Talk:Special Air Service

Were you thinking of doing this under UKSF?

Interesting parallel to United States Special Operations Command if so. The rough counterpart of SAS (very deliberately modeled after it by a U.S. officer who had an exchange tour) is 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment (Delta), generally called "Delta Force".

There are actually quite a few parallels between UKSF and USSOCOM, and a lot of real-world cooperation, joint training, personnel exchange, etc. Not every unit has an exact counterpart. SBS, for example, is probably closest to U.S. Navy SEALs, but with a bit of the Marine Force Recon companies now attached to USSOC. UK Special Forces Support Group (SFSG) has a lot of similarity to 75th Ranger Regiment.

I'm sure both countries have classified units as well. What used to be called "the Det" in the UK has some parallel to a U.S. organization that was originally called the Intelligence Support Activity; the US unit changes official names every two years and code names every six months. Howard C. Berkowitz 22:21, 2 November 2008 (UTC)

Generally, I think it's not a bad principle to have it so that articles on specific military units and divisions, links should be provided to their equivalents in other militaries. I'm planning to write a few more UK military articles and clean them up where I see them. My late maternal grandmother once told me that one of her relatives was part of the Imperial Camel Corps during World War I. I walked past the Camel Corps memorial the other day and might, if I can find the time, do a little library research on them and write up whatever I find on here. --Tom Morris 22:42, 2 November 2008 (UTC)

Hmmm. There are those that considered my Aunt Shirley rather like a camel, but less charming.

Seriously, there are quite a few closely bonded US and UK units. There are also some poignant stories, the one in mind, I believe, is from T.R. Fehrenbach's This Kind of War, one of the finest books on the Korean War. At Hill 235 during the Battle of the Imjin, at "Gloster Hill", the Gloucestershire Regiment was very badly mauled, suffered friendly fire in the breakout, and, when they were recognized by a U.S. tank battalion, the U.S. troops were literally giving them their shoes and crying. Every year, a formal letter of thanks comes to the Pentagon on that anniversary, and the U.S. Army doesn't know what to do with it, since the saving unit was a short-lived battalion with no lineage and no successor. I must say I found it unbelievable to find the Gloucestershire Regiment merged into another formation not long ago.

Really, the two militaries have gotten over that little unpleasantness in 1776 and 1812. There are a number of pubs that do not welcome anyone but the Royal Marines...and their colonial cousins. Howard C. Berkowitz 22:52, 2 November 2008 (UTC)