Story by LTJG Martin Carey, NSWG Two, Feb 14, 2024.

In a constant demonstration of partnership in the Eastern Mediterranean, U.S. East Coast-based Naval Special Warfare Operators (SEALs) and Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewmen (SWCC) collaborated with Cypriot Navy Underwater Demolition Team (MYK) partners Jan. 22 – Feb. 14, 2024, refining their operational expertise in the maritime domain throughout waters surrounding Cyprus. This relationship serves as a powerful deterrent, showcasing a united front against potential threats to regional and maritime security in the area.

“Our partnership with the Cypriot Underwater Demolition Team sends a clear message to our adversaries. Together, we stand as a resolute force, ready to respond to any challenge and defend the shared interests of our nations,” said Capt. Bill Gallagher, Naval Special Warfare Group TWO Commodore. “This is not just a collaboration; it’s a crucible of excellence. Through joint endeavors, we fortify our capabilities and make clear that any aggression will be met with a swift, unyielding response.”

Navigating persistent waves, the SEALs and their Cypriot partners engaged in synchronized drills, honing their skills in covert operations, maritime operations, and Visit, Board, Search, and Seizure (VBSS) at sea. The intensity of these exercises reflects the unwavering commitment Naval Special Warfare has to training their personnel to ensure readiness and the ability to operate in dynamic maritime environments.

The on-site SEAL commander stated, “The interoperability and camaraderie displayed here transcend conventional military cooperation. These face-to-face iterations of training not only bolster our combat capabilities but ensures the U.S. and Cypriot relationship remains steadfast.”

The MYK special operations forces are highly skilled operators of the Cypriot Navy who conduct special reconnaissance, direct action, military assistance, combat search and rescue, and maritime operations to safeguard the interests of Cyprus and promote regional security.

Naval Special Warfare Group TWO produces, supports, and deploys the world’s premier maritime special operations forces to conduct full-spectrum operations and integrated deterrence in support of U.S. national objectives. For more information, visit https://www.nsw.navy.mil/.

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This story by LTJG Martin Carey was first published on February 14, 2024, by the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service. DVIDS content is in the public domain.

Photo: East Coast-based U.S. Naval Special Warfare Operators (SEALs) and Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewmen (SWCC) conduct maritime training with Cypriot Underwater Demolition Command (MYK) forces near Limassol, Cyprus on Jan. 25, 2024. (Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class William Carlisle, January 25, 2024)

Watch these three very excellent videos about the training one has to go through to become a Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewman (SWCC) in the Naval Special Warfare (NSW) community.

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SWCC: Making an Operator, All Hands Magazine, July 4, 2023, YouTube

Episode 1, 16 minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvVyDhGuSTw

Episode 2, 24 minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d399gVkbU5c

Episode 3, 16 minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q470w6HMoGQ

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Image by Austin Rooney, Defense Media Activity, July 5, 2023.

By Chief Petty Officer Dustin Kelling, NSWG-4.

Special Boat Team 20 (SBT-20) received the 2022 Naval Special Warfare Battle Efficiency Program Award in a message released Jan. 23, 2023.

This is the first year that the Naval Special Warfare (NSW) community has awarded the Battle Efficiency Program Award. Simply known as the Battle “E”, it is given to NSW teams that demonstrate a high degree of performance in an operational environment throughout the fiscal year.

“Earning the Battle ‘E’ is incredibly important as it validates the hard work and personal sacrifice of every Sailor that worked to make SBT-20 operationally focused and battle ready,” said the commanding officer of SBT-20.

The Battle “E” program within Naval Special Warfare Group 4, the NSW community’s special boat team headquarters, recognizes the unique challenges that Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewmen (SWCC) team members must navigate and overcome. SBT-20 had to dedicate time and funding to training a task group while maintaining standard command duties and responsibilities of manning, training and equipping deployable combatant craft detachments.

SBT-20 received the award in part for validating ground-breaking tactics and increasing the scope of combatant-craft capabilities.

“We had to get creative with our task group, requesting support from other NSW and Navy commands to ensure we could function as a command-and-control element,” said the commanding officer.

SBT-20’s success ties into every facet of an operational command such as “training, equipping, and manning,” said the SBT-20 Command Master Chief. “The SBT-20 Task Group is a great example of this, the Battle ‘E’ award confirms and reinforces the command’s ‘Brilliant on the Basics’ approach to excellence,” he said. “The command’s focus on individual Sailors through human factors, career development boards, recognition, and mentorship, highlights the link between effective sailorization and mission success.”

SBT-20 is a subordinate command under NSWG-4. As the NSW community focuses on strategic competition and contested maritime domains, the SWCC teams of NSWG-4 continue to grow and develop emerging capabilities to deter any threat and protect America from attack.

“I am incredibly proud of my Sailors,” said the SBT-20 commander. “They have constantly performed at an exemplary level as they prepare for and execute special operations in the maritime environment across multiple domains.”

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This story by Chief Petty Officer Dustin Kellin of Naval Special Warfare Group Four was first published by the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service on March 10, 2023. DVIDS content is in the public domain.

Photo: Special Warfare Combatant Craft (SWCC). Video by Austin Rooney, All Hands Magazine, Nov 1, 2018. SWCC video

Story by Benjamin Kittleson, NSW.

The sun is still below the horizon as the ocean breeze blows on a chilly winter morning in San Diego, where the latest group of Navy Sea, Air and Land (SEAL) and Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewman (SWCC) hopefuls hits the soft sand for some morning physical training. Overseeing this training is an experienced instructor, alternately observing and motivating the class to stay focused.

“Listen up! Eat, sleep and train. That’s all you’re getting paid for!”

These are the three things Chief Petty Officer Joan Jennings, an instructor at Naval Special Warfare’s Basic Training Command (BTC), wants candidates thinking about as they start their day. It’s an important lesson she knows from years of special warfare assessment and selection: keep your goals in the now – and make them simple. This is how candidates travel the long, arduous road to join the Navy’s elite commando force. Humility helps.

“When you get down to the basics,” she said, “you joined to serve your country.”

BTC’s instructor cadre has a broad range of experience, talents and backgrounds. Many, like Jennings, have deployed to combat zones.

“I was embedded with Army infantry prior to women being allowed in combat zones,” she said, reflecting on her time as a Navy second class petty officer deployed in a combat camera role to Bagdad in 2008. “There were moments when I realized I was the only female in the FOB (forward operating base), but I didn’t think of myself as some sort of trailblazer. The whole time I was there, the idea of me being a girl never really crossed my mind because we were all there to do a job, to complete the mission. I wanted to be in it and document the fight.”

The mission of the instructor cadre seems simple: assess and select the next generation of Naval Special Warfare (NSW) operators to go downrange. But it takes a lot of hard work and professional requirements to earn the title of instructor at one of the Navy’s most prestigious training commands, and BTC needs more than just a qualified staff – proven leaders are critical to the success of the mission.

“As a Chief and an instructor, I’m able to mentor not just SEAL and SWCC candidates, not just men or women who want to be special operators or boat team members, but young Sailors,” said Jennings. “And I think it is important for the female candidates who come through here to see senior leadership within the instructor ranks.”

Information Systems Technician 2nd Class Erika Neal spent five years deploying and working in support of multiple SEAL teams on the Mobile Communications Team before successfully interviewing for an instructor position at BTC. But that was just the beginning.

“I’ve always held the mindset that says, ‘you have to earn your spot’,” said Neal. In anticipation of joining BTC, she participated in a familiarization program to prepare her for the challenges of being an instructor. “I ran the beach with a boat on my head, I carried the log, swam the laps – to be a part of the team, a part of the community. We’re expected to shoulder our share of the weight.”

Now she serves as an instructor for the Basic Crewman Training course, helping candidates learn the critical skillsets of the SWCC community, the Navy’s elite maritime mobility operators. She finds working as part of a professional cadre with different values and perspectives to be rewarding.

“It’s actually really cool how different we all are, because I think that with this little group that we have, it’s important that we all balance each other out,” Neal said. “When we’re going over ideas regarding training, we’re not all coming up with the same thing. Our individual personalities help us to work interdependently.”

The women of NSW share a deep sense of camaraderie as they work to deliver on mission.

“This is something I want to do. The idea of supporting women in special operations spoke to me,” said Lt. Cmdr. Erica Young, force integration officer for Naval Special Warfare Command. “You see, I didn’t want to simply have a job, but a career where I could build upon skill sets – where what I’m doing is rewarding and meaningful, and I’m giving back. That’s important to me, and I knew I could have that here.”

Young believes the tough daily regimen of training for the next generation of warriors is worth it not only for candidates, but for the women who have earned the title of instructor.

“It’s important to have these women here, regardless of whether there’s a female candidate coming through or not,” she said. “Because it’s changing the outlook and mindset of the men, they’re seeing these women get the same respect as the other male instructors, even though they don’t have a SEAL or SWCC pin.”

Still, the focus remains on the candidates. Jennings said that what she concentrates on today, more than 20 years after she joined the Navy, has not changed all that much from the basics she tries to instill in the candidates today. “The people we train, both men and women, they’re so young and hungry. And no matter what job they pick, they’re thinking selflessly, and they’re committing to something bigger than themselves. We’re doing something we’re passionate about. And you have to be passionate about this – otherwise it’s just a job.”

Naval Special Warfare Center, located on Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, provides initial assessment and selection and subsequent advanced training to the Sailors who make up the Navy’s SEAL and Special Boat communities, a key asset of NSW. The NSW mission is to provide maritime special operations forces to conduct full-spectrum operations, unilaterally or with partners, to support national objectives.

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This story of Petty Officer 1st Class Benjamin Kittleson of the Naval Special Warfare Center was originally published by the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service on April 6, 2022. DVIDS publishes content in the public domain.

Photo: Chief Mass Communication Specialist Joan Jennings, supervises Navy Sea, Air and Land (SEAL) and Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewman (SWCC) candidates during swim training in the combat training tank onboard Naval Amphibious Base Coronado. Chief Jennings is an instructor at Naval Special Warfare Basic Training Command, a component of Naval Special Warfare Center. NSWCEN provides initial assessment and selection and subsequent advanced training to the Sailors who make up the Navy’s SEAL and Special Boat communities. These communities support the NSW mission, providing maritime special operations forces to conduct full spectrum operators, unilaterally or with partners, to support national objectives. For more information on the NSW assessment, selection and training pathway, visit https://www.sealswcc.com/. (U.S. Navy photo by Benjamin K. Kittleson)

The first woman to become a Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen (SWCC) graduated from the Naval Special Warfare training pipeline on Thursday, July 15, 2021. She was among 17 graduates of the Crewman Qualification Training (CQT) class earning their pins.

“Becoming the first woman to graduate from a Naval Special Warfare training pipeline is an extraordinary accomplishment, and we are incredibly proud of our teammate. Like her fellow operators, she demonstrated the character, cognitive and leadership attributes required to join our force.”

Rear Adm. H. W. Howard, commander, U.S. Naval Special Warfare Command

The Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen specialize in small boats used in maritime operations, insertion and exfiltration of SEAL and other special operations elements, Visit Board Search Seizure (VBSS), and in the conduct of coastal patrol and interdiction. SWCCs provide dedicated rapid mobility in shallow water areas where larger ships cannot operate. The Special Boat Teams have the unique capability of delivering combat craft via parachute drop utilizing the Maritime Combatant Craft Aerial Delivery System.

Photo: CORONADO, Calif. (May 14, 2020) A member of Crewman Qualification Training Class 109 receives a Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewman (SWCC) Basic pin during a graduation ceremony at Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, May 14, 2020. (U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Anthony W. Walker/Released) 200514-N-QC706-0117

The ‘official’ Naval Special Warfare website on SEAL / SWCC training details the rigorous and demanding 37-week long training that SWCCs undergo to become qualified. The website states that there are five stages for a SWCC candidate.

• Stage 1 (2 months) takes place at the Naval Special Warfare Preparatory School in Great Lakes, Illinois where the candidates improve their physical fitness and learn the basic concepts of special warfare.
• Stage 2 (three weeks) is the Naval Special Warfare Orientation course where there is a lot of physical fitness and water training.
• Stage 3 (7 weeks) is the Basic Crewman Selection course (BCS) where the physical fitness training and conditioning continues. More running and swimming with lots of time spent in the pool or ocean. The last part of the BCS is called “The Tour” – a grueling days long crucible period requiring mental fortitude and physical stamina.
• Stage 4 (7 weeks) is the Basic Crewman Training where the candidates learn special operations maritime skills, navigation, communications, combat medicine, and small boat seamanship.
• Stage 5 (7 weeks) is the Crewman Qualification Training. The mental and physical toughness of the SWCC candidates is tested while they learn advanced navigation, weapons, mission planning, and small boat operations. After competing this phase the candidates attend NSW survival, SERE, and cross-cultural training.

The graduation rate for the SWCC assessment and selection pipeline is about 35%. In 2016 the Navy’s special warfare duty positions were opened to female sailors. 18 women have attempted the SEAL or SWCC training, but thus far, only one has successfully completed the training. The new SWCCs will either go on to some specialized training (for instance, the Special Operations Combat Medic course) or report to a Special Boat Team.

Photo: Naval special operations forces from the Greek Underwater Demolition Team (DYK), Cypriot Underwater Demolition Team (UDT), and U.S. Navy Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewmen (SWCC) conduct Visit Board Search and Seizure (VBSS) in Souda Bay, Greece, during a trilateral exercise, January 11-29. (Photo by Sgt. Monique ONeill, SOCEUR, Jan 24, 2021)

Once qualified SWCCs continue to train in their core competencies as well as in advanced skills. They are experts in maritime operations, navigation, communications, engineering, parachuting, and other special operations tactics and techniques. The principle boats that they will operate include the Combat Craft Assault (CCA), Combat Craft Medium (CCM), Combat Craft Heavy (CCH), , and the Special Operations Craft Riverine (SOC-R).

Photo: Two combatant craft assault crafts (CCA) assigned to the Special Boat Team 20 perform a high-speed transit in the Mediterranean Sea, May 26, 2021. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Eric Coffer, May 26, 2021)

The Navy has three Special Boat Teams with 800 sailors. The Special Boat Teams are located in Coronado, California (SBT 12), Little Creek, Virginia (SBT 20), and Stennis, Mississippi (SBT 22). The SBTs are continually deploying to overseas locations in support of naval special operations exercises, training, and missions.

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Top Photo: A Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewman (SWCC) candidate from Basic Crewman Selection (BCS) Class 111 prepares for an evolution during “The Tour” at Naval Special Warfare (NSW) Center in Coronado, Calif., June 1, 2020. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Sean Furey)

By Petty Officer 1st Class Sean Weir.

Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen (SWCC) operators complete demanding tactical training throughout their careers, but before becoming a SWCC operator they must first pass a 72-hour crucible during the fifth week of the SWCC Basic Crewman Selection (BCS) course called the “Tour.”

“On Time, On Target, Never Quit” is the SWCC motto, a valuable maxim the men and women learn at Basic Crewman Selection, take to heart when they embark on the Tour during Basic Crewman Training, and they take with them throughout their careers.

“The Tour is 72 hours of physically and mentally demanding training evolutions designed to replicate harsh environments that SWCC operators may encounter in their carrier as a Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen.”

Chief Warrant Officer Four Joshua Hummel, SWCC School Officer in Charge

During 23 hours of running and five miles swimming, the candidates complete grueling team building activities that develop unity, teamwork, character and humility. Pushed by a team of experienced SWCC instructors under demanding environmental conditions, candidates learn to work as a boat team and also to help the person next to them during life threatening situations.

“The hardest part for a student is changing their mentality and habits. Anyone can show up to SWCC school for a day. It takes someone with self-discipline and mental perseverance to do it every day. From day one until they graduate the students have to realize becoming an elite operator isn’t something you do one day a week or two weeks a month, it’s something you do every day, it’s a lifestyle.”

Chief Warrant Officer Four Joshua Hummel, SWCC School Officer in Charge

SWCC operators work closely with Navy SEALs by providing clandestine insertion capabilities in coastal areas while operating specialized craft used to deliver operators and provide heavy weapons and other critical support. They conduct special reconnaissance, patrol, as well as Visit, Board, Search and Seizure on suspected maritime craft. The Tour is the end of the initial training and where candidates get selected to become SWCC operators, and proceeds the 14-week long Crewman Qualification Training which is just a portion of the six-month A-school.

BCS is administered by Basic Training Command, a component of Navy Special Warfare (NSW) Center, in Coronado, CA. NSW Center provides initial and advanced training to the Sailors who make-up the Navy’s SEAL and Special Boat Teams. For more information on SWCC and how to become part of it, visit www.SEALSWCC.com.

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Photo: A Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewman (SWCC) candidate from Basic Crewman Selection (BCS) Class 111 prepares for an evolution during “The Tour” at Naval Special Warfare (NSW) Center in Coronado, Calif., June 1, 2020. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Sean Furey)

Article: This story was originally published on the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service on August 5, 2020. DVIDS is a web-based resource providing defense media products that is in the public domain.