Since Operation Neptune Spear, which killed Osama bin Laden in 2011, the American public and the entire world have become intimately familiar with the U.S. Navy's SEALs. A flood of books, TV shows, podcasts and even movies — some of which starred active Duty SEALs and were recognized by the Navy — pushed the Navy community to the forefront of public awareness.
The Navy SEALs are the preferred choice for U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) maritime special operations. They specialize in direct operations, special reconnaissance and underwater unconventional warfare, and can infiltrate and fight from sea, air and land.
But despite the popularity of the SEALs, not many people knew about the humble beginnings of the community during the dismal years of The First Half of World War II. Then, there were no SEALs, but frogmen from the American Underwater Demolition Team (UDT).
Tarawa massacre
When Japanese attacks on Pearl Harbor and the Pacific dragged the United States into the chaos of World War II, the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps had no dedicated beach clearance and reconnaissance units.
A lot has to happen before an amphibious landing can take place. The density of tides, underwater obstacles, and sand are just some of the environmental factors that commanders need intelligence to plan amphibious operations. Can the sand on Saipan's beaches house U.S. tanks, or will they be in trouble? Are beaches in Okinawa equipped with explosives or obstacles to prevent amphibious vehicles from approaching? Marines or soldiers fully loaded with equipment can easily drown a few meters from the beach. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the operating environment.
Active Navy SEALs performed a reenactment on June 6, 2019 in Normandy, France, to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Normandy landings. The Navy SEALs reenacted the battle to dismantle sailors on a clearing mission under cover of darkness for the Main Invading Force (DVIDS) on Utah Beach.
As the Navy and Marine Corps began an island-hopping campaign across the Pacific, the need for this capability became increasingly apparent. But it was the Battle of Tarawa in 1943 that bloodily opened the Pentagon's eyes.
Reconnaissance of the beach's absence resulted in the landing Marines being crushed on the beach. Landing craft could not approach the beachheads, and the Marines had to trudge through the sea and ferocious Japanese fire. Over the three days the fighting lasted, more than 1,000 Marines were killed and more than 2,000 wounded, one of the most costly operations in the corps' history.
Tarawa massacre. With no reconnaissance and clearance operations (Wikimedia.org), the Marines could not reach the beach fast enough.
The Pentagon received the news and ordered the formation of several underwater special operations forces, such as the Underwater Demolition Team, the Amphibious Scout and Commando Team, the Special Mission Naval Demolition Unit, the Underwater Demolition Project, and the Naval Combat Demolition Unit. Despite their differences, and despite their very similar names, these units share many sets of skills and missions, and there are so many facts that have more to do with less organized wartime armies than with competing targets between units.
Draper Kaufman: A visionary
The Navy chose Admiral's son, Draper Kaufman, to create the UDT School and Training System.
Kaufman was one of those dynamic and visionary figures in history: they could achieve anything they wanted and change the world around them with sheer determination and perseverance.
Kaufman graduated from the Naval Academy in 1933 without receiving a commission because naval doctors thought his eyesight was poor. Determined to prove bureaucracy wrong when the Nazis invaded in 1940, he traveled to France as an ambulance driver. After the fall of France, he was captured by the Germans and held for two months before being released and traveled to join the Royal Navy during the Battle of Britain, responsible for dispersing bombs and mines dropped by the Luftwaffe (known as the Luftwaffe).
He proved his point, and shortly before the Attack on Pearl Harbor, the Navy recalled him to active duty. After hearing of Japan's devastating attack on the U.S. Pacific Fleet, Kaufman headed straight to Hawaii, where he personally scattered an unexploded Japanese 500-pound bomb for scientists at the Admiralty's Ordnance Bureau to study.
For this action, he received the Navy Cross, the second highest award for bravery. Later, Kaufmann would receive a second Naval Cross for leading a daring daytime reconnaissance mission under heavy Japanese fire.
Rear Admiral James L. Kauffman presented his son, Lieutenant General Draper L. Kauffman, with a gold star in lieu of a second Naval Cross in honor of his heroic deeds during the U.S. invasion of the Mariana Islands. The ceremony took place at Pearl Harbor (U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command) before September 1, 1944.
When Kaufman received orders to establish a UDT school, he crossed the fleet in search of volunteers for a new profession. Several officers from the Reserve Officer Training Program (ROTC) raised their hands, as did many Seabees or members of the Naval Construction Unit who are accustomed to fighting in active combat environments.
Then the training began. Kaufman envisioned an elite special operations force, and the training reflected that vision. Boat operations, swimming, explosives, small arms and hydrological charts are some of the topics that volunteers focus on, and physical training is the main focus of the entire course. Considering the extremely difficult task that frogmen will be required to accomplish, the best physical condition is a must.
The training system ended in the evolution of what today is known as "Hell Week". It's an uninterrupted 7-day event (now, Hell Week is usually 5 1/2 days) full of physical activity designed to push candidates to their absolute limits to see who can perform even when tired and cold can't understand. Only 25 to 35 percent of those who start training make it to the end.
The Navy soon deployed these forces in large numbers in Europe for the first time, and soon after in the Pacific.
UDT Frogman in formal attire (U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command).
Special Mission Naval Demolition Force
The Special Mission Naval Demolition Force, founded in August 1942, is designed to accomplish a mission, not a series of operations of such a professional force as you would expect.
During Operation Torch in North Africa, U.S. forces planned to land in Morocco in the east and rendezvous with British forces from Egypt and Libya in the west to crush German and Italian forces in Tunisia, somewhere in between. Special Missions Naval Demolition Force must destroy a cable boom that blocks the Wadi Sebo River, which is connected to the Atlantic Ocean, and allow the U.S. destroyer USS Dallas to approach a nearby Axis Air Base and cover the upcoming Army Ranger operation. place.
On two nights, under rough seas and enemy fire, the Navy's Frogmen achieved their goal and made the ensuing amphibious landing a success.
A few months later, the Allies surrounded the Axis forces in Tunisia, and they surrendered. All sailors of the Special Missions Naval Demolition Force were awarded the Navy Cross for their actions, but the unit was soon disbanded.
Another initiative, the Underwater Blasting Project, trained and prepared a squad of sailors with similar skills to other underwater blasting units. This time, they trained for Operation Husky in the 1943 Allied invasion of Sicily.
UDT Frogman painted with aluminum paint before going to work to confuse Japanese snipers (U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command).
Naval combat demolition units
When Kaufman established the UDT School, the Navy was building naval combat demolition units, each consisting of an officer and five enlisted sailors. These small units were scattered throughout the fleet in Europe and the Pacific. During operation Overlord in 1944 at the Normandy landings in France, naval combat demolition units played a key role in protecting the beaches.
With the help of several sea bees, each naval combat demolition unit was assigned to clear parts of the Omaha and Utah landing beaches. In the hours before dawn, shortly before the main landing, these frogmen began working in the cold waters, clearing obstacles with explosives. The fierce German resistance, especially in Omaha, paid a heavy price, killing or injuring more than 100 frogmen throughout the operation, resulting in a 52% casualty rate. June 6, 1944, remained the deadliest day in naval special operations history. Every naval combat dismantling unit that fought in Omaha received the Presidential Unit Commendation — an honor that only two other units could match on Normandy Landing Day — and the Utah Frogman received the only Naval Unit Commendation of the day.
In August 1944, the Naval Combat Demolition Force continued to participate in amphibious landings in the south of France, operation anvil and dragoon, once again standing out for its brave and effective role.
Frogman clears underwater obstacles (U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command).
Underwater Demolition Team
The Underwater Demolition Squad — the direct ancestor of the Navy SEALs who survived the war — was much larger than the aforementioned units. Each UDT has approximately 15 officers and 70 enlisted, and each UDT is closer to a company's most powerful unit than other smaller naval special operations units.
The UDT first operated in the Marshall Islands in 1944 and subsequently invaded the Mariana Islands (Saipan, Tinian, Guam) in June of the same year. The frogmen of the UDT successfully captured the islands by conducting hydrological reconnaissance and clearing shoals and beaches. Their next and biggest challenge came from the Battle of Okinawa, where nearly 1,000 UDT frogmen worked in the cold Pacific waters to ensure the Marines were able to land safely. After the fall of Iwo Jima and the atomic bombs of Hiroshima and Nagasaki forcing Japan to surrender, the UDT Frogmen were among the first Americans to reach the Japanese mainland and accept the surrender of Japanese forces.
The UDT Frogman accepts the surrender of a Japanese officer and his troops on Japanese soil (U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command).
By the end of the war, there were 34 underwater demolition teams, 21 of which had taken part in the fighting. The end of the world conflict brought about a huge drawdown for the U.S. military, and the underwater demolition team suffered cuts along with other forces. Although they have proven their worth, no one else can fight — and the Cold War will take years to begin. But South Korea looms in the distance, and the underwater demolition team will once again be summoned to accomplish extraordinary feats.