
It's better to train with the same platform for all scenarios. The SEAL Teams, for instance, used the MP5 when clearing the claustrophobic rooms in ships but the CAR-15 and M4 for direct action missions in other environments.Īlthough that encouraged adaptability, it came at the cost of consistency. In the early years of CQB and the Global War on Terror (GWOT), it was quite common for units to have a different weapon platform for each mission. "One second you could be clearing a 4-by-4-meter office room, and seconds later you can find yourself in a 50-meter long hallway, a long street, or in need to shoot from a window to the outside of a building." "When one does CQB, one must remember that it is often not necessarily based on short distances," Eli Fieldboy, a former Israeli special-operations soldier who now teaches CQB, told Insider. It's mainly their top-notch CQB skills that distinguish Delta Force and SEAL Team 6 from the rest of America's special-operations units. Room-to-room combat is both an art and a science that requires years of practice to master. Often, special operators will find themselves in a Close Quarters Battle (CQB) setting. Kennedy Special Warfare Center fires an MP5 SD submachine gun, May 12, 2020. The Essential Guns, Gadgets, and Gear of Spec Ops Special operations forces wear body armor made of revolutionary materials, carry armor-puncturing knives, and don visions systems that can. During the Vietnam War, SEAL platoons would often go out in the jungle to fight the Vietcong with 10 machine guns.Ī student at the US Army John F. Compare that to a Marine weapons platoon of 48 Marines that packs six machine guns and the difference in firepower is evident. Firepower superiority gives special-operations units a short and local advantage that often translates to victory.įor example, a Navy SEAL platoon of 16 men might carry upward of six machine guns depending on the mission. Firepower that is disproportionate to their numbers makes special operators exceptionally lethal and effective on the battlefield. Given their small numbers, special-operations units rely heavily on firepower to overcome a usually numerically superior enemy.

Both weapons are reliable and have trickled down to conventional units because of their effectiveness.
#SPEC OPS TACTICAL GEAR PORTABLE#
The former is chambered with the 5.56 mm round and offers a lighter and more portable option, whereas the latter, firing the 7.62 mm round, is heavier but packs more punch.

The machine guns of choice for US special-operations units are the MK46 and MK48. It often indicates a user profile.Ī US Navy SEAL carrying an MK48 with flexible feed chute to an ammunition pack. Account icon An icon in the shape of a person's head and shoulders.
