NAVY SEAL™

Equipment List:

* MP-5 submachine gun

* "Bubbleless" SCUBA

rebreather unit

* "Exploding" limpet mine

* Underwater mask

* Fins

* Swim trunks

* Dog tags

Within the ranks of America's combat elite, no fighting force commands more respect than the Navy SEALs. Although the SEALs were christened in 1962, their roots go back twenty years earlier to 1942 and the early frogmen of the Naval Combat Demolition Unit. Throughout the years, the Navy SEALs have battled the enemy below and above the waterline. They are the undisputed masters of underwater demolitions with experience in every war since World War II. Working with high explosives under combat conditions requires a high degree of physical, emotional, and intellectual strength. To prepare them, they are subjected to the most grueling program of training.

Only the very few who complete this training successfully become SEALs.

The regular duties of a Navy SEAL are generally hazardous. Tasks like hydrographic mapping, reconnaissance, and the defusing and planting of mines are a few examples. Equipped with bubble-free rebreather SCUBA gear and the MP-5 submachine gun, a SEAL is ready to strike. Often, a mission will demand the insertion of a limpet mine a portable, underwater explosive device used to combat enemy ships and other underwater targets. Charges are equipped with underwater attachment systems for any kind of target (steel, fiberglass, concrete) and with an electronic time fuse incorporating anti-removal features. Their most valuable weapon, however, is the element of surprise-one of the standard primary objectives. The goal of the SEAL commando is to hit undetected and move out to their rendezvous point for extraction.

Although the SEALs are a unit of the Navy, they have distinguished themselves in numerous land engagements. They remain heavily armed, highly trained, and extremely effective. As part of the maritime Special Operations Force, the Navy SEALs continue to stand as one of America's first and best lines of defense.