GRUMEC

Last updated
Combat Divers Group
Grupamento de Mergulhadores de Combate
Brasao do Grupamento de Mergulhadores de Combate (GRUMEC) - Marinha do Brasil.png
"Ordem do Tubarão" (Order of the Shark) Insignia
Active10 March 1998;26 years ago (1998-03-10) [1]
CountryFlag of Brazil.svg  Brazil
AllegianceSubmarine Force Command
BranchFlag of the Brazilian Navy.svg Brazilian Navy
Type Special forces
Role
SizeClassified
Garrison/HQMocanguê Grande Island, Niterói, RJ
Nickname(s)"Tubarões" (Sharks)
Motto(s)Fortuna Audaces Sequitur ("Fortune follows the brave")
Engagements
Insignia
GRUMEC Brief Breve do Grupamento de Mergulhadores de Combate (GRUMEC) - Marinha do Brasil.png

The Combat Divers Group (Portuguese : Grupamento de Mergulhadores de Combate), abbreviated to GRUMEC, is a special operations and counterterrorism unit of the Brazilian Navy. Their main attributions include tasks such as reconnaissance, sabotage, hostage rescue and the elimination of targets of strategic value in maritime and riverine environments.

Contents

Subordinate to the Submarine Force Command, GRUMEC teams can be deployed from one of the Navy's vessels as well as via rotary-wing and fixed-wing aircraft, mini-submarines, kayaks, via diving or in inflatable boats that can be launched from the submarine while it is still under water. [7]

A member of the force is known as a "MEC", which is an abbreviation of "mergulhador de combate", meaning "combat diver".

History

GRUMEC operators during ASPIRANTEX 2019. GLAM - WEB Aspirantex 2019 (40061266673).jpg
GRUMEC operators during ASPIRANTEX 2019.

GRUMEC's history dates back to 1964, when two officers and two seamen of the Brazilian Navy passed the US's UDT-SEALs course. From their experience, the Divisão de Mergulhadores de Combate (Combat Divers Division) was created in 1970 at the Almirante Castro e Silva Base. Two years later, two officers and three seamen were sent to France, where they passed the "Nageurs de Combat" course. Mixing the French techniques, which focused on diving, with the American doctrine, which also emphasized land operations, the Curso Especial de Mergulhador de Combate (Special Combat Diver Course) was created in 1974, at what is now the Centro de Instrução e Adestramento Almirante Áttila Monteiro Aché (CIAMA). [8]

With the increasing demand for combat divers that followed, this Combat Divers Division was transformed into the Grupo de Mergulhadores de Combate (Combat Divers Group) in 1983, becoming subordinate to the Submarine Force Command. On 12 December 1997, the Grupamento de Mergulhadores de Combate (Combat Divers Group) was created, being activated in the 10th of March 1998. [1]

Selection

GRUMEC operator firing a HK416 A5 GRUMEC - Grupamento de Mergulhadores de Combate (52068989898).jpg
GRUMEC operator firing a HK416 A5

The Brazilian Navy Combat Diver's indoctrination and training methods are similar to other combat diver units such as the American SEALs, British SBS (Special Boat Service) or the Commando Hubert of the French Navy Commandos Marine.

For officers of the Navy, the initial requirements include passing medical and psychological examinations, testing in a recompression chamber and arduous physical tests. The call CAMECO (Enhancement Course of Combat Diver for Officers) lasts 46 weeks, is divided into four phases and aims to enable the military to operate diving equipment, weapons, explosives, tactics and techniques used for unconventional warfare and conflict low intensity, enabling them to perform, in short, the various types of Special Operations. Officers, of course, special emphasis is given to planning operations, but as a whole, the materials include: physical training and military defense; hygiene and first aid campaign, self-contained open-circuit, fighting techniques, riverine operations, demolition, weapons, communications, shore reconnaissance, submarine special operations, military planning process and case study, contemporary management, leadership; introduction to microcomputers, communications system of the Navy, and Intelligence.

For enlisted (corporals or male sergeants with less than 30 years of age and able to reenlist), there is a C-ESP-MEC - Combat Divers Special Course, whose requirements for admission are the same as CAMECO. The duration is 45 weeks of instructional activities also drawn as to the officers, but those who endure the enormous physical and mental pressure of the course will be adequately prepared for the specialized tasks assigned to MECS. GRUMEC training is the longest among Brazilian special operations forces. [8] [9]

Operators deploying from Tapajo. GRUMEC 5 (26308832973).jpg
Operators deploying from Tapajó.

C-ESP-MEC is divided in three steps, named Alpha, Bravo and Charlie.

One of the last tests for GRUMEC candidates involves a 16 km swim, to be taken in pairs and using sidestroke, from Ilha Grande to Angra dos Reis. The pair of swimmers, meant to motivate each other during the crossing, is the inspiration for the GRUMEC unit pin depicting two sharks. [10]

After graduating the course, the sailor is called to serve in GRUMEC, where he has a full complement of training program and conduct advanced courses and internships in various areas such as deactivation of explosive devices (EOD), basic skydiving (static line jump), jumpmaster, HALO jump, HALO jumpmaster, precursor paratrooper (PREC), folding, maintenance and supplies by air (DOMPSA) stage basic mountaineering course in jungle operations, operational stage in the Pantanal, stage sniper (sniper), among others.

Attributions

MECs conduct boarding demonstrations during Operation Guinex III. Operacao Guinex III - 2023 - 53189230095.jpg
MECs conduct boarding demonstrations during Operation Guinex III.

Often operating out of the Navy's vessels, GRUMEC is present in most of the fleet's activities. Domestically, the group often takes part in training exercises that involve boarding vessels and oil platforms, as well as riverine operations in the Pantanal and Amazon. [1] GRUMEC took part in United Nations peacekeeping operations in Haiti and Lebanon. In the Brazilian Navy's contribution to the UNIFIL Maritime Task Force, the operators were responsible for boarding potentially armed vessels entering Lebanese territorial waters and instructing the Lebanese Navy on how to perform these types of operations. [4] [3]

GRUMEC also instructs and contributes to the Brazilian Navy's Grupo de Visita e Inspeção (Visit and Inspection Group), responsible for inspecting vessels in the Brazilian EEZ. [1] Since 2021, combat divers aboard ships such as Independência, União and Liberal were also tasked with training Navy and Coast Guard personnel from partner nations such as Equatorial Guinea, Ivory Coast, São Tomé e Príncipe, Cameroon, Nigeria and Cape Verde in the Gulf of Guinea as part of Brazil's effort against piracy in the region. [5] [6] [11]

The group often trains alongside other frogman units from friendly countries, such as other Latin American operators or in Joint Combined Exchange Trainings (JCETs) with the U.S. Navy SEALs. [12] [13] [14] [15] [16]

Structure

Though largely classified, GRUMEC is reportedly composed of three special operations divisions, responsible for conducting activities such as special reconnaissance and direct action, and one Special Rescue and Recovery Group, designated as GERR-MEC (Grupo Especial de Retomada e Resgate - Mergulhador de Combate), responsible for high-complexity operations such as hostage rescue in environments such as ships and oil rigs.

MECs may only join GERR-MEC after having years of experience in the unit. [17] [18]

See also

Related Research Articles

The Brazilian Navy is the naval service branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces, responsible for conducting naval operations.

USS <i>Hermitage</i> (LSD-34)

USS Hermitage (LSD-34) was a Thomaston-class dock landing ship of the United States Navy. She was named for The Hermitage, President Andrew Jackson's estate just outside Nashville, Tennessee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clearance diver</span> Navy diver specialist with explosives

A clearance diver was originally a specialist naval diver who used explosives underwater to remove obstructions to make harbours and shipping channels safe to navigate, but the term "clearance diver" was later used to include other naval underwater work. Units of clearance divers were first formed during and after World War II to clear ports and harbours in the Mediterranean and Northern Europe of unexploded ordnance and shipwrecks and booby traps laid by the Germans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parker-Hale M85</span> Weapon

The Parker Hale M85 is a British bolt-action .308 sniper rifle, with an effective range around 900 metres. It fires from a 10-round detachable magazine, and weighs 12 pounds, telescopic sight included. The rifle was created after the Falklands War by Parker Hale Ltd in response to shortcomings in the contemporary Lee–Enfield L42A1. Although the Parker Hale M85 manufacturing licence was sold to Gibbs Rifle Co., it has not yet resumed production.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brazilian Marine Corps</span> The land combat branch of the Brazilian Navy

The Brazilian Marine Corps is the Brazilian Navy's naval infantry component. It relies on the fleet and Naval Aviation and fields its own artillery, amphibious and land armor, special operations forces and other support elements. Its operational components are the Fleet Marine Force, under the Naval Operations Command, in Rio de Janeiro, and Marine Groups and Riverine Operations Battalions, under the Naval Districts in the coast and the Amazon and Platine basins. The FFE, with a core of three infantry battalions, is its seagoing component.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Portuguese Marine Corps</span> Military unit

The Portuguese Marine Corps constitutes the Elite Marine Commandos and the Special Operations Branch of the Portuguese Navy. It has roles similar to the ones of the USMC Reconnaissance Battalions and of the Royal Marine Commandos and the 75th Ranger Regiment The Corps is specialised in air assault, amphibious warfare, anti-tank warfare, coastal reconnaissance and raiding, commando style raids, counterinsurgency, desert warfare, indirect fire support raiding, irregular warfare, ISTAR, jungle warfare, maneuver warfare, maritime interdiction, mountain warfare, providing security at naval base or shore stations, reconnaissance for gathering military intelligence, support special operations, tracking targets, urban warfare, and VBSS operations. It is an Elite Marine Commando Force, operating as a rapid-reaction force. Today's Corpo de Fuzileiros is the premier raid force. The Fuzileiros remains an all-volunteer force with an intensive screening and selection process followed by combat-focused training. Fuzileiros are resourced to maintain exceptional proficiency, experience and readiness.

The Divers Group is the Portuguese Navy's sapper clearance diver unit. It was created in 2004 through the grouping of the several already existing diving subunits, to exercise administrative, logistical and operational control and management, maritime special operations capable, over all diver units and personnel. It groups under a single command, all previously existing Sappers Divers Units and Services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States military divers</span> Underwater divers employed by the US armed forces

The US employs divers in several branches of the armed forces, including the navy, army, marines, air force and coast guard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brazilian Naval Aviation</span> Military unit

The Brazilian Naval Aviation is the air component of the Brazilian Navy, currently called Força Aeronaval. Most of its air structure is subordinated to the Naval Air Force Command, the military organization responsible for providing operational air support from Navy vessels, while four squadrons are subordinated to the Naval Districts, responsible for inland and coastal waters. ComForAerNav is headquartered at the Naval Air Base of São Pedro da Aldeia, where all aircraft fleet level maintenance is carried out and where the Aeronaval Instruction and Training Center is located, which forms its staff. Its pilots, all officers with one to three years of prior naval experience, fly its helicopters, airplanes and Remotely Piloted Aircraft as extensions of the ships' weaponry and sensors.

The Planalto Military Command is one of the eight Military Commands of the Brazilian Army. The Planalto Military Command is responsible for the defense of the state Goiás, most of the state of Tocantins, the Federal District with the capital Brasília, and the Triângulo Mineiro region of the state of Minas Gerais.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">COMANF</span> Brazilian Marine Corps special operations force

The Marine Corps Special Operations Battalion, also known as Tonelero Battalion or Amphibious Commandos (COMANF), is a special operations battalion of the Brazilian Marine Corps. Its attributes include planning, conducting and executing special reconnaissance, direct action, counterterrorism and hostage rescue operations in support of Brazilian Marine Corps operations.

Brazilian submarine <i>Álvaro Alberto</i> Brazilian nuclear submarine

Álvaro Alberto, Brazil's first nuclear-powered submarine, is the fifth unit of the Riachuelo-class based on the French Scorpène-class and is part of a strategic partnership signed between France and Brazil on 23 December 2008 that created the Submarine Development Program. The submarine was named after the former Vice Admiral and scientist Álvaro Alberto da Motta e Silva, who was the responsible for the implementation of the country's nuclear program. He also served as President of the United Nations Atomic Energy Commission between 1946–47, and as President of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences for two terms.

Brazilian frigate <i>Liberal</i> Niterói-class Frigates

F Liberal (F-43) is a Niterói-class frigate of the Brazilian Navy. She was the fourth ship of her class ordered by the Brazilian Navy, on 20 September 1970. Liberal was launched on 7 February 1977, and was commissioned on 18 November 1978.

Brazilian frigate <i>Independência</i> Niterói-class Frigates

F Independência (F-44) is a Niterói-class frigate of the Brazilian Navy. The Independência was the fifth ship of her class ordered by the Brazilian Navy, on 20 September 1970. The Independência was launched on 2 September 1974, and was commissioned on 3 September 1979.

Brazilian submarine <i>Riachuelo</i> (S40) Brazilian submarine

Riachuelo (S40) is a Brazilian Riachuelo-class submarine built for the Brazilian Navy by DCNS in Cherbourg and ICN in Itaguaí, Brazil.

Brazilian submarine <i>Humaitá</i> (S41) Brazilian submarine

Humaitá (S41) is a Brazilian Riachuelo-class submarine built for the Brazilian Navy by ICN in Itaguaí, and DCNS.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Madeira Island Submarine Base</span> Submarine base of the Brazilian Navy

Madeira Island Submarine Base, commonly shortned BSIM is a submarine base of the Brazilian Navy, located in Itaguaí, Brazil.

<i>Riachuelo</i>-class submarine Brazilian class of submarines

The Riachuelo class are a Brazilian class of diesel-electric and nuclear-powered attack submarines developed by the state-owned shipyard Itaguaí Construções Navais, based on the French Scorpène-class as part of the Submarine Development Program.

Brazilian submarine <i>Tonelero</i> (S42) Brazilian submarine

Tonelero (S42) is the third unit of Riachuelo-class submarine built for the Brazilian Navy by ICN in Itaguaí, and DCNS.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "10 de Março: Dia do Mergulhador de Combate" (in Portuguese). Defesa Aérea e Naval. 10 March 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  2. "NDD Rio de Janeiro - G 31" (in Portuguese). naval.com.br. Archived from the original on 12 December 2022. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
  3. 1 2 "Brasil manda grupo de elite da Marinha para o Líbano" (in Portuguese). Folha de S. Paulo. 9 October 2011. Archived from the original on 25 January 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  4. 1 2 Dramatic boarding exercise with the Lebanese Navy and UNIFIL MTF (YouTube). UNIFIL. 16 May 2017. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  5. 1 2 "Fragata "Independência" realiza Operação "Guinex-I"" (in Portuguese). Brazilian Navy. 23 August 2021. Archived from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  6. 1 2 "Guinex-II: operação no Golfo da Guiné visa aumentar a segurança marítima no Atlântico Sul" (in Portuguese). Agência Marinha de Notícias. 18 June 2022. Archived from the original on 25 September 2022. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  7. "Combat Divers' Group: The Brazilian Navy's Elite Unit". Diálogo Américas. 21 January 2019. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "(C-ESP-MEC)" (in Portuguese). Centro de Instrução e Adestramento Almirante Áttila Monteiro Aché. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023.
  9. "GRUMEC: Mergulhadores de Combate, o que é, função e mais!" (in Portuguese). Estratégia Militares. 23 February 2023. Archived from the original on 25 February 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  10. Fala Glauber Podcast (21 December 2021). MEC 130 (MERGULHADOR MILITAR GRUMEC)! Fala Glauber Podcast #62 (YouTube) (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  11. Operação Guinex II (in Portuguese). Brazilian Navy. 27 July 2022. Archived from the original on 7 July 2023. Retrieved 7 July 2023.
  12. "Intercâmbio entre COMANF, GRUMEC E US Navy Seals é realizado no Batalhão "Tonelero"" (in Portuguese). Brazilian Navy. 17 December 2020. Archived from the original on 19 December 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  13. "Forças Especiais SEALs, GRUMEC e COT e os seus equipamentos" (in Portuguese). DefesaNet. 25 April 2016. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  14. "GRUMEC realiza adestramentos com equipe SEAL da Marinha dos Estados Unidos da América" (in Portuguese). DefesaNet. 5 June 2014. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  15. "BR-US: Tonelero e GRUMEC treinam com os US NAVY SEALS" (in Portuguese). DefesaNet. 17 May 2019. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  16. "Operadores de Forças Especiais da Marinha do Brasil treinam com Navy SEALs dos EUA" (in Portuguese). Brazilian Navy. 22 May 2019. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  17. "GRUMEC – as Forças Especiais da Marinha do Brasil". Defesa Aérea e Naval. 12 June 2013. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  18. "GERR-MEC – Grupo Especial de Retomada e Resgate, do Grupamento de Mergulhadores de Combate" (in Portuguese). DefesaNet. 1 December 2013. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.