Joint Special Operations Command

Jump to navigation Jump to search
Joint Special Operations Command
Active1978-Present
CountryTemplate:Country data Tokpan
AllegianceTokpan
TypeSpecial Operations
SizeN/A
Part ofRepublic of Tokpan Armed Forces
Garrison/HQN/A
ColorsBlack & Gray
Commanders
Commander in-ChiefLee Jae-yong
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of StaffGEN Park Han-ki
Chief of StaffLt. GEN Sook Yun-soo

The Joint Special Operations Command or JSOC for short, is the organized military branch for the Republic of Tokpan Armed Forces' special operations forces. Gathered from every branch of the armed forces, JSOC is a collective of special operations forces who were once part of multiple branches in the ROT Armed Forces. Former president Min Sook-in created JSOC in 1978 at the urging of his military leaders to better organize the many special forces units inside the military. To further this new branch's capabilities, the military created an entirely new command structure to support ROT special operation missions around the globe, which JSOC would report to for a short time. This new command would be known as SOC, or the "Special Operations Command", though unofficially it is referred to as ROTSOCOM.

The JSOC is the "joint headquarters designed to study special operations requirements and techniques; ensure interoperability and equipment standardization; plan and conduct joint special operations exercises and training; and develop joint special operations tactics". For this task, the Joint Communications Unit is tasked to ensure compatibility of communications systems and standard operating procedures of the different special operations units.

Special Mission Units

The Joint Special Operations Command is also the command and control arm of the Special Mission Units of R.O.T Special Operations Command. These are elite special operations forces units that perform highly classified activities. So far, only five SMUs have been publicly disclosed:

The Intelligence Support Activity's primary role is as a deep reconnaissance, intelligence-gathering special mission unit, in support of Spectre Group and the Ghosts; The Regimental Reconnaissance Company provides a similar role for the 23rd Ranger Regiment. Meanwhile, Ghosts and Spectre Group are the military's primary counter-terrorism units, eliminating high-value targets and performing hostage rescues are their main roles, along with special reconnaissance and direct action assignments. The 3rd Special Tactics Squadron attaches personnel as enablers to these two units such as ROT Air Force combat controllers to provide air traffic control and fire support, ROT Air Force Pararescuemen to provide combat medicine and combat search and rescue, and ROT Air Force Tactical Air Control Party specialists to co-ordinate close air support. The Joint Communications Unit provides communications capabilities. Units from the Army's 23rd Ranger Regiment and Air Force 492nd Special Operations Wing are controlled by JSOC when deployed as part of JSOC Task Forces such as Task Force Sword.

JSOC has an operational relationship with the TID's Special Activities Group (SAG).

Advanced Force Operations

Advanced Force Operations (AFO) is a term used by the ROT Ministry of Defense to describe a task force that encompasses personnel from the Ghost Teams, 23rd Ranger Regiment and Spectre Group. Many locations will have a mixture of operators from one of these 3 units working together as a small interoperable team. Although mainly a term in many cases used to describe a particular sub-set of Ghosts or Spectres, the term "AFO" also was later known used to describe mixed Special Mission Unit elements doing long range RECCE/long range target interdiction operations etc. "AFO consists of Minister of Defense-approved military operations such as clandestine operations. It is logically part of Operational Preparation of the Battlespace (OPB), which follows the Intelligence Preparation of the Battlespace, a concept well-known in western doctrine, OPB is seldom used outside of SOF channels. OPB is defined by the ROT Special Operations Command as "Non-intelligence activities conducted prior to D-Day, H-Hour, in likely or potential areas of employment, to train and prepare for follow-on military operations".

JSO Package / Rotational Group

The Joint Special Operations Package / Rotational Group of the ROT Special Operations Command consist of Tier 1 and Tier 2 ROT Joint Special Operations Command units that train and deploy together. All Tier 1 and Tier 2 units maintain three separate operational groups within their respective units (The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd battalions of the 23rd Ranger Regiment as an example). These groups are essentially identical and deploy within their respective JSOC package. The rotational cycle is generally three months. This allows one group to be deployed overseas, another to be on an 18-hour worldwide emergency deployment notice, and the last group to be training, attending military schools, or on "block leave." Tier 1 and Tier 2 units take leave together within their respective JSOC package. This term is called block leave. Given the wartime tasking of JSOC, an additional deployment package is currently being created. This will allow less operational strain on these units.

Task Force Sword

In 2011, Islamic terrorism was at it's all time high which led the Joint Special Operations Command to create a "black" unit, known as Task Force Sword. Little is known publicly about the task force except that their operations are highly classified and they've become feared by Topkan's enemies around the globe likely because of their exceptional success rate.

It's composition was made up of members from the 707th Special Forces Detachment (Ghosts), three battalions from the Army's Regimental Reconnaisance Detachment (part of the 23rd Ranger Regiment), Naval Spectre Group, and members from the Air Force 3rd Special Tactics Squadron. Also, another task force made up of members of numerous intelligence agencies including the Army Intelligence Support Activity (ISA). All of these units fall under the jurisdiction of JSOC.

The usual operation consists of one team of Tier 1 operators (Spectres/Ghosts), supported by a platoon-sized security element from the RRD, which would be 1/23, 2/23 or 3/23 from the 23rd Ranger Regiment. An Air Force combat controller is also attached for fire control, air support could consist of anything from a helicopter gunship to a strategic bomber depending on how high value the target is. Meanwhile, a quick reaction force is normally on ready alert in case a TF Sword mission goes haywire, it is usually a platoon sized element of Rangers with a Ghost/Spectre team attached, but the 1st Infantry division has been used in support of many TF Sword operations.