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The 75th Ranger Regiment -also known as the United States Army
Rangers— is a
special operations force of the
United States Army Special Operations Command (USASOC); with
headquarters in
Fort Benning,
Georgia. The Regiment is a flexible, highly-trained, and a rapidly deployable
force with specialized skills that enables it to be
employed against a variety of conventional and
special operations targets.
The 75th
specializes in airborne, air assault, light-infantry, direct
action operations, conducting raids and ambushes, infiltration and exfiltration
(by air, land, or sea), airfield seizures, recovery of
personnel and special equipment, and support of general purpose
forces (GPF) among others. Each Ranger Battalion can deploy
anywhere in the world with 18 hours' notice.
Ranger
Motto
On 6 June 1944, during the assault landing on
Dog White sector of
Omaha Beach as part of the invasion of
Normandy, General
Norman Cota (assistant CO of the
29th ID) while under heavy machine gun fire,
calmly walked towards Maj.
Max Schneider, CO of the
5th Ranger Battalion and asked “What
outfit is this?”, someone yelled "5th
Rangers!". To this, Cota replied “Well,
Goddamn it then, Rangers, lead the way!”.
From this, the Ranger
motto ("Rangers lead the way!") was born.
"Rangers lead the way" is often abbreviated RLTW among Rangers.
Regimental motto
Sua Sponte,
Latin for "Of
their own accord" is the 75th
Ranger Regiment's regimental
motto. Modern Rangers are
four-time volunteers: for the
U.S. Army, Airborne School,
Ranger School, and service in
the 75th Ranger Regiment.
Regimental Crest
Organization
●
1st Ranger Battalion
(1/75) -
Ft. Stewart, Ga - Hunter
Army Airfield
●
2nd Ranger Battalion (2/75) -
Ft. Lewis, Wa
●
3rd Ranger Battalion (3/75)
- Ft.
Benning, Ga
●
75th Ranger Regiment
- Ft.
Benning, Ga
Operations
- Operation Eagle Claw - Iran, 1980
- Operation Urgent Fury - Grenada, 1983
- Operation Just Cause - Panama, 1989
- Operation Desert Shield - Iraq, 1990
- Operation Desert Storm - Iraq, 1991
- Operation Restore Hope - Somalia, 1993
- Operation Gothic Serpent - led to Battle of Mogadishu
- Operation Enduring Freedom - Afghanistan, 2001
- Operation Iraqi Freedom - Iraq, 2003
Modern History
Congress authorized the raising of ranger units for Indian fighting in the western territories during the War of 1812. In May 1942 during World War II, the 1st Ranger Battalion was sanctioned, recruited and began training in Scotland under the British Commandos. Together with the ensuing 3rd, and 4th Ranger Battalions they served in North Africa and Italy under William O. Darby until the Battle of Cisterna (January 29, 1944) when most of the 1st and 3rd battalions were captured.Prior to the 5th Ranger Battalion landing on Dog White Sector, Omaha Beach in WWII, the 2nd Ranger Battalion scaled the 150 foot cliffs of Pointe du Hoc, a few miles to the west, to destroy a battery of five 155mm guns. Under constant fire during the climb, they found only a small company of Germans on the cliffs and the artillery withdrawn some 500 meters. The guns were later found and destroyed, and the Rangers cut and held the main road for two days before being relieved.
Meanwhile the 6th Ranger Battalion fought in the Pacific theatre. They led the invasion of the Philippines and were credited for the daring Raid at Cabanatuan.
After World War II, the Rangers were disbanded. However, the training regime was kept in place, though only senior NCOs and officers were able to attend training. With the outbreak of war in Korea, the Rangers were reactivated, and formed into Ranger Companies. The Chief of Staff assigned the Ranger Training Program to Colonel John Gibson Van Houten. Members of the 505th Airborne Regiment and the 80th AA Battalion reported in, and together they would become the 2nd Ranger Company, the only all-black Ranger unit to serve in Korea. During the course of the war the Rangers patrolled, probed, scouted, destroyed, attacked and ambushed the enemy. The 1st Rangers destroyed the 12th North Korean Division in a daring night raid. The 2nd and 4th Rangers made an airborne assault near Munsan-Ni where Life Magazine reported that Allied troops were now patrolling above the 38th Parallel. The 2nd Rangers plugged a crucial gap made by the retreating allied forces, the 5th Rangers helped stop the Chinese 5th Phase Offensive. After the Korean War the Rangers were disbanded.
In February of 1969, under a new Combat Arms Reorganization System, U.S. Army Rangers were reformed in Vietnam as the 75th Ranger Infantry Regiment (Airborne). Thirteen companies of Rangers (only 12 of which were in Vietnam) were raised from units that had been performing long range missions in Vietnam since 1966 as LRRP (Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol) and LRP (Long Range Patrol) companies. These new Rangers were given a unit history somewhat curiously traced to Merrill's Marauders. In Vietnam, the Rangers were organized as independent companies (C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, and P) and each company was attached to a major American combat unit. Rangers in Vietnam conducted long range, covert reconnaissance into denied areas. They collected intelligence on these missions, planned and directed air strikes on previously unidentified targets, acted as force multipliers to conventional operations, carried out bomb damage assessment in enemy controlled areas, executed hunter-killer missions at night and in daylight by set ambush or by hasty ambush and surprise, and specially trained and equipped Ranger snipers killed individual enemy soldiers with well placed rifle shots from concealed positions.
In addition, Rangers attempted recovery of friendly POW’s, captured enemy personnel for search and interrogation, employed wire taps on communication lines used by the enemy in his established base areas and along the Ho Chi Minh Trail, and Rangers mined enemy trails and motor vehicle transportation routes.
After Vietnam, division and brigade commanders saw that the Army needed an elite light infantry unit capable of rapid deployment, so in 1974 Gen. Abrams created the 1st Ranger Battalion. Eight months later the 2nd Ranger Battalion was formed and in 1984 the 3rd Ranger Battalion plus HQ. In 1986 the 75th Ranger Regiment was formed and their lineage formally authorized. The 4th, 5th, and 6th Ranger Battalions are Ranger Training Battalions and not organized as units of the 75th Ranger Regiment.
Ranger elements participated on several operations, including the 1979 aborted attempt to rescue the hostages held in Tehran (Operation Eagle Claw), and Operation Urgent Fury on Grenada in 1982.
Operation Gothic Serpent was a military operation conducted by special operations forces of the United States with the primary mission of capturing General Mohamed Farrah Aidid. The operation took place in Somalia, Africa from August to October 1993 and was supervised by the Joint Special Operations Command.As part of the operation, the soldiers were deployed in a mission to arrest two of Aidid's lieutenants. The result of that mission —executed under the command of Gothic Serpent— became known as the Battle of Mogadishu to most or "The Battle Of The Black Sea" to those who fought it. It is portrayed in Mark Bowden's bestselling book Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War.
On August 22, Task Force Ranger was deployed to Somalia under the command of Maj. General William F. Garrison, commander of JSOC at the time. The force consisted of:
- one company of Army Rangers (Company B or "Bravo") from the 3rd Battalion of the 75th Ranger Regiment
- 130 operators from the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (Delta Force)
- a deployment package of 16 helicopters and personnel from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Night Stalkers) which included MH-60 Black Hawks and A/MH-6 Little Birds. Their mission was the pursuit of Aidid under the code name Operation Gothic Serpent
- Several Navy SEALs and Air Force
On the afternoon of October 3, 1993, informed that two leaders of Aidid's clan were at a residence in central Mogadishu, the task force sent 19 aircraft, 12 vehicles, and 160 men to arrest them. During the mission, Private Todd Blackburn missed the rope while fast-roping from an MH-60 Blackhawk helicopter and fell 70 feet to the street below, badly injuring himself. The two Somali militia leaders were quickly arrested and the prisoners and the injured Ranger were loaded on a convoy of ground vehicles. However, armed Somalis converged on the target area from all over the city.The battle turned out to be the most intensive close combat that US troops had engaged in since the Vietnam War. In the end, two MH-60 Black Hawks were destroyed and 19 US soldiers lost their lives. Estimates of Somali dead range from 300 to 500 Somali Militiamen killed during the battle.
NOTE: 18 Americans died in the actual battle; SFC Matt Rierson died two days later after a mortar attack on the US compound.
Battle for Haditha Dam
When U.S. Army Rangers seized the Haditha Dam and hydropower complex on the Euphrates River on 01 April 2003 to prevent its possible destruction by Iraqi forces, a potential non-traditional weapon of "mass destruction" had been eliminated from the Iraqi arsenal. The U.S. Central Command decision to employ the rangers to seize the dam was based in large measure on information and briefings from the Army Engineer Research and Development Center's (ERDC) TeleEngineering Operations Center in Vicksburg, Miss. The possible destruction of this critical hydropower facility, located about 125 miles northwest of Karbala, Iraq, posed potential catastrophic effects throughout the country. In addition to its impact on the war fight, the resulting flooding as an immediate aftermath and and lack of water supply during the summer months would have added to the hardships being experienced by the Iraqi people.
As of 01 April 2003 Special operations forces remained in control of the Haditha Dam. They had seized that to prevent its destruction and the release of certain water flow that would affect the down-river areas particularly near Karbala. The town of Hadithah is just to the south of it. There had been repeated attacks against the force holding the dam by artillery and mortars, and these were being shot by counter special operations units operating from the town of Hadithah. The coalition forces in place have been well-supported by close air support, and that has enabled them to hold the dam. The initial seizure of the dam by special operations forces did occur at night. Initial fires against known targets that were in the area. This is a very robust structure that had 16 floors inside it and underground. Several US Army Rangers were killed by an IED at Haditha.
Becoming a
Ranger
To become a
member of the
75th Ranger
Regiment,
prospective
Rangers must
begin with the
nine weeks of
Basic Combat
Training (BCT).
Upon completion
of basic
training the
soldier will
then attend
Advanced
Individual
Training (AIT)
to obtain a
Military
Occupational
Specialty
(MOS). This
training varies
in length,
depending on the
selected MOS.
Next, the
soldier must
complete
Airborne
School. Upon
graduation of
Airborne
School, the
soldier will be
sent to the
Ranger
Indoctrination
Program
(RIP), for
grades E-4 and
below, and the
Ranger
Orientation
Program (ROP),
for grades E-5
and above. Upon
graduation of
RIP/ROP, the new
Rangers will be
assigned to
either one of
the three Ranger
Battalions or
the 75th
Regimental
Headquarters,
where they are
now authorized
to wear the
Ranger tan beret and the
Ranger Scroll.
Final career
development
requires that
all members of
the 75th Ranger
Regiment attend
and pass
Ranger School
and earn their
Ranger Tab.
A Ranger cannot
become a leader
within the 75th
Ranger Regiment
if he hasn't
successfully
completed and
graduated from
Ranger School.
The
unofficial motto
of Ranger
students from
the Regiment is
"With a tab, or
on a slab" —
that they will
return to the
regiment either
with their
Ranger Tab
or dead. This
may be a
variation of the
Spartan
mothers'
directive to
their soldier
sons, to return
"With your
shield, or upon
it."
Upon
successful
completion of
all 3 phases of
Ranger School,
the new Ranger
is awarded the
Ranger Tab
and returns to
his unit, a
fully qualified
and
operationally
deployable
Ranger. The
three phases
take place at
Fort Benning,
Camp Frank D.
Merril in
Dahlonega,
Georgia, and
Eglin Air Force
Base in
Florida.
Rangers in
the Ranger
Regiment believe
that the term
"Army Ranger" is
reserved solely
for someone who
serves within
the
75th Ranger
Regiment. A
popular phrase
within the
Ranger Regiment
regarding this
issue is: "The
tab is a school,
the scroll is a
way of life"
(the scroll
being the
insignia of the
75th Ranger
Regiment). A
person who
passes Ranger
School is
considered
Ranger Qualified
as he has passed
Ranger School.
Rangers
assigned to the
75th Ranger
Regiment wear
the tan beret;
soldiers who are
Special Forces
qualified and
assigned to
Special Forces
manning
positions within
the US Special
Operations
Command wear the
Green Beret.
Paratroopers,
soldiers who are
both Airborne
qualified and
assigned to an
active
parachutist
position; wear
the Maroon
Airborne Beret.
The Rangers
adopted the tan
beret when the
decision was
made by
Army Chief of
Staff
General
Shinseki to
issue black
berets to
regular soldiers
in June 2001, in
order to make
them appear
elite. This
created a lot of
discontent
within the 75th
Ranger Regiment
and even led to
ex-Rangers going
on nationwide
road marches to
Washington DC
to protest
against the
decision.
Because there
wasn't a
Presidential
authorization to
the Regiment for
exclusive wear
of the black
beret, they
switched to
wearing a tan
beret to
preserve a
unique
appearance, tan
being reflective
of the buckskin
worn by the men
of Robert
Rogers.
Training and
Requirements
I.
BCT -Basic
Combat Training
+ MOS Training
II.
Airborne School
(3 weeks)
III.
RIP
-
Ranger
Indoctrination
Program (3
weeks)
- 60% Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT) in the 17 to 21 age group
- 5-mile run at no slower than 8 minutes per mile
- Successful completion of Combat Water Survival Test (CWST) must be able to complete 15 meters in BDU's, boots and LBE
- Must complete 2 of 3 road marches, one of which must be a 10-mile road march
- 70% on all exams
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RIP
Training Events
(not complete):
- Daily Physical Training
- Ranger History test
- Map Reading
- APFT
- Airborne Operation
- Ranger Standards
- Day and night land navigation
- 5-mile run
- Combatives
- Knots
- Combat Water Survival Test
- 6, 8 and 10-mile road marches
- Driver Training (DDC Card)
- Fast Rope Training
- Combat Lifesaver certification
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IV.
Assigned to a
Ranger Battalion
(1st, 2nd, 3rd,
or Regiment)
V.
Pre-Ranger
School Course
Course held
at Ft. Benning,
Ga to assist in
Ranger School
Preparation. If
someone can't
pass Pre-
Ranger, then
they do not get
to go to Ranger
School.
Pre-Ranger is
run by the
Ranger Training
Detachment of
the 75th Ranger
Regiment.
VI.
Ranger School
The United States Army Ranger School is an intense 9-week long combat leadership course, conducted in three 3-week phases - at Fort Benning, GA (woodland terrain, 'Benning Phase'), Camp Merrill, Georgia (Mountain Phase), and Camp Rudder (Eglin AFB) (Swamp Phase). The Fort Bliss, Texas (Desert Phase) was “phased out” more than 10 years ago.Ranger School training centers on a basic scenario: the flourishing drug operations of the enemy forces, “the Cortinian Army,” must be eradicated. To do so, the Rangers will have to take the fight into enemy territory, the rough terrain around Fort Benning, the mountains of North Georgia and the swamps and coastal areas of Florida. The Rangers students are given a clear mission, but it’s up to them to determine how best to carry it out.
Fort Benning is the home of the Ranger Training Brigade and its 4th Ranger Training Battalion, which hosts the “crawl” phase of Ranger School, where students learn the fundamentals of mission planning at the Squad level. This phase is critical to success, as it lays the groundwork for phases two and three, the “walk” and “run” phases.
At Benning, students must successfully complete the Ranger Assessment Phase, which includes many of the tasks Best Ranger Competition spectators have become familiar with: the Malvesti Field Obstacle Course, the Darby Queen, the Prusik climb and the log-walk-rope-drop. Here they also learn the basics of close combat, using a pugil stick, a knife or bare hands.
At the 5th Ranger Training Battalion, the students learn mountaineering skills, and at the 6th Ranger Training Battalion, they must demonstrate tactical and technical proficiency in swampy terrain leading a platoon-sized patrol. This phase includes small boat operations and an extensive “do-or-die” field-training exercise.
All in all, Ranger School students will participate in three airborne operations and 10 air-assault operations. They are evaluated on their ability to lead at various levels in various situations. Part of the evaluation is a peer evaluation, and a failing peer evaluation can result in disqualification from the course.
If a student performs successfully but suffers an injury that keeps him from finishing, he may be “recycled” at the discretion of the battalion or brigade commander, meaning he’ll be given an opportunity to heal and finish the course with the next class.
Field instruction composes the majority of the course. While in the field, students carry gear weighing as much as 45 kg (100 pounds), spending each day planning and executing attacks on widely dispersed objectives, followed by a rapid movement to a new patrol base to begin the planning cycle yet again. Training during the course averages 19.4 hours per day. Thus, students average only a couple hours of sleep every night, and two or fewer meals per day. This leaves them heavily fatigued throughout the course. A common piece of folk wisdom reported by students is that they begin the Ranger course at their lifetime peak of physical fitness, but due to the punishing training they find themselves degraded to a lifetime low of physical fitness upon completion of the course. Only one-third of those who attempt the course pass.
See
https://www.benning.army.mil/rtb/rtbmain.asp
for more
information.
VII.
Return to
Battalion
Ranger
returns to his
Battalion and
will usually be
assigned a team
leader position
(unless others
are waiting for
a team lead slot
to open up).
Recognizing that I volunteered as a Ranger, fully knowing the hazards of my chosen profession, I will always endeavor to uphold the prestige, honor, and high esprit de corps of my Ranger Regiment.
Acknowledging the fact that a Ranger is a more elite soldier who arrives at the cutting edge of battle by land, sea, or air, I accept the fact that as a Ranger my country expects me to move farther, faster and fight harder than any other soldier. Never shall I fail my comrades. I will always keep myself mentally alert, physically strong and morally straight and I will shoulder more than my share of the task whatever it may be. One-hundred-percent and then some.
Gallantly will I show the world that I am a specially selected and well-trained soldier. My courtesy to superior officers, neatness of dress and care of equipment shall set the example for others to follow.
Energetically will I meet the enemies of my country. I shall defeat them on the field of battle for I am better trained and will fight with all my might. Surrender is not a Ranger word. I will never leave a fallen comrade to fall into the hands of the enemy and under no circumstances will I ever embarrass my country.
Readily will I display the intestinal fortitude required to fight on to the Ranger objective and complete the mission though I be the lone survivor.
RLTW!
Video
Links
http://www.goarmy.com/ranger/index.jsp
http://www.soc.mil/75thrr/75th_home.htm
https://www.benning.army.mil/rtb/rtbmain.asp
http://www.ranger.org/history.html
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/iraq/haditha.htm
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