Task Force Orange: Supporting Delta Force | SOFREP Special Operations (SO) encompass the use of small units in direct or indirect military actions focused on strategic or operational objectives. 160th SOAR | Delta troop is tasked with countries that are a softer target for infiltration such as the Philippines or Morocco. The ISAs HUMINT collectors gather information from human sources via coercion and interrogation depending on the asset. Stationed in the fifth floor of the American embassy, and operating from specially outfitted Beechcraft 300 and 350 aircraft, Centra Spike tracked Escobar around the country. Operators from the unit entered Nicaragua using false passports, and proceeded to photograph the embassy from every angle, record the types of locks on all doors, inside and outside, record the number of exits and windows, and finally drew up the internal layout of the building. US Army intelligence defines HUMINT as including: The sources of this information can come from enemy combatants, including regular armed forces, and civilian sources. A Congressional hearing was held, and the media revealed the existence of a 'classified military intelligence unit'. Covert operations are shrouded in plausible deniability. (Source). Candidates then are put through a battery of assessment and selection courses as well as background checks and psychological testing. This Army Special Operations unit, goes by many names, which is indicative of the various activities, functions and environments performed by these operators. . The United States Army Intelligence Support Activity(USAISA), frequently shortened to Intelligence Support Activity (ISA),also known at various times as Joint Reconnaissance Evaluation Group (JREG),[citation needed]Mission Support Activity (MSA), Office of Military Support (OMS), Field Operations Group (FOG), Studies and Analysis Activity (SAA), Human intelligence (HUMINT) and signals intelligence (SIGINT) are the most common products of their operations. As they soundly slept in the reverie of their grand plan, the Sandman and the Tooth Fairy happened by and found the car unlocked. LTG Odom acquiesced but took every opportunity to oppose actions engaging his traditional intelligence elements. HUMINT-related activities at the Department of Defense and Defense Intelligence Agency level, subsequent to the disestablishment of the DHS, included continued issuance of DoD directives or instructions governing elements of HUMINT operations - including those concerning human source validation ( Document 44 ), creation of the since (Source). The Joint Special Operations Command and the frequently-renamed Intelligence Support Activity are similar units. A team of mandarins was tasked with blocking traffic in the same fashion on the south side of the ambush site, then with following the assault force north to provide rearguard to the convoy. Typically the ISA pulls from the Green Berets due to their prior special operations experience, language skills, and autonomy. Escobar was shot as he was trying to escape from the roof of his house. It is known that the unit has changed its codename over . For a Tier 1 group dedicated primarily to intelligence collection and support, the equipment of the ISA cannot be completely verified, nor can any weapons or equipments continued use be verified. "When TWA Flight 847 was hijacked on June 14, 1985, America's counter-terrorist forces went on full alert. Not only did this demonstrate that the ISA was functionally effective, it showed that it could operate alongside not only various elements of the US military, but foreign military elements as well. Additionally, ISA recruits from other branches of the US military and potentially elsewhere in the intelligence community. Russia and Ukraine battle daily in the sky. Featured Book: "ISA was also rumoured to be operating in Bosnia in the last few years under the code-name Torn Victor. In 2003 four troops: A,B,C, and D made up the squadron. We had a key to that lock that the MUPs did not know about; that is, I could pick the lock with consistency. It was provided with a cover name, Tactical Concept Activity, and would never be acknowledged by the Pentagon. It later took on other roles like SIGINT as battlefield requirements changed over time. Intelligence Support Activity The Army's most obscure special-ops unit is the roughly 300-strong Intelligence Support Activity, formed in 1981, which has gone by various codenames over. It is unclear how often the ISA interrogates subjects, though given their covert operations they likely at least interrogate high-value targets. 2e Rgiment tranger de Parachutistes | Plus, they wouldnt have to load the car back up again the next day what a grand and magnanimous plan that proved to be. The US wanted a team to covertly survey the situation on the ground and provide officials with a survey of the US embassy. Delta Force and SEAL Team Six were scrambled in preparation to liberate the hostages if needed, as the airplane hopped back and forth from Beirut to Algiers. During Anaconda, ISA intelligence helped save both the 10th Mountain Division and 101st Airborne Division at Takur Ghar. The US military and many of its allies consider DA one of the basic special operations missions. The plan involved flying feet above the turbulent Mediterranean Sea, at night, through hostile airspace. Like many special operations groups, their active arsenal is not likely a small rigid loadout, it is a range of various weapons that are available to suit the units needs. He scurried off to the barricade. "During the 1983 American invasion of Grenada, special forces units were plagued by lack of useful and up-to-date intelligence. and direct action combat. "Known as the Intelligence Support Activity, or ISA, when it was established in 1981, this unit fought in drug wars and counter-terror operations from the Middle East to South America. At one point during the Global War on Terror, ISA along with a component from the Airforce and Delta began to build a fleet of ISR aircraft. The ISA is perhaps the most major outlier doctrinally from its other, better known, counterparts within JSOC and SOCOM as a whole. Eliciting information from select sources, The exploitation of documents, media and materials. Additionally, ISA gathers SIGINT primarily by intercepting enemy communications or sending an agent to physically bug a target. (Source) Gray Fox operators and intelligence specialists operated alongside other special operations units, including Delta Force and DEVGRU, as well as other components of the US Army. ISA has gone by many names over the years but its current one is not public knowledge. ISA recommended covert deployment of its operatives to both airports to secure landing zones and infiltration routes. The Pentagon frequently disavows knowledge regarding their activities or even their existence, and they've been given different names multiple times to misdirect any probes into their identity or activities. How to join the intelligence support activity - Quora US intelligence gathering methods centre around the US intelligence process, composed of the phases Plan, Prepare, Collect, Process, and Produce. The U.S. Army's Intelligence Support Activity is arguably the most secretive unit out of the five tier one units in the United States Military. The United States realized that insufficient intelligence gathering was the critical point of failure in our attempt to rescue the American hostages and that there was a gap between the Intelligence and Special Operations communities. That night, the mandarin and I stashed our car and cut through an orchard whose northwest corner gave way to the bollards and the chain barricade. The ISA comprises 5 primary elements: administration, training, SIGINT, HUMINT and direct action. It's a Special Mission Unit and conducts highly classified operations. "Cowan put together another five-man team, but their deployment was stalled for three weeks. action is "necessary to support identifiable foreign policy objectives of the United States, and is Covert Action and Clandestine Activities of the Intelligence Community It built a reputation for daring, flexibility and a degree of lawlessness. Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance, otherwise known as Force Recon, are a company-sized (about 200) recon and direct-action element that falls directly under the Marine Expeditionary Force. His elements were being heavily tasked, and a directed intelligence pipeline was established to FOG. Gray Fox was formed in 1980 in response to the infamous failed rescue attempt of American hostages under Operation Eagle Claw in the Tehran embassy. The force is supposedly around 250-275 operators, who excel in intelligence gathering, languages and electronic surveillance. However, his several interventions and temporary blockage of many initiatives, showed that his primary intent was to arrest the development and contain the capability. Though its history is relatively brief and known missions it has undertaken even briefer, it has become one of the most interesting and influential special operations groups at the disposal of JSOC and the US military. One problem that plagued the first attempt was the lack of valuable intelligence. The "Pakistani cook" piece, delivered as Delta boarded the aircraft, was viewed as an implausible source though subsequent inquiry revealed that the crucial info was available much earlier, but intentionally not shared for several reasons. The cyber operations team extends into other offsets of intelligence gathering, including OSINT, cyber threat intelligence and cyber warfare. The ISA also has a direct action arm comprised of men and women recruited from the US Army Delta . Both Army and the Agency recognized the changed nature of the world and the requirements of the emerging terrorist/hostage issues. People know ISA mostly for its involvement in Operation Anaconda. _gaq.push(['_setDomainName', '.specwar.info']); Codename: Gray Fox - Sicarius It is common for the appearance and demeanour of an agent to be the key to their success as an infiltrator. At the point of execution, the road became bureaucratically bumpy. non-covert action intelligence activityoften a collection programto be of such sensitivity that 1 Oral notifications shall be followed by a written notification. Unless you plan to body-check those cars I would junk up.. I could tell by her skunk-eye that she had a dagger in the pipe ready to launch, so I lightened up. Initially, Delta Force turned to the CIA for information regarding the number of guards, how they were armed and what security measures they had in place. What does one actually do with such persons? Tracking dummy targets over Medellin, Centra Spike managed to pinpoint their locations within 200 meters, while Majestic Eagle came no closer than four miles. ISA focuses on gathering human intelligence based on contact with field agents, and signals intelligence (intercepted communications) to support Delta Force and DEVGRU operations. While the nerdiest Green Berets and special operators comprise the bulk of ISA, there are also non-traditional operatives who have not passed the selection course. The U.S. Army Intelligence Support Activity (ISA) is a special operations unit that collects "actionable" intelligence in preparation for activities by other special operations units, particularly those related to counter-terrorism missions. Upon return to the Pentagon, he re-assigned the ACSI POC out of FOG-related issues. INTRODUCTION TO SPECIAL OPERATIONS - Federation of American Scientists Lgion trangre (French Foreign Legion) | Operationally, the ISA is a dedicated intelligence group, doing the intelligence leg work for special operations groups. G-2 - U.S. Army Training Doctrine and Command In the summer of 1980, FOG agents were infiltrated into Teheran to report back on the hostages' whereabouts, movements of the Iranians, as well as to recruit local agents. The ISA agent was ordered to stop the recording, an order to which he complied. The fleet was comprised of 15 different types of aircraft for a combined total of 40 aircraft, all decked out with SIGINT interception technology. The U.S. Army's Special Operations Forces Explained The Elite Within the Elite: A Guide to U.S. Special Forces America's Most Elite Special Forces - msn.com The most important thing to know is that intelligence drives "direct action" operations. The unit's history, the politics that have shaped it and the operations it has carried out are recounted in great and fascinating detail. The ISA consistently attaches itself to other units, either as a temporary or more permanent component. The ISA has gone by many name: Intelligence Support Activity or Mission Support Activity, and nicknamed The Activity, Task Force Orange . Subsequent, Task Force 121, a collection of special mission units and conventional forces organized a raid on a small farming compound in rural Iraq. So where are the pilots? USSOCOM receives, reviews, coordinates and prioritizes all Defense Department plans that support the global campaign against terrorism. A simultaneous raid on the targets was to be made. (Source). It is tasked to collect actionable intelligence in advance of missions by other US special operations forces . They were so adept that observers commented they could literally pluck information from the air, speaking not only to the revolutionary use of SIGINT but also the skill of the ISA. Featuring 931 new and updated case-based questions, organized into seven core areas of process design, this Self-Assessment will help you identify areas in which . FOG was developed because of a perceived need for greater intelligence-gathering capabilities for the U.S. military. An investigation by journalist Mark Bowden (author of Blackhawk Down) revealed that in 1989, the Colombian government asked for US help in tracking down Escobar. ISA intelligence specialists, K9 units, security experts and demolition experts were sent to the country undercover as military advisers. Most officials disliked the unit's head, Jerry King, and thus, JSOC did not send the unit in. (Source) At the time, the Salvadoran Army was facing attacks from leftist groups and more lethal right-wing death squads. ODSO/FOG overcame much of this through replication of capability generously funded and supported by CIA. Prior to Saddams capture, over 40 members of his family were captured and interrogated to determine his whereabouts with little success. (Source) These collectively will compose some of the roles within a primary battalion of the ISA. Additionally, these operative can remotely turn on a cellphone thats been turned off, which allows them to hear everything going on near it. Bickering between the CIA and JSOC further complicated matters. The ISA's HUMINT collectors gather information from human sources via coercion and interrogation depending on the asset. Operatives infiltrated internet cafes in Baghdad and conducted flyover operations in aircraft filled with signal interception gear. FOG became permanent and renamed ISA on March 3, 1981. 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Intelligence Support Activity - Role The Activity's primary role is to gather actionable intelligence in order to pave the way for special operations undertook by units such as Delta Force (known as 'operational preparation of the battlespace'). With the expansion, the FOG has renamed the ISA and officially established as a unit on January 29th, 1981. It is known that the unit has changed its codename over the years. Operatives must also go unnoticed, being able to blend into crowds and not draw attention. ISA agents even managed to obtain Lebanese license plates, which would allow Delta to be parachuted in with their own cars, then 'legitimized' with the plates. October 16, 2020 They are known by many names: Task Force Orange; the Intelligence Support Activity; The Activity; the Army of Northern Virginia; the Field Operations Group (FOG); the United States Army Intelligence Support Activity, or just shortened to Intelligence Support Activity (USISA). Cake duty! Meyer was determined that no future SOF OP with Army forces would be conducted absent credible quality CIA/DOD/NSA and Army intelligence. "In May 1982, Deputy Secretary of Defense Frank Charles Carlucci III called the ISA 'uncoordinated and uncontrolled.' var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); Delta Force | Once they arrived they took pictures of the embassy from every angle, recorded the types of locks on all doors, inside and outside, recorded the number of windows and exits, and created a blueprint of the building. On the one occasion where he accompanied DSCOPS representatives to the Hill for a closed classified session regarding FOG activities, he voiced his concern regarding management, where the Committee Chairman, in plain, but polite language, told him that the Committee was satisfied with the arrangements. 75th Rangers Working for CIA : Military - reddit (amazon.com), " Veritas Omnia Vincula Vincit Had the force been aware of the actual hostage location and situation, the force could have continued past Desert One and probably succeeded. _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-21361708-1']); Years before its actual formation, the need for the ISA, or an operational entity like it, was already being examined. But, ISA also sponsored a private rescue mission by Vietnam War veteran Bo Gritz, providing him with thousands of dollars worth of communications equipment, cameras, along with plane tickets and intelligence photos. To lawyers, this is a distinction with a difference. Establishing cover as husband and wife to live in and conduct intelligence collection missions within a target country. Check, chief! and she yanked the gat our of my hand. Zones are prepared, field intelligence is gathered, and targets are laid out for other forces. While driving through northern Lebanon, Cowan and his mates suffered several close calls with Syrian roadblocks and patrols. In the 1980s, extremist parties on both sides of the political spectrum plagued Italy. The mission support teams help actualize the other major goal of supporting other forces in a battlespace. and other specialized capabilities to support Army, joint, unified action partners, and the U.S. intelligence commu-nity. Highly detailed knowledge of an infiltration location is also key. This intelligence then triangulated the possible location of Dozier. Meaning that the government of the country these troops are operating in known that they work for the US government, however they dont necessarily know that theyre a spy. ". The Chiefs planning element determined that DOD/Army needed to create a Joint Army-CIA force that would both develop quality intelligence abroad, but also provide site support for direct action operations. The FOG was re-named the Intelligence Support Activity (ISA), and given an initial budget of $7 million. The moronic mandarins merely blinked and nothing more. The mandarins had inexplicably turned and ran south back to our home base leaving no rear guard for the main body. He tasked them to install a clandestine video camera (clandcam) framed such that it would record all the license plates of all vehicles turning down a specifically designated road. He later commanded both the 1/75th Rangers and the 1st Ranger Training Brigade. Kay-Kay and I sat at a table jamming some 12 magazines and chatting over our actions at our blocking position. Both the CSA and the Director understood that each offered something the other did not and that together, a much better response capability could be generateda point that POTUS emphasized through the National Security Council to both. "On December 17, 1981, Colonel James Dozier, the highest ranking American army officer in the NATO southern European Command was kidnapped by members of the Red Brigade terrorist faction. ISA operators were said to be so skilled that they could tell whether a tank needed a tune-up from background noise of transmissions. They skillfully pushed the car down the dirt driveway and out onto the hardball road a-ways where they could hot-wire and start the car without being heard by the slumbering princesses in the safe house. During the period leading up to the engagement, as well as potentially during the infamous Battle of Takur Ghar (aka the Battle of Roberts Ridge), ISA operators conducted aggressive SIGINT operations, intercepting enemy communications and feeding them to allied forces. Intelligence Support Activity | Military Wiki | Fandom He had literally tried to muscle open the lock with tools designed for a sincerely delicate operation. This has been more visible in their operations in Afghanistan, Operation Winter Harvest and Operation Queens Hunter. Well, ok we arrived at just around 1630hrs and the mandarin began. The ISA considers ethnicity of agents when they are deployed. The unit's missions range from Latin America, fighting communist guerrillas and drugs barons, to Africa, the Middle East and central Asia, tracking down terrorists. In line with their proficiency in infiltration, they had an array of passports, credit cards and falsified documents to allow easy movement between territories. They were never used. On the ground, these operatives can use a directional antenna programmed to pick up a specific cellphones signal, even if it was turned off, providing Delta Force with a target building to raid. The Department of Defense in 1965 outlined its need to be more involved with collecting intelligence, supported by Robert McNamara. Electronic specialists and SIGINT operators comprised part of the force. Enterprise Scalable Data Center Groundbreaking Ceremony The eventual shootout that ended Pablos life may not have directly involved the ISA, however, its efforts certainly aided in the eventual locating and killing of the cartel boss. Under Operation Winter Harvest, a small team of Delta Force technicians was dispatched to Italy to provide assistance with the search for Dozier. The ISA differs from its brother and sister task forces in that it is not primarily a combat-oriented team, excelling in HUMINT and SIGINT operations that allow it to provide extremely valuable intelligence to other military elements. According to The Secret War by William M. Arkin, published in the Los Angeles Times on October 27, 2002, "The Army created a highly compartmentalized organization that could collect clandestine intelligence independent of the rest of the U.S. intelligence community and follow through with covert military action. ISA members conducted extensive interviews with Special Forces members in the country, Lebanese Army and CIA and embassy officials. It was agreed that FOG would be a Joint organization and roles and tasks were developed for eachalways mindful of the Title 10/50 issues. A vehicle on time and on target rolled through the barricade. I delivered the unemotional skinny to the Cantor who neither commented nor looked up from his work. Case officers also target and recruit potential assets. "Gray Fox's low-profile eavesdropping planes also fly without military markings. Each chapter of the book brings a new chapter of the Activity's operations like Lebanon, where its efforts to rescue US hostages was stymied by its own government or Bosnia where it hunted down war criminals. The rescue force was forced to launch with sketchy data forcing a worst-case force list. The vast majority of the ISAs operations in Afghanistan are still classified. "Apparently, ISA's direct action element was also put on alert during the hijacking of the Italian cruise ship, Achille Lauro. The exact breakdown of this squadron isnt known, however it is a reasonable assumption that its divided into troops based on the specific mission, such as airborne SIGINT or ground SIGINT. (Source) Operatives must not look out of placeor easily recognizable. This page was last edited on 1 April 2008, at 06:57. Deployed together with a small Delta Force contingent, Centra Spike flew over Colombia in their airplanes and continued to track Escobar. "The government realized the importance of the FOG. In the aftermath, the FOG was hard at work gathering intelligence in Iran in preparation for Operation Credible Sport, the second attempt to rescue the hostages. Two task forces of JSOC took part in the search and rescue operations, Delta Force and a detachment of the ISA. Be sure to get the latest news about the U.S. military, as well as critical info about how to join and all the benefits of service. The unit exists in an altered form today, but it is an example as to how the USG can effectively mix Title 10 and 50 rules to achieve a common end and how conventional bureaucracies can stifle needed imaginative resolutions. The direct action element reportedly trains with Delta Force and DEVGRU to maintain their skills. Each of these groups achieves different specialised tasks for their assigned mission. Sound Like You? Samuel is a King's College graduate with an MA in War Studies. The ACSI, LTG Odom, strongly objected to the authority lines for FOG and asked Meyer to switch the Army portion from DCSOPS to the ACSI. The decision was made to deploy another ISA unit. The capture was to happen as he would be heading south to the city of Vlasenica. (Source). Working closely with Special Forces and the CIA, Gray Fox also places operatives inside hostile territory. The operation, code-named Great Falcon, made a deal with the Iraqi government for a T-72, in exchange for 175mm cannons. Intelligence Support Activity - Role The Activity's primary role is to gather actionable intelligence in order to pave the way for special operations undertook by units such as Delta Force (known as 'operational preparation of the battlespace'). The specialists, nicknamed 'knob turners' operated sophisticated electronic eavesdropping equipment located in the back cabin of specially-outfitted Seaspray Beechcraft 100 airplanes. Killer Elite: The Inside Story of America's Most Secret Almost simultaneously, another truck bomb exploded in the French barracks, killing 56. Everyone in the unit is on on the Department of the Armys Special Roster, which means they dont exist. For obvious reasons, the unit doesnt exactly publicize their makeup. Along with reviewing the security and organization again, ISA was also tasked with formulating plans for reprisals against the Syrians who had shot down two US fighters. So there they were sitting in our Tactical Operations Center in Bosnia waiting to be integrated into our PIFWC hunting operations. Direct action (military) - Wikipedia Operatives can covertly enter enemy buildings to plant cameras. Retired Army Col. Paris Davis stood in the White House as President Biden draped the Medal of Honor around his neck, nearly Chief Special Warfare Operator Michael T. Ernst died following a "military freefall training accident" on Feb. 19 in Marana Lt. Col. Collin Charlie Christopherson, the commander of the 1st Special Operations Maintenance Squadron, was arrested How much do you know about the morale machine that's been deploying with U.S. troops since WWII?