Accordingly, with the pivot of the U.S. military towards near-peer conflicts with Russia, as adversaries, there’s a sea change in the role of special operations forces, or SOF. The pre-9/11 era missions that dominated, like direct action against conventional military forces and, especially, unconventional warfare are back in vogue.
One of the most important yet least-recognized missions in this new environment is the Navy SEAL combat swimmer operation. Very infrequently deployed in those counterterrorism-centric years, they now are becoming indispensable to access and engage capable naval adversaries. Combat swimmer operations use covert infiltration underwater to sabotage warships, their maritime infrastructure, or other forms of targets. These high-risk operations require careful planning, special gear, and a great deal of training.
An overall goal of a combat swimmer operation is to attack an enemy naval target, which would most typically be located in a port or near the shoreline. Targets could include submarines and warships, but possibly also support ships and various infrastructures, including ports and docks. Larger naval assets could be attacked by a larger navy using surface, air, or subsurface assets, whereas smaller targets could be attacked by SEAL teams.
Execution of a combat swimmer operation requires an extremely elaborately involved process of mission planning. An operational order issued by higher command may spell out the task of targeting, for example, their unique set of capabilities, the mission would naturally be assigned to a SEAL unit. The SEAL element would then plan the mission, although with the complexity of underwater infiltration added to the mix.
For example, a SEAL platoon might insert from a helicopter or submarine that is some distance offshore using a small combat rubber raiding craft to close the last distance to the shore. The raiding craft would then drop combat swimmer pairs for the final underwater infiltration to the target. The actual attack could be placing limpet mines on the hull of the naval vessel or surfacing to place explosives on a target adjacent to the water.
Combat swimmer operations are risk-inherent in the operation: navigation error, equipment failure, and potential for contact with the enemy. The underwater mission includes some additional complications: running out of air, equipment failure, and problems targeting from below the waterline. All of this complexity requires hundreds of hours of training and preparation.
Despite these challenges, combat swimmer operations remain one of the highest-valued assets in the tactical and strategic toolkits of the U.S. military. As near-peer competitors continue to press conventional force commanders for strategic trade space, leveraging SOF assets such as Navy SEALs combat swimmers effectively will be crucial in any emerging conflict.