DEVGRU, also known as SEAL Team Six, is the United States Navy component of the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC). The unit was originally formed as SEAL Team Six following the failed Operation Eagle Claw in 1979. Richard Marcinko, a U.S. Navy representative, was involved in the development of a plan to rescue American hostages during the Iran hostage crisis. In response to the need for a dedicated counter-terrorist unit after the Desert One incident, Marcinko was tasked with creating and building this specialized team.
Marcinko, the first commanding officer, established SEAL Team Six in November 1980, amidst the existence of only two other SEAL teams. Ingeniously, Marcinko named the unit “SEAL Team Six” to deceive Soviet intelligence regarding the actual number of SEAL teams in operation, a name chosen “in order to confuse Soviet intelligence as to the number of actual SEAL teams in existence.” This subterfuge gave the group an immediate mystique, being placed numerically out of sequence and suggesting a greater breadth of U.S. Naval capability than existed at the time.
SEAL Team Six rapidly became the U.S. Navy’s premier entity for counter-terrorism and hostage rescue, paralleling the U.S. Army’s elite Delta Force. The plankowners, or founding members of this elite group, were hand-picked by Marcinko himself, drawing from the best within the UDT/SEAL community. They underwent an intensive work-up training program and, within six months, the unit was operational.
Commanding officers and the members of SEAL Team Six operated under a veil of secrecy, with most of their missions remaining classified. However, their engagements have been vast, including notable operations like the Invasion of Grenada, the rescue during the Achille Lauro hijacking, and the infamous Operation Neptune Spear—the mission that resulted in the death of Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in 2011.
Despite SEAL Team Six being disbanded in 1987, its legacy and operational framework lived on as it morphed into DEVGRU. The new unit, still informally known as SEAL Team Six, continued to operate under the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), expanding its role from maritime counter-terrorism to encompass a wide range of special operations across the globe.
Recruitment and training for DEVGRU are incredibly rigorous, with candidates undergoing a stringent selection process that includes physical screening, psychological testing, and an eight-month training course known as “Green Team.” The attrition rate for this selection process is high, often around 50%.
Though the unit’s full mission remains cloaked in classification, it’s generally understood that DEVGRU is authorized to engage in pre-emptive, counter-terrorist operations, counter-proliferation, and the elimination or recovery of high-value targets from unfriendly nations. They are one of the few U.S. Special Mission Units authorized to use pre-emptive actions against terrorists and their infrastructure.
Relevant articles:
– SEAL Team Six