Diving Equipment Used by Navy SEALs

The Navy SEALs are recognized worldwide as an elite and formidable fighting force, capable of performing a variety of wartime operations in overly harsh environments and inhospitable conditions. Utilizing the latest weaponry the military has to offer, the once highly classified unit lives up to its acronymic namesake by fighting on the land and in the air, but a SEAL team's real playground is in the world's oceans. Specialized scuba gear is but one of the tools of the trade used by the teams to successfully complete missions.

  1. History

    • The SEALs trace their humble beginnings back to the dawn of the Vietnam War, when then President John F. Kennedy commissioned the Navy to introduce a special-ops group versed in all facets of guerrilla warfare. Taking a page from the Second World War's heroic frogmen, the SEALs used commercially available scuba equipment, which had since emerged as a burgeoning recreational sport. It was soon realized that the demands of the missions required equipment modifications to suit the needs of the SEALs.

    Types

    • The biggest difference in SEAL scuba gear is the breathing apparatus. Recreational divers use an open circuit breathing mechanism: When a submerged diver exhales though their mouthpiece, their breath forms air bubbles that float to the water's surface. Navy SEALs use a specially designed closed circuit unit called a re-breather that recycles a diver's air. Expelled air leaves the diver's mouth and enters a tube that leads to the apparatus that re-oxygenates the used air, effectively circulating the "new" air back to the diver.

    Features

    • Aside from the re-breather, other SEAL scuba gear doesn't differ much from commercially available equipment. Retail fins come in a variety of colors and designs, while SEAL fins are based on simplicity. Traditional fin paddles are preferred over split fins. Masks are generally black skirted and have either a dual or single lens design. For flotation, recreational divers use the BCD to control buoyancy. SEALs don a similar piece, though in the more traditional vest style.

    Function

    • The equipment differences serve a definitive purpose. By eliminating surfacing air bubbles with the closed circuit re-breather, the SEAL diver can infiltrate water bound enemy positions undetected by above water patrols. Part of a SEALs job is underwater demolitions of enemy structures or crafts, and the re-breather's lack of bubbles means no disturbance to a SEAL's field of vision when setting destructive charges. All gear is colored black to maintain a SEAL's concealment.

    Geography

    • SEALs have used their gear to great effect in the world's oceans and waterways for almost 50 years. Currently there are 10 SEAL teams commissioned by the Navy, strategically positioned across the U.S. for ease of deployment to a number of locations that serve U.S. interests. As the technology develops, SEALs will be provided with an almost limitless capability in maritime operations, further adding to their underwater gear.