2020•Calhoun: The Naval Postgraduate School Institutional Archive (Naval Postgraduate School)Requires access
Strike from the Sea: SOF Underwater Operations in Great Power Competition
Aaron A. Taylor
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Abstract
The United States is in an era of renewed great power competition. This competition spans a multi-domain environment with a renewed focus on the maritime domain as China seeks to expand its global maritime influence. America’s Special Operations Forces (SOF) have been involved in primarily land-based counterinsurgency for the last twenty years, and maritime and underwater operations capability has atrophied. This study examines the organizational structure and underwater operations record of the Italian Decima MAS frogmen during World War II. Utilizing Benjamin Jensen’s theories on innovative organizations, and a statistical analysis, recommendations for U.S. SOF underwater operations potential within great power competition are provided, based on the characteristics of Decima MAS's successful organizational and operational examples.