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| Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) | |
|---|---|
| Name | Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape |
| Abbr | SERE |
| Type | Training program |
| Established | 1950s |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force; United States Navy; United States Army |
Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) is a standardized training regimen employed by several United States Air Force, Navy, and Army units to prepare personnel for high-risk environments, capture scenarios, and hostile recoveries. The curriculum integrates austere Cold War-era lessons, post-Vietnam War adaptations, and doctrinal influences from allied programs such as SAS and French Foreign Legion. SERE supports personnel deployed to theaters associated with Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and other contingency operations.
SERE emphasizes core competencies including wilderness Aleutian Islands survival, maritime escape akin to techniques used in Battle of Midway, resistance to exploitation observed in Korean War prisoners, and evasion methods reflecting lessons from World War II escape lines such as those associated with Charles de Gaulle and Dutch resistance. The program exists at progressive levels—often designated A, B, and C—aligned with clearance and risk profiles set by entities like the Central Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency. SERE training interacts with doctrine developed by the United States Central Command and training standards promulgated by the Defense Intelligence Agency.
Origins trace to early World War II survival schools and clandestine training run by figures connected to the Office of Strategic Services and postwar institutions like the National War College. Cold War exigencies prompted formalization within the United States Air Force Academy training ecosystem and influenced policy discussions at the Pentagon and among members of the United States Senate and United States House of Representatives. Lessons from the Korean War and Vietnam War POW experiences, including incidents involving John McCain and Sam Johnson, reshaped the resistance syllabus. Later, post-9/11 operations led to program expansion for personnel assigned to United States European Command and United States Indo-Pacific Command areas of responsibility.
Curricula vary by service and installation, with flagship centers including facilities at Fairchild Air Force Base, Lackland Air Force Base, and naval equivalents associated with Naval Air Station Pensacola. Courses integrate instruction on survival psychology informed by research from institutions like Harvard University and University of Pennsylvania; navigation lessons referencing techniques used by explorers such as Roald Amundsen and Sir Ernest Shackleton; and escape doctrine incorporating case studies from Operation Market Garden and The Great Escape. Advanced instruction intersects with schools run by the United States Army Special Forces and interagency exchanges with the Central Intelligence Agency and Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Taught skills encompass improvised shelter construction inspired by Lewis and Clark Expedition accounts, water procurement techniques paralleling coastal survival methods from James Cook voyages, and signaling procedures reflecting standards from International Civil Aviation Organization guidance used in Air France search operations. Evasion drills rely on lessons from Patton, Montgomery, and Erwin Rommel-era maneuvercraft, while resistance modules analyze interrogation cases involving subjects like Jessica Lynch and detainee controversies tied to Guantanamo Bay operations. Escape procedures include maritime egress techniques comparable to those used by crews in the Battle of the Atlantic.
SERE has been at the center of ethical debates concerning use of harsh interrogation simulations and the potential transfer of techniques to detention programs associated with Central Intelligence Agency rendition controversies and policy directives under administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama. Congressional hearings involving committees led by members such as John McCain and Carl Levin scrutinized training boundaries, while legal challenges invoked principles from the Uniform Code of Military Justice and jurisprudence influenced by decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States. Human rights organizations including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have criticized aspects of SERE-related practices, prompting reviews by the Department of Defense and oversight by the Department of Justice.
SERE units are organized under parent commands like the Air Combat Command and integrate instructors drawn from former Navy SEALs, Marine Corps scouts, and veterans of Special Operations Command task forces. Instructor certification processes reference standards from the National Training Center at Fort Irwin and accreditation considerations aligned with policies from the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Instructors frequently possess backgrounds linked to decorations such as the Silver Star, Bronze Star Medal, and organic institutional experience from units like Delta Force and 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment.
SERE techniques have been credited in recoveries during incidents such as the return of aircrews after Operation Frequent Wind evacuations and rescues in Hurricane Katrina relief operations coordinated with Federal Emergency Management Agency. High-profile applications include training received by aviators involved in Korean Air Lines Flight 007 aftermath scenarios and by personnel who later participated in Operation Neptune Spear. Controversial incidents include revelations during the Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay debates that implicated the misuse of training materials, resulting in policy revisions ordered by officials associated with Department of Defense leadership.
Category:Military training