On 1 December 1989, four Army Special Forces soldiers exited a UH-1 Iroquois helicopter hovering at 10,000 feet above the John F. Kennedy Memorial Plaza on Fort Bragg, North Carolina (Fort Liberty since 2023). Spiraling downward through negative 15-degree temperatures, these Green Berets bore the activation order for the U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC), soon to become the Army’s sixteenth major command (MACOM) and the Army service component of the U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM). Its mission would be to organize, train, equip, and validate Army Special Operations Forces (ARSOF) for worldwide employment, a mission that remains fundamentally the same 35 years later.1
Although ARSOF capabilities began to take shape during the world wars of the 20th century, its command-and-control structure evolved during the latter half of that century, starting in April 1952 with the establishment of the Psychological Warfare Center, now the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School (USAJFKSWCS), at Fort Bragg. This command arrangement encompassed the late stages of the Korean War and the lengthy U.S. involvement in Vietnam, after which a sizeable portion of ARSOF was either inactivated, slated for inactivation, or reallocated to the U.S. Army Reserve (USAR).2
In the 1980s, ARSOF experienced a revitalization that led Army leaders to relook its command and control.3 During this period, ARSOF found a champion in General (GEN) Edward “Shy” Meyer, the Chief of Staff of the Army from 1979 to 1983. With Meyer’s blessing, the Army provisionally established 1st Special Operations Command (1st SOCOM) in October 1982 to provide a higher headquarters for Special Forces, Ranger, Psychological Operations, and Civil Affairs units.4 By mid-decade, 1st SOCOM had added newly formed Special Operations Aviation and ARSOF Support units, along with an additional Ranger battalion and a Ranger regimental headquarters.
By the late 1980s, forward-thinking Army and SOF leaders acknowledged that the continued expansion of ARSOF had rendered 1st SOCOM, a two-star command that controlled only active component ARSOF units, an inadequate command and control solution.5 In September 1988, the Chief of Staff of the Army, GEN Carl E. Vuono, approved the concept for an ARSOF MACOM to consolidate command of active and reserve component ARSOF units.6 Accordingly, USASOC was provisionally established on 1 December 1988, using existing 1st SOCOM billets.7 It was formally activated a year later.8
Upon activation, USASOC was commanded by newly promoted Lieutenant General (LTG) Gary E. Luck, whose considerable SOF experience included of multiple Special Forces assignments, including service in Vietnam, and command of the Joint Special Operations Command. His Command Sergeant Major (CSM) was Ronnie Strahan, a fellow Green Beret and Vietnam veteran, who had earned the Silver Star for his role in the famed 1970 raid on Son Tay prison in North Vietnam.
USASOC provided a higher headquarters for the 14,000 active duty and 10,000 reserve soldiers assigned to 1st SOCOM, U.S. Army Reserve Special Operations Command (USARSOC), USAJFKSWCS, the 160th Special Operations Aviation Group, and the 75th Ranger Regiment. At the time of its activation, USASOC lacked full control of USAJFKSWCS and reserve component ARSOF units, although this would be resolved the following year.9 The result was a unity of ARSOF command that had not existed previously.
The 1989 activation ceremony featured addresses from three keynote speakers, all of whom understood the significance of the day’s events.10 GEN Vuono spoke first, describing the activation of USASOC as “another step in the fulfillment of a vision … [that] was first manifested in spirited colonial American soldiers, who … combined discipline, stealth, and innovative tactics to win against an enemy in the forest.” This “tradition of valor,” as he called it, “has endured in our Army for over 200 years of peace and war.”
Vuono highlighted select milestones in the ongoing revitalization of ARSOF, adding the activation of USASOC to that list. “This command,” he concluded, “epitomizes to me the versatility that is so essential to our Army of today and to our role as a strategic force vital to our nation as we move into the next century. And this major command will be instrumental in ensuring that the Army’s special operations forces, both in the active and the reserves, will continue to be trained to a razor’s edge, and fully prepared for any mission.”
The second speaker, GEN James J. Lindsay, Commander, USSOCOM, pronounced it “a great day for Special Operations … literally a dream come true.” He acknowledged some of those who had helped bring this dream to pass, singling out GEN Meyer, who, as “a real visionary, saw the changing world and realized the role special operations had to play in that world…and he created a foundation that permitted us to get where we are today.” Both GEN Vuono and GEN Lindsay expressed the utmost confidence in the man they had selected to command USASOC, LTG Luck.
Luck, as the new Commanding General, spoke last, expanding on the themes expressed by the two previous speakers. First, Luck elaborated on the dual nature of his new command’s mission. “The Special Operations soldiers … must remember that they are not only a tactical force but are also a strategic force. Our command has missions that reach across the entire operational spectrum.” He then addressed the multi-component nature of the command, with active Army, USAR, and Army National Guard elements, and emphasized that USASOC was a Special Operations Command, “not a Special Forces or Green Beret command.”
In closing, Luck recognized several of those in attendance who were responsible for bringing USASOC to pass, including Generals Vuono and Lindsay. However, he reserved special praise for one person. “[I]f it wasn’t for the drive and enthusiasm of Major General Jim Guest,” Luck said, “we wouldn’t be here today activating this Special Operations Command.” He continued, “General Guest and his staff never gave up in the difficult pursuit of activating this unit. There were and still are naysayers out there, but their doubts and, in some cases, their outright pessimism didn’t deter Jim and his staff here at Bragg.” He concluded, “Jim, the special operations community soldiers, retirees, veterans, and civilians owe a lot to you. You’re an outstanding warrior and on behalf of everyone, thank you for what you did.”
USASOC faced its first test within weeks of activation. Looking back, LTG Luck recalled, “When we activated this command, no one knew that nineteen days later Special Operations Forces, along with U.S. forces stationed in Panama, would spearhead Operation JUST CAUSE, an operation that involved more than one-third of USASOC’s active-duty soldiers.”11 Once combat operations concluded, a combination of active and reserve component soldiers from USASOC’s Civil Affairs, Psychological Operations, and Special Forces units remained in Panama for Operation PROMOTE LIBERTY. That mission was still ongoing when Luck passed command of USASOC to LTG Michael F. Spigelmire in June 1990.
Before that summer had ended, USASOC again rapidly deployed a large contingent to Saudi Arabia for Operation DESERT SHIELD, and these soldiers figured prominently in DESERT STORM, which liberated Kuwait from Iraqi occupation in early 1991. ARSOF soldiers maintained a brisk operational tempo for the remainder of the 1990s in the Balkans, Latin America, Africa, and elsewhere. Following the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, USASOC played a critical role in the U.S. response, becoming a weapon of choice, first in Afghanistan, then in too many places to mention. In the 35 years since activation, it has lost 421 of its members.
As USASOC celebrates its 35th anniversary, one is reminded of LTG Luck’s prediction from December 1989 that USASOC would continue its “upward spiral.” From the uneasy peace of the post-Cold War era, through the Global War on Terrorism, and beyond, USASOC soldiers have routinely deployed to the point of greatest need, whether in competition, crisis, or conflict. The command has evolved to meet each new and emerging challenge, reorganizing as needed and adding nearly 10,000 soldiers since 1989.
Today, USASOC is commanded by LTG Jonathan P. Braga, who is assisted by CSM JoAnn Naumann and Command Chief Warrant Officer Steven C. Finney. More than 33,000 soldiers are assigned to its headquarters, 1st Special Forces Command, USAJFKSWCS, U.S. Army Special Operations Aviation Command, and the 75th Ranger Regiment. USASOC strives to be threat-informed, strategically driven, operationally focused and tactically prepared. It remains, as LTG Luck said 35 years ago, “the perfect force to lead the Army’s strategic options in these turbulent times.”
In memoriam: This article is dedicated to the memory of GEN Gary E. Luck, who passed away on 14 August 2024.