1st Special Forces Group (United States)

1st SFG (A) training with Indian Special Forces

It was among the first groups of the Special Forces to be officially formed. The group is responsible for operations in the Pacific. Currently, the First Battalion is stationed at Okinawa while the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and Group Support Battalions are stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.

1st Special Forces Group's history began at Fort Bragg, NC in 1955. Four Special Forces Operational Detachments - the 12th, 13th, 14th, and 16th - were selected from the 77th Special Forces Group, and transferred to the Pacific theater over the next year. 1st Special Forces Group was officially activated at Fort Buckner, Okinawa on 24 June 1957, with LTC A. Scott Madding as commander and MSG Robert L. Voss as sergeant major. The 1st Special Forces Group holds the distinction of having the first and last Special Forces soldiers killed in Vietnam: Captain Harry Cramer killed 21 October 1957, and Captain Richard M. Rees killed 15 December 1973. Decades later, another 1st Special Forces Group soldier became the first American to die by hostile fire in Afghanistan: SFC Nathan Chapman (soldier) killed 2 January 2002.

Following the war in South Vietnam, and the withdrawal of American military forces in Southeast Asia, the emphasis on military actions shifted away from the Asia-Pacific region and focused more on Europe and the NATO Allies. Special Forces, which had grown to a total of seven groups in 1963, faced severe cuts in the peacetime army, as a result 1st Group was de-activated 28 June 1974 at Ft. Bragg, NC. After a 10-year hiatus the need for an Asian unconventional warfare force was recognized and Alpha Company, 1st Battalion was reactivated at Fort Bragg on 15 March 1984. This company and the remainder of 1st Battalion were assembled and deployed to Torii Station, Okinawa during the spring and summer of 1984. The 2nd and 3rd Battalions, along with Headquarters and Service Company were officially reactivated 4 September 1984 at Fort Lewis, Washington.

Two 1st Special Forces group soldiers instructing Thai soldiers in 1998

Brought back to life as part of an overall growth in the support to U.S. strategic efforts in Asia, the unit focused on the Pacific Command area of operations but were routinely deployed out of Asia to support unified commanders throughout the world. Unit members supported theater security engagement within the PACOM area of operations, contingency operations in Haiti, Central Asia, and Bosnia. Operational Detachments "Alpha" deployed to Haiti to conduct Coalition Support Team missions in 1993–94 in support of U.S. Joint Task Force 190 and Multi-National Force operations supporting Operation Uphold Democracy. Additional ODAs conducted Humanitarian Demining Operations in Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam earning Humanitarian Service Medals for their efforts in both Laos and Thailand. Elements from the 1st SFG (A) conducted training with military units from newly created states from the former Soviet Union that supported development of the Central Asian Battalion (CENTRASBAT), a regional peace keeping force in the mid-1990s. By the end of the millennium, 1st SFG (A) soldiers had deployed for the Stabilization Force in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Following the 11 September attacks, members of the 1st SFG (A) were quick to answer President George W. Bush's call to action, deploying individual soldiers to support Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and deploying back-to-back battalion rotations to the Republic of the Philippines. Starting in February 2002, elements of the 1st SFG (A) deployed to conduct unconventional warfare in the Southern Philippines by and with the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in order to assist the Government of the Philippines (GOP) in the destruction of terrorist organizations and the separation of the population from terrorist organizations.

Over the next three years, 1st SFG (A) members built an admirable record in the Philippines training six light infantry battalions, three light reaction companies from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), treating over 31,000 Filipinos in MEDCAP events, helping to professionalize the AFP and providing operations and intelligence fusion teams to actively assist the AFP in targeting terrorist cells. Due to its efforts, the Province of Basilan was no longer a haven for terrorists, and the AFP continues to make progress against terrorist groups in the Southern Philippines. For its tremendous efforts, the 1st SFG (A) was awarded the Meritorious Unit Commendation on 24 January 2004 for its outstanding meritorious performance in a difficult and challenging mission while supporting the Global War on Terrorism in Asia. Throughout 2003–2004, the 1st SFG (A) deployed many soldiers in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom in Iraq and Afghanistan. By November 2004 the unit deployed an entire battalion to Afghanistan as part of the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force- Afghanistan (CJSOTF-A).

Today, 1st SFG (A) continues to support the Global War on Terrorism with operations in the Philippines, Iraq and Afghanistan as well as maintaining US security relationships with partner nations throughout the Pacific.

1st Special Forces Group personnel jumping from a Royal Australian Air Force DHC-4 Caribou in 1997

The following is a list of countries in Asia that fall into the 1st Group Area of Responsibility:

Constituted 5 July 1942 in the Army of the United States as the 2nd Company, 1st Battalion, First Regiment, 1st Special Service Force, a combined Canadian-American organization

Activated 9 July 1942 at Fort William Henry Harrison, Montana

Disbanded 5 December 1945 in Menton, France

Reconstituted 15 April 1960 in the Regular army; concurrently consolidated with Company B, 1st Ranger Infantry Battalion (activated 19 June 1942), and consolidated unit re-designated as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Special Forces Group, 1st Special Forces

Consolidated 30 September 1960 with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Special Forces Group (constituted 14 June 1957 in the Regular Army and activated 24 June 1957 in Japan), and consolidated unit designated as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Special Forces Group, 1st Special Forces (organic units concurrently constituted and activated 4 October 1960)

Group inactivated 28 June 1974 at Fort Bragg, North Carolina

Activated 4 September 1984 at Fort Lewis, Washington

(Former Company B, 1st Ranger Infantry Battalion, withdrawn 3 February 1986, consolidated with Company N, 75th Infantry, and consolidated unit re-designated as Company N, 75th Ranger Regiment – hereafter separate lineage)

Current structure of the 1st SFG(A)

* signifies Earned Credit

World War II: Aleutian Islands*, Naples-Foggia*, Anzio*, Rome-Arno*, Southern France (with arrowhead)*, Rhineland*

• Meritorious Unit Commendation(Army) for PACIFIC AREA 1972–1973*
• Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army) for ASIA 2002*
• Philippine Presidential Unit Citation for JULY-AUGUST 1972 *

 This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Army Center of Military History document: "Lineage and Honors 1st Special Force Group".