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DET-A Recognition, History

Detachment “A” Colors

Originally, Detachment “A” was not permitted have their own colors due to the classified nature of the unit.  However, some Detachment ”A” members persisted and eventually were granted the authority to issue colors.

CSM Terry Swofford was the last CSM of Detachment”A”, when it closed its doors 1984.  He packed the flag and it remained with him ever since and no one saw it for a long time.  He informed Bob Charest that he took possession of the flag.  After CSM Swofford passed away, it was missing in action.  We knew it was passed along informally but did not where it ended up.

During the course of the Detachment ”A” Memorial Stone project and dedication ceremony General Shachnow stated to Bob Charest who was a member of the project that he wanted to retire the colors at the ceremony.  Bob knew this was an essential artifact for the ceremony and immediately initiated a search request to all the Detachment”A” members to locate and secure the missing flag.

SGM Thomas Twomey and LTC Eugene Piasecki simultaneously found the flag at the SFA Chapter 1-18 Team House.  Bob Charest contacted MG Sidney Shachnow and informed him where the flag was located and requested that he personally secure the flag.  MG Shachnow retrieved the flag and secured it until the day of the Detachment ”A” Memorial Stone Dedication Ceremony that took place on 30 January 2014.

During the ceremony, MG Sidney Shachnow and Bob Charest presented the Detachment ”A” flag to LTG Charles Cleveland at the Detachment”A” Memorial Stone dedication.  LTG Cleveland announced that the Detachment”A” flag would have a permanent home at USASOC HQ where it now resides.

The week after the ceremony, the flag was officially cased by Eugene Piasecki and SGM George Bequer.

DET-A-Functions

2021 Detachment”A”/PSSE Special Forces Berlin Get Together After Action Report

The 2021 Detachment “A”/PSSE Special Forces get together was held  in Colorado Springs from Thursday 13 May 2021 –through Sunday 16 and was well attended.

On Thursday an informal meeting was conducted in the hospitality room for announcements and provide updated schedule changes.

On Friday afternoon , Visited the 10th SFG Compound, Group HQ, Regimental Mess, new Team Room, and Maritime.

On Saturday there was  a lunch held at the Edelweiss Restaurant.

Many thanks to Bill Crowley and Chuck Sekelski for all the hard work of setting everything up.

The German food was outstanding.

 

 

DET-A-SOG, History

Detachment “A” and SOG

The following article was published by Special Operations Association (SOA).  

Written by Bob Charest who served eight years in Detachment “A” (1969-1972 and 1973-1978) and one year in SOG Project Sigma, B-56 (1967 – 1968) and CCS.

In 2018, I published a post on the Detachment “A” web site https://detachment-a.org announcing a book written by Detachment “A” member Nick Brokhausen entitled Whispers in the Tall Grass that was published in October 2019, chronicling his time in the top-secret elite unit SOG (Studies and Operations Group).

When I published the post about Nicks’ book, I recalled my time serving in SOG, and that there were other Detachment “A” members that served in both Detachment “A” and SOG.

These two units were unlike any other.  The men who served in these units were of the highest caliber in every aspect of a US Army Special Forces Green Beret – intelligence, skills, adaptability, courage, and of the highest character.  They also are highly decorated and their accomplishments extraordinary, yet they were never recognized because both units were top-secret units.

SOG and Detachment ”A” are now declassified decades after the units closed.

When I published the post about Nick’s book, I decided to create a special post entitled Who’s Who in Detachment “A”/SOG, to recognize the most elite and heroic Special Forces soldiers who went decades, never being able to share their stories, as a form of recognition for their extraordinary service.  The list was short but soon after publishing the Who’s Who in Detachment “A”/SOG, I was surprised when other Detachment “A” members responded to the article informing me that they too served in SOG, so the list grew.

This is just a thumbnail look at these elite units and the extraordinary careers that these two units’ members had experienced operating in these types of units during wartime in Vietnam and during the cold war in Berlin.

SOG Overview

24 January 1964 – 30 April 1972

MACV-SOG (Military Assistance Command Vietnam, Studies and Observations Group) referred to as SOG, was the most elite clandestine military unit operating in the Vietnam war.  Their mission:  To execute an intensified program of harassment, diversion, political pressure, capture of prisoners, physical destruction, acquisition of intelligence, generation of propaganda and diversion of resources, against the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.” They conducted top secret missions deep behind enemy lines across Southeast Asia.  SOG executed top secret missions which were denied by the government.  Missions included intelligence gathering, personnel recovery, reconnaissance, direct action, unusual explosive device deployment and management, psychological warfare, capture of high value targets and conducting ambushes, sabotage, elimination of rogue double agents, assess targets and expertly and on a moment’s notice conducting improvised missions based on conditions presented.

They did not exist.

Detachment “A” Overview

1 September 1956 – 17 December 1984
Detachment “A” was the most elite military unit operating in Europe during the cold war.  Their mission:  From 1956 to 1984, Detachment “A”, a clandestine unit of about 90 Green Berets based in Berlin Germany, were involved in some of the most sensitive operations of the Cold War.  At that time Berlin was part of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany), located behind the Iron Curtain.  They wore civilian clothes, spoke fluent German and stayed on high alert 24 hours a day.  For nearly 30 years during the Cold War, some of America’s most elite soldiers worked in secret. Their missions, always classified, are still largely unknown and absent from the history books. 

Missions included stay-behind, guerrilla warfare, unconventional warfare, direct action, counter insurgency, anti-terrorist.  The missions evolved over time during the cold war with many more diversified missions.

The six modified “A” teams were heavy in demolitions and scuba, had three demolition men each and no XO.  Their skill sets included communications, skiing, mountain climbing, languages, demolitions, scuba, weapons, myriad intelligence work and other specialized skills.

They did not exist.

SOG/Detachment ”A” Intersection

•   Top Secret/Classified elite units.

•   Unconventional tactics.

•   No one knew they existed.

•   Carried out the most dangerous missions.

•   Suicide missions.

•   Demonstrated extraordinary heroism.

•   Severely outnumbered by the enemy.

•   Operated in small units, force multiplier.

•   Highly decorated.

•   Clandestine, covert, and black operations.

•   Intel gathering and sabotage.

•   Acute, diversified multitude of skills.

•   No recognition.

SOG brought out of the shadows by John L. Plaster with the publication of SOG: The Secret Wars of America’s Commandos in Vietnam published in 1997.

Detachment”A” brought in from the cold by Robert A. Charest with his “A Thumbnail Look at Detachment(A) Berlin Brigade published in 2012 and his website dedicated to Detachment “A”.

SOG was a combat clandestine unit in Vietnam operating deep behind enemy lines.  Detachment”A” was a clandestine cold war unit training and preparing to oppose a Soviet and East German takeover and control of allied forces in Berlin.

WHO’S WHO IN DETACHMENT ”A”/SOG

The following list recognizes and pays tribute to all those Detachment “A” members who also served in the prestigious unit SOG – another unit unrecognized for decades. This list shows the caliber of Special Forces troops that served in Detachment ”A” and SOG yet were unrecognized for decades.  For Detachment “A”/SOG folks there was one thing that was unique:  unless you served with a SOG member you did not know they served in SOG.  Vietnam individual service was almost never discussed.  This is not an exhaustive list.

Hermann Adler Herman David Halterman Bob Picknell
Howard “Zipper” Allen John Heintel Bill Queen
Ron Braughton Project 404 Laos Rick Hendricks Jimmy Reeves
Nick Brokhausen Lou Herman Harvey Saal
Phillip M. Brown Ralph Keith Joel Schenkelberger
Bob Charest Kim Kendle John Silk
Stu Cranson Tadeusz M. Kepczyk  Gil Turcotte
Ron Davidson Manfred Kropp Paul Whitmore
Gentry Deck Bob Kuenstle James Wilde
Emmett “Jessie” Dover Bob Lees Sid Williams
Bill Durant Charlie Monson Robert Willis
Warner “Rocky” Farr James “Dusty” Moore Robert G. Willis
Julius Farago Georg Moskaluk Don Wolken
Jerry “Paco” Fontana John  O’Keefe Ivan Woronchuk
Paul Foster Ralph Ormes Ed Yarbrough
Claude L. Greeney Roderick Patterson John “Rowdy” Yeats
Richard Gross  

The direct link to this link to this article can be found on the SOA website

All Detachment “A” members are eligible to become members of SOA.  For further information go to:  Home – Special Operations Association.

Chicken Friday

The Night Before Chicken Friday

THE NIGHT BEFORE CHICKEN FIRDAY

“Twas the night before Chicken Friday

and all through the Det.

Not a buffer was turning,

Oh no, not quite yet.

All the mops and the brooms

were hung up with care

In hope that the teams

soon would be there.

The officers were nestled

all snug in their beds,

When the beepers went off

right next to their heads

Soon there were shouts

and groans of disgust.

Chicken Friday had begun

and we’d dust, dust, dust.

Team one had the stairway,

team two had the hall,

Team three had the classroom,

and as usual, four had the stalls.

Team six was on duty

and doing real fine,

While five was out training

and drinking fine wine.

When what to my wondering

eyes should appear

But a miniature SMAJ

with a lecherous sneer.

“All right all you yahoos,

you’d best fall right in.

And start up the cleaning,

let the scrubbing begin.

Clean the latrines

and dust off the walls.

When you’re finished with all that,

put a shine on the halls.”

“On Fowler, on Storer,

on Turcotte, on Platz.

If you don’t move much faster,

you’ll be explaining to Katz.”

A bundle of cleaning tools

was flung over his back

And he looked like a peddler

just opening his pack.

His eyes, how they twinkled,

his dimples – how merry.

His cheeks were like roses,

his nose like a cherry.

His droll little mouth

was drawn up in a scowl.

If you looked at him cross-eyed,

he’d let out a howl.

He inspected all day

and everyone dreaded

The appearance in the door

of that bald little head.

When he was through inspecting

he said with a grin,

“There’s nothing more to clean

we won’t’ do it again.”

The SMAJ came downstairs

and said with great glee,

“The bar is now open,

the first one’s for me.” (and the 2nd, 3rd, 4th……)

The beer was abundant.

for those who were there.

Chicken Friday as usual

was a drunken affair.

The SMAJ was heard to say

as he staggered out of sight

“Happy Chicken Friday to all,

and to all a good night.”