighter 'shot down with missile left by SBS'
31/05/03-British
forces in mission to halt Congo massacres
28/05/03-Prince
Harry commands parade
28/05/03-William
is keen to join father in Guards
13/05/03-Struck
off five years after killing
29/04/03-
UK forces 'need until 2005 to recover'
29/04/03-
SAS pair freed after escape to Syria
21/04/03-
North Korean heroin ship is seized by SAS
19/04/03-
Half of Saddam's combat fighter force unearthed
18/04/03-
Troops seize torturer brother of Saddam
17/04/03-
Australian SAS seize top fugitives
15/04/03-
Regime pair may be ready to surrender
15/04/03-
SAS catch Saddam's half-brother
13/04/03-
This was the 'tip' moment that coalition commanders had been waiting
for
13/04/03-
Saddam's last stronghold set to fall
11/04/03-
SAS joins US forces hunting for dictator
10/04/03-
Undercover hunt for regime's top men
08/04/03-
Ali Hassan al-Majid
07/04/03-
British tanks force way into Basra and destroy Ba'ath party HQ
06/04/03-Who
the **** are you, asked the man from special forces
06/04/03-Coalition
forces pinned down on road to Mosul
04/04/03-Special
forces inside capital as bombs black out power supply
03/04/03-Helicopter
pulls out SAS team after secret mission uncovered
25/03/03-Battle
for Baghdad begins
22/03/03-Marines
defy hail of fire to lead assault
21/03/03-Marines
storm ashore to capture Iraq's main port
20/03/03-SAS
picks out targets behind enemy lines
19/03/03-Baghdad
blitz will dwarf 1991 onslaught
18/03/03-British
troops given higher profile
18/03/03-MoD
wins fight to gag SAS memoirs
16/03/03-The
new Battle of the Books
13/03/03-Britain
'to play full role in Iraq invasion'
12/03/03-Saddam's
elite officers sent to stiffen morale
11/03/03-We'll
fight our own way, says UK general
09/03/03-The
daring plan to seize Baghdad's airport and end a war within days
04/03/03-300
SAS troops already in Iraq
24/02/03-SAS
sent to guard Windsor during Heathrow alert
22/02/03-British
mercenaries find a new ferocity in Ivory Coast
20/02/03-British
commandos to spearhead assault on Basra in US battle plan
18/02/03-British
special forces in Albanian arrest mission
10/02/03-SAS
man seeks consent for 'true' version of Gulf patrol
10/02/03-Ex
SAS man fights for tale of raid
01/02/03-SAS
force spies on Iraqi targets
27/01/03-SAS
and Paras will secure wells against sabotage
26/01/03-SAS
and Paras will secure oilfields
23/01/03-Australians
set off for the Gulf
11/01/03-US
honours Briton in Afghan raid
01/01/03-Police
used 'wrong guns' at Munich
22/12/02-Marines
will lead seaborne invasion of southern Iraq
20/12/02-Cost
of Afghan operation soars
27/11/02-Publish
and be damned, ex-SAS troops are told
24/11/02-Sir
Michael told the truth about army
22/11/02-Just
how prepared is Britain for military action against Saddam?
21/11/02-
Alliance must adapt to new threats, US insists
18/11/02-British
embassy shuts its doors as Yemen fears rise
17/11/02-SAS
joins hunt for bin Laden 'tracked down in Yemen'
11/11/02-A
blunt reminder that US is ready for conflict
10/11/02-Britain
mobilises 15,000 troops for war on Saddam as the UN deadline
approaches
07/11/02-Highest
human attainment
07/11/02-MoD
agrees to pay pensions to girlfriends
29/10/02-Secret
medals for unsung heroes of the SAS and SBS
27/10/02-'It
is chaotic, confusing and very scary'
04/10/02-East
Timor war crimes inquiry
03/10/02-Major
Alastair McGregor
23/09/02-Bush
given Iraq battle plan by Pentagon
16/09/02-Navy
special force (SBS) to have its profile raised to SAS level
15/09/02-SAS
Storms Bagshot
29/08/02-SAS
recce to help whites flee Mugabe
26/08/02-Farmers
reject SAS Beacons exercise
20/08/02-Second
SAS 'widow' seeks MoD payout
04/08/02-SAS
heroes fume at Whitehall block on lucrative private jobs
29/07/02-Major
Peter Oldfield
29/07/02-MoD
sues ex-SAS man over exposé
28/07/02-Who
dares wins on TV
26/07/02-Army
trials of new SA-80 rifle 'were fudged'
26/07/02-The
eyes of the storm
24/07/02-Siege
SAS men 'told not to take prisoners'
24/07/02-Six
days that shook Britain
22/07/02-SAS
skills used by American pilots to hit moving al-Qaida targets
19/07/02-Robot
spy planes to join war on terrorism
18/07/02-MoD
may have to abandon main rifle
09/07/02-SAS
peace deal helps tame the warlords
07/07/02-Scrap
British rifle and buy Heckler, say the generals
05/07/02-Scores
killed by SAS in Afghanistan
27/06/02-Gurkhas
charged with murder
21/06/02-UK
caught up in row over war crimes court
20/06/02-Mission
unaccomplished: how 3,000 crack British troops failed to find the
enemy
20/06/02-SAS
veteran's suicide plunge
18/06/02-Blood,
toil, tears and a holistic approach
17/06/02-SAS
in Bosnia bank seizure
14/06/02-Shadowy
unit's infiltration role
26/05/02-Battle
of SAS Gulf patrol gets bloody
26/05/02-When
Uncle Sam meets 'Stan'
20/05/02-Hoon
rallies to aid of Marine leader
18/05/02-British
troops fly in to fight uncertain enemy
16/05/02-SAS
officer who led from the front
03/05/02-A
silent war - with no enemy in sight
02/05/02-Marines
lead British push against key al-Qaida position
26/04/02-British
special forces believed to be hunting al-Qaida in Pakistan
24/04/02-Mission
improbable
04/04/02-Top
award for SAS patrol hero
01/04/02-Frontline
ban on women
26/03/02-British
SBS commando to get 'American VC'
24/03/02-Wounded
SAS man may get VC
11/03/02-SAS
'suicide mission' to wipe out Exocets
26/02/02-SAS
joins Kashmir hunt for bin Laden
26/02/02-SAS
struggles for recruits as who pays wins
24/02/02-Ex-SAS
troops to join war on crime
13/02/02-SAS
war heroes may be denied Victoria Cross
11/02/02-New
security chief is man of action
08/02/02-SAS
'left soldiers to die in Iraq'
07/02/02-SAS
patrol 'left to die'
29/01/02-Change
due over inquest evidence
Archive of news can be viewed here
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