Commandos: The Making of America's Secret Soldiers, from Training to Desert Storm

By Douglas C. Waller

Book Overview

They are the most secretive and mysterious forces in the United States military. They are the brave men who take on the dangerous and unconventional missions no one else wants. They are America's elite warriors, the more than 40,000 members of the U.S. special operations forces - the Green Berets, the Navy SEALs, the Air Force commandos, the psychological operations experts, and Delta Force. Here, for the first time, is the real story behind the military's toughest, best-trained soldiers. Newsweek journalist Douglas C. Waller was given unprecedented access to the special training that commandos receive. To observe Green Beret instruction, Waller camped out with Army Special Forces soldiers for two weeks in a cold, rainy February. For an inside look at Air Force special operations, he put on a flight suit, a helmet, and night-vision goggles and flew with the pilots as they practiced weaving through the mountains in pitch-black darkness. He reveals the secret selection and training of Delta Force counterterrorist commandos. And, the first outsider ever given total access to Hell Week, he details the five days of grueling, nonstop commando training that Navy men must endure to become SEALs (sea-air-land commandos). Based on interviews with hundreds of special operations soldiers, The Commandos takes the reader behind the veil of official secrecy that surrounds these forces to examine how they really fight and live. Waller also discloses for the first time ever the details of some of the secret forces' operations such as the commandos' secret planning to assassinate Saddam Hussein during the Gulf War; the behind-the-scenes political battles of their generals to launch covert operations inIraq and Kuwait; the commando raids, clandestine infiltrations, and daring combat behind enemy lines during the Gulf War; their war to psych out Saddam and his army; and Delta Force's dangerous hunt for Saddam's Scud missiles. With the Cold War over, surgical operations and low-intensity conflicts may be America's battles of the future. If so, special operations commandos may well be the warriors of the future. This is their story.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0671787179
• ISBN13: 9780671787172
• Release Date: January 1994
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 1.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.5" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Great book!

I read this book a few years ago and would wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone intersted in the US Special Forces. Douglas Waller puts you right into the heart of the action as if you were right there standing side by side America's elite soldiers. The prologue is a great introduction to the book and recalls a botched Special Forces (Green Beret) mission during Desert Storm that--instead of resulting in catastrophe--showed how brightly a compromised A-Team shined against incredible odds.The rest of the book is just as good. This is one of the best books I've read on US Special Forces. Read it now!

A Very Informative Book!

This was a very informative book and an exciting read as well.Through this book you are taken into the training program of the most elite fighting groups in the world today. You are give up close and concise looks at the rigorous training programs that the Special Forces troops go through. Delta Force,Army Rangers,Air Force Special Forces, and Navy Seals are brought to front and center thanks to this book. The on the spot training process is very educational to the reader. You are given a better understanding why these are the best.This is a very good book.Youwill be better informed after you read it. Buy it.

Excellent book! It is a great read and very interesting.

From Green Berets to SEALs this book goes through most of the special forces in the U.S. I found it very informative and entertaining. My only dislike is the fact that the Air Force special forces weren't mentioned enough. The CCT's and PJ's should have been included in this. All in all it's a great book though.

Commandos goes "above and beyond"

Commandos is the most in-depth and accurate book about special operations that I have ever read. It is refreshing, and surprising, to see this subject openly addressed, giving hard-earned credit to the men who have worked their tails off to become the absolute best, in the service of their country, while allowing uninitiated readers a realistic glimpse into a mysterious world. I don't claim to personally be completely knowledgeable about this field, but I have worked in the special ops community for a dozen years, in a support role. Based on my knowledge, I can say with confidence that Waller is right on target. I whole-heartedly recommend this book to anyone seriously interested in elite military forces. I also recommend Mark Bowden's Black Hawk Down, which deals specifically with the 1993 Task Force Ranger raid in Mogadishu, Somalia.

A Special Forces Book that

This is a fabulous book about the US Special Forces. It hits the main Special Forces groups such as the Green Berets, Navy SEAL's, 1st SFOD Delta and more. The author does not just give generalizations about the Special Forces groups, but he gives explicit, graphic and sharp descriptions of their missions, training and how their minds work. He begins his book with a true story of a team of Green Berets behind enemy lines in the Persian Gulf War and how they are compromised, must defend themselves and are finally rescued. The author's stories are not just breif, one-page stories, but detailed and thorough stories that make you feel like you could actually be there. This book is great, attention-holding and informational and even during my busy schedule, I devoured this book in less than a week. I still like to flip to different sections and re-read chapters.