Birth of the Navy SSG

After the second war with India in 1965, the Pakistan Navy recognized the need for establishing the armed forces diving unit to conduct the covert reconnaissance of landing beaches and coastal defenses from the attacks by the approaching enemy.^[7] Despite its vision and efforts, the Navy had little experience in combat diving and had little educational understanding about the nature of the seaborne special operations.^{: contents [8]} In 1966, Vice-Admiral S. M. Ahsan took personal initiatives establishing the special operations force within the Navy by organizing the underwater demolition teams (UDTs) tasked with gathering intelligence while operating the midget submarines.^[9]

The establishment of the Special Service Group (Navy) lies from the contribution by the Pakistan Army's Special Service Group whose frogmen team— the Musa Company— first initially trained the Navy personnel on the military combat diving in 1966.^{: contents [8]} Initially training of the personnel volunteered for the Special Service Group (Navy) took place in Cherat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, first initially getting trained for the coastal defenses.^{: contents [10]}

Crucial training on getting trained on the sea, air, and land environmental formats came from the United States Navy when the first unit of the U.S. Navy SEALs was detached to the Pakistan Navy in Karachi, also in 1966.^: 71 The teams in the Navy Special Service Group were given training on the armed forces diving, high-altitude parachuting, demolitions, foreign languages, and the intelligence management for the intelligence services.^[11]

In 1970, the joint training of the Navy SSG and the U.S. Navy SEALs took place in Naval Base Iqbal in Karachi coast, receiving training and getting the expertise in the sea, air, and land environmental formats.^: 71

Since the 1970s, the Navy SSG teams are occasionally sent to the United States for specialized courses and training conducted with the United States Navy SEALs.^[12]

Deployments, covert actions and current history

The Navy SSG and the U.S. Navy SEALs conducting the force-protection and under-water special forces training in 2011.

In March 1971, the Navy SSG were deployed in the East-Pakistan to support the Army Special Service Group (SSG) instead of the Army's frogmen team— the Musa Company that remained in Pakistan to conduct the inland waterways operations.^{: contents [10]} Their first direct action based military mission took place in a counterinsurgency operation in Barisal in East-Pakistan, which turned out be a successful in maintaining the control of the city.^[13]

In April 1971, the Navy SSG teams were involved in taking another direct actions in Toulon in France when the thirteen East-Pakistani enlists decided to takeover the submarine to try defecting to India but their plans were foiled due to advance knowledge that the Naval Intelligence had gathered on their plans.^{: 43–44 [14]} The Navy SSG teams engagement with the Bengali insurgents, taking military counter actions at the ports of Chittagong and the Cox's Bazar.^[15] The Navy SSG teams operated from Dacca under the command of the Captain Ahmad Zamir but the teams returned to Pakistan in September 1971 to be trained in operating the X-Craft midget submarines.^{: 108 [16]}

After the third war with India in 1971, the Army–Navy interaction continues with the Navy's taking forefront responsibility of setting the important role in the overall architecture of the special operations forces.^{: 100 [3]} In the 1980s, the Navy Special Service Group was deployed in providing military assistance to Sri Lankan military during the civil war in Sri Lanka, playing crucial role to curb the insurgency in the country.^{: 70–73 [17]}

Pakistan Navy Special Forces (SSG-N) operatives

The Navy SSG's focused moves towards the special military operations to combating terrorism from the seaborne platform after the terrorist attacks in the United States in 2011.^[7] The Navy Special Service Group became involved in the Afghan war and the extended military operations in Western Pakistan in a joint coordination with the Army Special Service Group in a conflict with the foreign fighters, Talibans, and the al-Qaeda.^{: 76 [18]}

The Navy SSG's SEAL Team was involved in taking a crucial direct action against Taliban fighters in dislodging their attack on the Mehran Naval Air Station in May 2011.^{: 76 [18]}

In 2014, the Navy SEAL Teams successfully engaged the al-Qaeda fighters after they attempted to maneuver the guided missile frigate, the PNS Zulfiquar (251), and successfully neutralize the attack without the damage done to the guided missile frigate as well as apprehending the attackers alive.^[19]

SEALs Teams in the Special Services Group (SSGN)

The Navy Special Service Group is composed of the three sub-commands: CO PNS Iqbal, CO SEAL Group, and CO VBSS Group— all are trained in their specialized tasks and considered specialists in the specific type of war operations.^[12]

The maritime authors and historians of the Pakistan Navy have provided the rough and the guessed estimation of personnel which was neared around 1,000 SSGN operatives but the department of navy has never issued an actual strength number of its personnel serving in the Navy Special Service Group.^{: 73 [18][5]}

The official strength and the identities of its personnel serving in each sub-commands are subjected to the secrecy by the department of navy and the Defense ministry has never commented or the Navy itself has never issued the official number of strength of its personnel, including the officers commanding, citing security.^[5] In the Navy, the commands of the teams varies by the officer ranking from OF-2 rank (lieutenant) to OF-5 rank (commander), depending on the availability and the difficulty posed by the missions.^[5]

Sources: Pakistan Navy official website and GlobalSecurity.org by John Pike.^[25]

Qualification and military physicals

The Navy Special Service Group's VBSS Team boarded on the CRRC boat under the command of Lt. Uzair Khalid preparing to board on the rigid-hulled boat during the drill took place in Sea of Oman in 2005.

According to the Pakistan Navy's Medical Corps reports and the media documentaries, the selection is extremely competitive and demands the strong physical conditioning from their prospective candidates prior admitting into the Navy Special Service Group.^[6]

The Navy Special Service Group's qualification and military physical standards are akin and reflects the selection criteria of the United States Navy SEALs selection and training, according to Commander Kashif—the senior trainer in the Navy SEAL Team's interview given to Takrar (lit. Confrontation) host Imran R. Khan.^[26]

Those prospective candidates who have very high regards of their self respect and their selfless commitment to serve the country only, anytime their services are needed by the Navy for the area deployment, are the only intakes in the Navy Special Service Group, commented by V-Adm. (retd.) S. Tauquir Naqvi—the retired SEAL Team member and the former commander of the Navy SSG.^[7]

Drop out attrition rates from the physical standards of the Navy is average between the 80-to-90%, matching the Army Special Service Group's drop rate in Cherat^[6] Those who have failed the mental and physical requirements are then sent to their regular jobs in the Navy.^[6] The military physical standards, examinations, and criteria are same for the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines' special forces selections and training, often training in close coordination.^[27] There are three special operations schools in the Pakistan, the Navy's sniper and frogmen school criteria follows the military physical requirement:

• Naval Special Operations Training Center (Naval SOTC)
  • Must meet army qualifications with swimming standards.^[1]
• Sniper School
  • Must have 20/20 or corrected to 20/20 in both near and distant vision in both eyes.^[28]
  • Medical Category "A".^[27]
• Frogman School
  • Medical Category "A".^[27]
  • Must have qualification in Chamber test up to 180 feet sea water.^[27]
• Swimming Standards
  • Should be able to swim 200 meters in 7 minutes (breast stroke).^[27]
  • Should be able to swim 25 meters Underwater.^[27]

Selection and training

Pakistan Navy SEAL Team members receiving instructions on the compression diving from the US Navy SEALs in 2011.

The military physicals for the getting accepted in the Navy is maintained to be very high standard and requires the prospective individual has to spent nearly five years in the Navy that validates their commitment to their profession and the Navy— this is the same requirement for the Army Special Service Group.^[27] Training for the Navy Special Service Group is extremely rigorous that included being able to earn the swimming badge after completing the 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) in 10 hours in an open sea,^[26] the HALO/HAHO airborne qualification badge,^[26] and special weapons qualification badge.^[26]

The Navy Special Service Group's training courses :

• • 18-week Clearance Diving Course.^[21]
  • 10-week Advance Frogman Course .^[21]
  • 4-week Re-Compression Chamber Course.^[21]

Training of the Navy Special Service Group also included the training on the Judo/Karateka, Frogman maneuver, and the drownproofing (ability to stay afloat while tide up in the water).^[6] The Navy maintains its own Parachute Training School in Oramar based on the Army's Parachute Training School in Cherat, where the prospective individual excelled on its HALO/HAHO and static line skills after performing the combat jump from 15,000 feet (4,600 m)– this course usually held for 4-weeks.^[26]

The training courses on the Navy Special Service Group emphasis on the strong mental and physical conditioning that includes the 36-36 miles (58 km) march, a requirement that was first institutionalized by the Army Special Service Group in 1956.^[26]

Once the 8-month course is complete, the navy sailors who are volunteering to join the SSGN are then given specialized training in maritime and amphibious warfare at the specialized training school located in Karachi.^[26]

The Combat Diver badge is awarded for the course held by the Navy Special Service Group— there are three classes of combat swimmers are recognized: 1st class to complete an 18-mile or more swim in the designated time period; 2nd class to those finishing a 12-mile swim; and 3rd class for a 6-mile swim.^[26] Navy's sniper training and air assault courses are held at the Naval Special Operations Training Center (Naval SOTC) in Nathiagali in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.^[1]

The Navy has its own airborne school in Oramara, frogmen school in Karachi, and the special operations school in Nathiagali.^[1][29] The advance training on the special warfare environments jointly takes place with the Army Special Service Group where the SEAL Teams are trained in long distance marksmanship sniper warfare at the Army Sniper School, arctic warfare at the Army School of High Altitude, mountain warfare at the Army School of Mountain Warfare in Cherat, desert warfare in Chor, and often popular in the country for taking participation with the army's snipers in various competition.^[30]

Weaponry

The U.S.-made M4 carbine rifle: This is the standard issue for the Navy Special Service Group.

The Austrian-designed Steyr AUG: This is the standard assault rifle for the VBSS Teams only.

The standard issue for the Navy SSG snipers is the POF PSR-90M as seen in the photage.

Pistols

•  Austria Glock pistol
•  Italy Beretta 92FS

Sub-machine guns

•  Germany Heckler & Koch MP5
•  Belgium FN P90

Assault rifles

•  USA M4A1 Carbine
•  Austria Steyr AUG
•   Switzerland SIG SG 550

Sniper rifles

•  Pakistan POF PSR-90M
•  USA Barrett M82
•  UK Accuracy International AW
•  UK SC-76/86 Thunderbolt
•  South Africa Truvelo CMS .308/.338

Light Machine guns

•  Belgium FN Minimi
•  USA M249

Air Defence & Rocket Launchers

•  Soviet Union RPG7
•  USA SMAW
•  Pakistan Anza MANPADS

Helmets

•  Pakistan POF Standard Helmet
•  USA Light Weight Helmet

Bullet Proof Jacket/Armor

•  Pakistan POF Standard Body Armor