U.S Army soldiers, 1st Special Forces Group, conduct high altitude low opening jump from a C-1303 Super Hercules, 39th Airlift Squadron, over Yakima training center, Wash., April 22, 2014. U.S Air Force photo by Sgt. Jonathan Snyder

U.S. Army Special Forces soldiers of Combined Joint Special Operations Task-Force Afghanistan provide security during the clearance of Mirza Kalay village, Mya Neshin District, Kandahar province, Afghanistan, March 8, 2014. Photo by Staff SGT. Bertha A Flores

A U.S Special Forces soldier climbs over a short call during a clearing operation in Gaza Valley, Arghandab District, Zabul province, Afghanistan, Dec.11, 2013. The clearance operation was conducted by Afghan National Security Forces in order to disrupt insurgent freedom of movement in the area. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. David Devich

Soldiers from 3rd Special Forces Group (A), Group Support Battalion participate in a Convoy Live Fire exercise during the battalion’s Special Forces Basic Combat Course, Oct. 27. The course ran for two weeks and consisting of hands on training with different weapon systems, convoys, and common soldier tasks. This training is just one facet of a modular training plan for soldiers in the battalion, preparing them to operate effectively while in combat.

A U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC) soldier pulls security as his teammate secures a hostiles’s information during Operation Serpent Catfish as part of Emerald Warrior 2013, John C. Stennis Space Center, Miss., May 1, 2013. During the operation, the soldiers infiltrated a simulated hostile camp, eliminated the enemy threat and collected evidence as part of sensitive site exploitation. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Chris Griffin

Special Forces soldiers, wearing oxygen apparatus and with night vision goggles mounted on their helmets, prepare to conduct a high-altitude freefall parachute jump. These Green Berets are students on the Military Free-Fall Advanced Tactical Infiltration Course (ATIC), an advanced skills training program run by the JFK Special Warfare Center and School at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona. Recent military free-fall combat drops by special operations forces in Afghanistan and Iraq highlighted the need for a dedicated Advanced Tactical Infiltration Course.

The Military Free-Fall Advanced Tactical Infiltration Course is a 3-week course that focuses on High Altitude High Opening (HAHO) techniques. The course covers computer-guided and compass-driven navigation, night-vision rigging and emergency procedures, rigging of nonstandard combat equipment and weapons, grouping and canopy flight into unmarked or blacked-out drop zones, and the rigging, loading and deployment of GPS-guided bundles. Students will plan and execute several nighttime, oxygen HAHO operations, from 25,000 feet, using night-vision goggles in complete blackout conditions and navigating onto unfamiliar or unmarked drop zones.

DASTE ARCHE, NORTHERN AFGHANISTAN - AUGUST 24: U.S. Army Special Forces soldier nicknamed "Cowboy" (C) stands guard with Afghan Military Force (AMF) soldiers during an operation August 24, 2002 in the village of Daste Arche in Northern Afghanistan. U.S. Special Forces have recently begun to step up their presence in Northern Afghanistan to more aggressively pursue possible al Qaeda and Taliban fugitives they believe to be operating in the region. (Photo by Scott Nelson/Getty Images)

A U.S. Army Special Forces soldier pulls security around a Kuchi camp during a combat reconnaissance patrol in Shah Wali Kot District Kandahar province, Afghanistan, Feb. 18, 2014. The patrol was conducted in order to deny insurgent freedom of movement in eastern Shah Wali Kot. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Sara Wakai

DASTE ARCHE, NORTHERN AFGHANISTAN - AUGUST 24: U.S. Army Special Forces soldier nicknamed "Bones" (R) jokes with Afghan children during an operation August 24, 2002 in the village of Daste Arche in Northern Afghanistan. U.S. Special Forces have recently begun to step up their presence in Northern Afghanistan to more aggressively pursue possible al Qaeda and Taliban fugitives they believe to be operating in the region. (Photo by Scott Nelson/Getty Images)

DASTE ARCHE, NORTHERN AFGHANISTAN - AUGUST 24: (FEATURE STORY - U.S. SPECIAL FORCES IN AFGHANISTAN - 26 OF 31) U.S. Army Special Forces soldier nicknamed "Cowboy" (L) keeps a watchful eye over a group of Afghan soldier suspects during a search operation August 24, 2002 in the village of Daste Arche in Northern Afghanistan. U.S. Special Forces have recently begun to step up their presence in Northern Afghanistan to more aggressively pursue possible al Qaeda and Taliban fugitives they believe to be operating in the region. (Photo by Scott Nelson/Getty Images)

A U.S. Special Forces Team Sergeant, checks for suspicious activity while conducting a clearing operation in Sarobi district, Kabul province, Afghanistan, April 19, 2013. U.S. special forces soldiers advised their Afghan National Army commando counterparts during the operation to disrupt Taliban influence and movement in the area. (U.S. Army Photo by Pfc. James K. McCann / Released)

US Army Special Forces soldiers, attached with Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Afghanistan, practice advance rifle marksmanship in Kabul, Afghanistan, Nov. 01, 2013. US Army photo by Spc. Connor Mendez

US Army Special Forces soldiers, attached with Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Afghanistan, practice advance rifle marksmanship in Kabul, Afghanistan, Nov. 01, 2013. US Army photo by Spc. Connor Mendez

US Army Special Forces soldiers, attached with Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Afghanistan, practice advance rifle marksmanship in Kabul, Afghanistan, Nov. 01, 2013. US Army photo by Spc. Connor Mendez

US Army Special Forces soldiers. Training in the kill house  US Army photos by Spc. Connor Mendez/Released

US Army Special Forces soldiers. Training in the kill house  US Army photos by Spc. Connor Mendez/Released

US Army Special Forces soldiers. Training in the kill house  US Army photos by Spc. Connor Mendez/Released

Soldiers from the 3rd Special Forces Group (airborne) cut an entry point into a wire fence during a building-clearing exercise in Baghdad, Iraq. US Navy photo by MC2 Michael Blackwell II

A Special Forces soldier provides covering fire from behind a vehicle while another operator moves forward during a close quarters battle (CQB) demonstration. US DoD photo by Photo by Sgt. Marcus Butler

A U.S. Special Forces soldier takes aim with MK 12 SPR during training acitivities at Rawah, Iraq. The MK 12 is a highly modified AR-15/M-16 5.56mm design, known as the Special Purpose Rifle. Army Special Forces marksmen use both the SPR and the 7.62mm M110 Semi-Automatic Sniper System (SASS). Their ability to fire in semi-automatic mode make them more suitable for carry by a member of an infantry squad than a bolt-action rifle.

U.S. Army Special Forces are experts at unconventional warfare and foreign internal defense. Green Berets with the various Special Forces Groups (SFG) are deployed around the world protecting the United State's vital interests.