LAND EQUIPMENT desert | arctic | woodland jungle | assault force | mountaineering

ARCTIC OPERATIONS

MOUNTAIN & ARCTIC WARFARE

Cold Weather and Arctic Operations can be some of the most demanding operations that the SEAL Teams tackle. Imagine locking out of a submarine with zodiacs in your dry suits under the arctic sea, transiting 35 miles in the bitter cold, going over the beach and changing to land gear, then patrolling inland on cross country skis to your objective. Travel is conducted at night, laying-up during the day in carefully concealed snow caves. After hitting the objective you must traverse a mountain range to rendezvous with your extraction platform twenty kliks away. That sounds easy right? Well, throw in a blizzard or two, an enemy very interested in your presence and vertical cliffs, and you have quite a challenge on your hands. Fortunately, SEALs assigned to operate in the more forbidding environments of the world train rigorously to adapt to and operate effectively in these environments. Training takes place in Alaska, Montana, Norway, Korea, Canada, Britain and other cold spots around the world. A Mountain & Arctic Warfare Platoon workup will include several months of specialized preparation including cold weather amphibious operations, ski patrols lasting several days, winter survival and avalanche training. 

Cold weather equipment must be versatile and durable to withstand the cruel effects of the Arctic elements. The Winter Warfare SEAL Operator carries a first line, second line and third line of gear, as with other more temperate operations (see load out for more detail). The SEAL Operator must strive to produce heat from exertion in a sub-zero environment, and to prevent heat loss from radiation, conduction, convection evaporation and expiration. The clothing worn, and the way it is worn, is instrumental to survival. Three principals are key to the clothing design: insulation, layering and ventilation. The layering is important because due to the heat created by exertion, the operator must remove clothing while patrolling, but he must re-layer when idle to prevent hypothermia from setting in. Ventilation helps by preventing perspiration from dampening the operators clothing.

WINTER WARFARE LOAD OUT

The SEAL Winter Warfare Operator's load-out includes the clothes he wears and his three lines of gear, plus any additional mission specific
gear divided among the squad or carried in a tow sled. The First Line gear includes: survival gear, including signaling device, emergency rations, spare parts, E & E kit, map & compass, flashlight and the side arm. Second Line gear includes equipment carried on the operator's web gear, including primary weapon and ammo, short-term supplies (should the rucksack be ditched), grenades, water, med kit, smokes, flares, carabineers and other miscellaneous gear. Finally, the operator's Third Line of gear includes that equipment stored in the rucksack, including sleeping bag, ground pad, tent, food for the duration of the operation, gas stove & utensils, dry socks, clothing layers and a water container. Mountaineering gear will also be divided among the squad and carried with the third line, and each member will carry his personal ice ax and snowshoes attached to his rucksack.

EXTREME COLD WATER DIVING

As you can imagine, diving in arctic regions is not particularly cozy and requires the right gear and a strong stamina. Dry suits are a must, and special adaptations of the dragger LarV allow divers to breathe underwater for suitable durations (the duration time of the dragger canister is dramatically reduced the colder the water temperature gets). The Mark 6 mixed gas rig is effective for SDV missions. Experimentation has been done with warm water circulation systems for cold-water wet suits, but an acceptable version has yet to be made. A good deal of research has been conducted on the effects of nutrition and certain dietary plans to enhance an operator's performance while operating in the cold-water environments. We will strive to bring you the latest and most interesting information regarding cold-water operation in this section.

STANDARD DESERT OPERATOR LOAD OUT

The SEAL operators adapt to the cruel environment of the world's deserts by outfitting themselves with long range M-14's, desert camouflage fatigues, dust goggles, sat-com radios, gps, night vision devices, camelback hydration systems (see the Commissary for more information) and a host of other specialty gear.

KAYAKING

A unique form of insertion used for cold weather amphibious operations (especially by SEAL Team Two) is the kayak. This vessel is extremely covert, but not particularly useful in heavy surf. SEALs can transit long distances in a kayak and insert from this platform for dive operations or go over the beach and cache the boats for a land operation. The kayak is versatile and not easily detected, but leaves the operators exposed to the elements and enemy fire with only their personal armament to rely upon.

Equipment Information provided by NavySEALs.com ©2004