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CNN Saturday Morning News

The Importance of U.S. Special Operations Personnel

Aired September 22, 2001 - 07:12   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DONNA KELLEY, CNN ANCHOR: It is widely believed that any assault on Afghanistan would be led by Special Forces, the U.S. military's elite units. CNN's Brian Nelson with our report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN NELSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Who are the U.S. military Special Ops teams? They are the elite. Among them, the Navy SEALs, whose name stands for operations on sea, air, and land. The Army's Green Berets, whose fame was sealed in the hills of Vietnam. The U.S. Army Rangers, often found on the front lines of many conflicts.

In all, almost 47,000, the top 2 percent of the U.S. military's might.

As the U.S. plans its response, all of these Special Forces units would probably be woven together into one combined operation. For example, the Army Rangers are best known for quick raids and seizing airfields. The Green Beret, their language skills and abilities to train guerrilla troops. U.S. Navy SEAL teams, specializing in underwater reconnaissance and demolition. And the U.S. Air Force's Special Ops, skilled at getting behind enemy lines, extracting people, and resupply. And the Army's clandestine Delta Force, whose troops are trained for hostage rescue.

How might they all be used?

TOM STANLEY, FORMER SPECIAL OPS SOLDIER: There will be military action in Afghanistan, and it would probably start with a bombing campaign to soften up the military targets until it's soft enough for some U.S. forces can go in, establish the (inaudible) in some airfields and get some conventional forces on the ground. And just to control the population, mainly. And then get in the mountains and start looking for bin Laden.

NELSON: From the military's own public documents, we know that U.S. Special Ops units are based in 10 locations in the continental U.S. and found at 11 other locations around the world. Much of their equipment is specially modified to adapt it to their specialized roles and can go in behind enemy lines undetected.

GEN. ROBERT PATTERSON (RET.), U.S. AIR FORCE: In the Special Operations mission, the routine mission, if you're detected on the way to the target, you may as well turn around and go home. You've failed.

NELSON: And there has been failure. In Iran, after one helicopter collided with a transport plane, forcing the scrubbing of a rescue mission of American hostages in 1980. And in Somalia, where the U.S. Army Rangers and Delta Force lost 18 of their men when their chopper crashed and they found themselves fighting a heavily armed enemy.

(on camera): If any of these units are gearing up to see action, they're not saying so publicly, nor would they. Their trademark is stealth.

Brian Nelson, CNN, Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLEY: And one of the men you just saw in that report, General Robert Patterson, served in the U.S. Air Force for 33 years, including time commanding all Air Force units responsible for Special Operations.

Good morning, general, nice to have you join us.

PATTERSON: Good morning.

KELLEY: Who do you think goes in first in this situation? Is it Airborne? Is it Rangers?

PATTERSON: I think the first requirement is to get hands-on, eyes-on surveillance. A Special Operations operation is very precise, and it all begins with good intelligence, whether it be overhead intelligence or eyes-on-the-target intelligence. And then from that, you either develop a plan, and in that plan you exercise, practice, if you will, the scenario, and then you execute.

And bringing these forces together is very similar to a ballet. It -- everyone has their role, everyone has their timing, there are even backups to the backups. And then you go in and execute on an exact schedule.

KELLEY: Lot of talk about the tough terrain. Let me bring this up for us. Let's look and see what it's like a little bit and how this might work. Let's bring this up and punch a button there.

OK. As we look at this, how do they get in? Afghanistan, as you can well see, a lot of mountains. Do they drop in, come in through Pakistan? What's your best guess, general?

PATTERSON: Well, see, Afghanistan is a landlocked country, and it's also locked down politically. I don't see much overland opportunity because of the lack of lines of communication, roads, bridges knocked out. I see various means of air drop, maybe a high- altitude opening to insert our people in for special reconnaissance. I see some opportunities for surgical strike, which Special Ops guys are very good at. I see the opportunity in the case of chemical-biological weapons, and that's another forte they have is to ferret out these weapons, capture, destroy them as necessary.

And you're now seeing the early stages of a great and preeminent force, psychological operations, which is another one of their strong suits.

KELLEY: Let's take a look at a couple of scenarios as well. Now, if they were to leave from Saudi Arabia, all right, go across, one of the problems there, lot of miles, and maybe across some air space of Iran, which may or may not be possible. As you may know, Secretary Powell has said that they would like the British foreign minister to make some talking with Iran as they've made some overtures and condemned terrorism, and so they feel that perhaps there might be some sort of opening there with Iran.

And they're going to try and open the door there. So that may change. But what happens in that scenario, if that's possible?

PATTERSON: Well, that's a long haul. All the Special Forces assets are air-refuelable, so sometimes -- in some cases you have to have a tanker that's also a penetrator to provide fuel to those other penetrating aircraft. That's a long haul, and I would -- just heard a report on Turkey. If Turkey bases are available, that's closer, that's more realistic.

KELLEY: And that's what we've just heard.

PATTERSON: But these assets are capable of terrain avoidance, terrain-following radar; they can go in very low. They know how to hide themselves through terrain masking from the enemy radar and stay undetected.

KELLEY: We're just about of time. Let me run this through scenario too. You think that it's maybe more possible that it would leave from the carriers and go up and through. Tell us about that possibility, and what worthwhile targets we might see. And we'll show folks that as well.

PATTERSON: Well, I think Special Operations applications off the carriers would of course include the sea-air-land teams, the SEALs, in conjunction with the rotary-wing assets. We have Air Force MX-53 helicopters that are air-refuelable. The Army has the 160, the Special Operations regiment at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, again, with very sophisticated rotary-wing airplanes that could be air-refueled and go long distances.

Not ideal, but in this situation, certainly do-able.

KELLEY: Real quick, how concerned are you when they're talking about the Taliban saying that they did down a plane, Pentagon not talking about that, but what's the threat there? What are they up against?

PATTERSON: Well, if there's a predator, the predator is unmanned aircraft that has a great deal of capability as far as obtaining intelligence. It's fairly vulnerable, and the Taliban have what they captured from the Russians left over, I don't think their integrated air defense system is anything great. But they certainly have a lot of antiaircraft capability and 23-millimeter, 37-millimeter.

KELLEY: General Bob Patterson, retired from the U.S. Air Force, appreciate your insight and your knowledge with us this morning. Thank you.

PATTERSON: OK, pleased to be with you.

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