Before SERE
Prior to the development of Rowe’s program, servicemembers overseas were guided primarily by the Military Code of Conduct. “That came about right after the Korean War,” notes Bracco. “There were problems with GIs falling victim to North Korean propaganda, and some actually defected, so the Code of Conduct was provided as a guideline.”
The Code of Conduct was a start, but more was needed. Having spent five nightmarish years as a POW, Rowe knew many American service-members lacked the mental tools necessary to resist captivity.
The Army introduced its full-spectrum Level-C SERE course in March 1986, and under Rowe’s direction, the SERE Department of the Special Warfare Center became the proponent for all SERE training throughout the Army. With funding from the Department of the Army, the SERE Department deployed mobile training teams to unit locations to validate or provide Level-B training.
In 1985, the SERE Department added the Individual Terrorism Awareness Course, which teaches antiterrorist-related subjects to personnel prior to deployment to medium- and high-threat areas, and in 1986, it added the Antiterrorism Instructor Qualification Course in an effort to minimize the vulnerability of U.S. units to terrorist attacks overseas.
Different captivity environments
SERE training DoD-wide addresses three specific captivity environments: peacetime governmental detention, hostage detention, and wartime captivity. “The responses differ because each scenario has its own requirements,” says Air Force Col. Ronald Baldinger, commander, 336th Training Group, U.S. Air Force SERE School, Fairchild AFB, Wash. “For instance, during wartime, you may be held under the Geneva Conventions. Under a terrorist situation, it’s going to be different. And your actions in one scenario may be appropriate, whereas they might be life-threatening in another.”
According to Army Sgt. 1st Class Troy Carrington, an evasion instructor at Camp Mackall, SERE training gives warfighters a course of action before they find themselves in a hostage or POW situation. “Back in Vietnam, they used to just give their name, rank, and serial number, but some guys had a hard time when they came back because they felt like they had given up information,” Carrington notes. “Now, we give them techniques to deal with the situation.”
Though each service approaches SERE training slightly differently, all instruction addresses the same core issues.
Within the Army, the basic SERE class begins with 10 days of class-room training at Camp Mackall’s Rowe Training Facility and practical instruction at the nearby Little Muddy Training Area. Students receive instruction in all aspects of wilderness survival, evading enemy capture, resisting enemy interrogation and exploitation if captured, and, ultimately, escaping from captivity and returning to friendly lines.
DECEMBER 2012 MILITARY OFFICER 53
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