United Kingdom Special Forces
UKSF
The United Kingdom Special Forces (UKSF) are the premier forces of the British army. At present the UKSF is made up of three different units, these are:
- Special Air Service (SAS)
- Special Boat Service (SBS)
- Special Reconnaissance Regiment (SRR)
For more information the the structure of the British Army and information on where the UKSF fit in look at the British Army Structure.
SAS
The SAS is the principal special forces organisation of the British Army and one of the most famous military organisations in the world, because of its outstanding success in many world wide operations. The SAS was formed in 1941 to conduct raids behind German lines in North Africa, it today serves as a model for similar units fielded by many other countries. The regular army SAS regiment is the smallest and most secretive in the British Army, but attracts a disproportionate amount of media coverage. There is one regular army regiment within the SAS and two Territorial Army (TA) regiments:
SBS
The SBS is the 'water based' special forces unit. The SBS is an independant unit and part of the Corps of Royal Marines, usually referred to as the Royal Marines. The SBS is therefore part of the navy and unlike the SAS and SRR, aprt of the British Army.