The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy's primary special operations force and a component of the Naval Special Warfare Command. Among the SEALs' main functions are conducting small-unit special operation missions in maritime, jungle, urban, arctic, mountainous, and desert environments. SEALs are typically ordered to capture or kill high level targets, or to gather intelligence behind enemy lines. SEAL team personnel are hand selected, highly trained, and possess a high degree of proficiency in direct action (DA), and special reconnaissance (SR), among other tasks like sabotage, demolition, intelligence gathering, and hydro-graphic reconnaissance, training, and advising friendly militaries or other forces.
Commodore was an early title and later a rank in the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard and the Confederate States Navy, and also has been a rank in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps and its ancestor organizations. For over two centuries, the designation has been given varying levels of authority and formality.
Albert Melrose Calland III was a vice admiral in the United States Navy who was the deputy director for Strategic Operational Planning at the National Counterterrorism Center and commander of Naval Special Warfare Command from 2002 to 2004. He also previously served as Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency from July 2005 to July 2006 and commanded the Naval Special Warfare Development Group from 1997 to 1999.
Joseph Devereux Kernan is a retired United States Navy vice admiral and the former under secretary of defense for intelligence. His last military assignment was serving as the military deputy commander of the United States Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM), Miami, Florida, from May 23, 2011, to September 2013. He was the second-in-command of one of nine unified commands under the Department of Defense.
Eric Thor Olson is a retired United States Navy admiral who last served as the eighth Commander, U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) from July 2, 2007 to August 8, 2011. He previously served as Deputy Commander, U.S. Special Operations Command from 2003 to July 2007. Olson was the first Navy SEAL ever to be appointed to three-star and four-star flag rank, as well as the first naval officer to be USSOCOM's combatant commander. He took command from Army General Bryan D. Brown in 2007. Brown and Olson had served together at the SOCOM headquarters in Tampa for four years. He retired from active duty on August 22, 2011 after over 38 years of service. He relinquished command of SOCOM to Admiral William H. McRaven the same day.
The Naval Special Warfare Development Group (NSWDG), abbreviated as DEVGRU and commonly known as SEAL Team Six, is the United States Navy component of the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC). The unit is often referred to within JSOC as Task Force Blue. DEVGRU is administratively supported by Naval Special Warfare Command and operationally commanded by JSOC. Most information concerning DEVGRU is designated as classified, and details of its activities are not usually commented on by either the United States Department of Defense or the White House. Despite the official name changes, "SEAL Team Six" remains the unit's widely recognized moniker.
Brian Lee Losey is a retired rear admiral of the United States Navy. He headed the Naval Special Warfare Command from 2013 until his retirement in 2016. Losey is a native of Tacoma, Washington.
In the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (USPHS), and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps, captain is the senior-most commissioned officer rank below that of flag officer. The equivalent rank is colonel in the United States Army, Air Force, Space Force, and Marine Corps.
Scott P. Moore, is a retired Rear Admiral of the United States Navy. Moore is a former member of SEAL Team TWO and previously served as commanding officer of the Naval Special Warfare Development Group from 2007 to 2009. He is an Admiral Circle member for the exhibit SEAL: The Unspoken Sacrifice. He is active in the Navy SEAL Foundation.
Philip Gardner Howe III is a retired United States Navy vice admiral and Navy SEAL. His assignment prior to retirement in 2019 was associate director for military affairs at the Central Intelligence Agency. He previously served as the 55th President of the Naval War College, and was the first SEAL officer to hold this assignment. Prior to that, Howe was the Commander, Special Operations Command Pacific.
Timothy Gerard "Tim" Szymanski is a retired United States Navy vice admiral who last served as deputy commander of United States Special Operations Command from October 15, 2018 to December 2021. He is the former commander of United States Naval Special Warfare Command in Coronado, California.
Edward G. Winters III is a retired United States Navy rear admiral who commanded the Naval Special Warfare Command from Sept. 2008 to June 2011. He also previously served as commanding officer of the Naval Special Warfare Development Group from 2003 to 2005.
Raymond Charles Smith Jr. was a United States Navy rear admiral who commanded the Naval Special Warfare Command from 1992 to 1996.
Alexander L. Krongard is a retired United States Navy SEAL. He retired from the United States Navy as a rear admiral in 2016 after 31 years of military service. He served as the Deputy Commander of United States Africa Command and previously commanded Naval Special Warfare Group ONE.
Thomas R. Richards is a retired United States Navy rear admiral who commanded the Naval Special Warfare Command from 1996 to 1999.
Keith Bently Davids is an American United States Navy special warfare officer with the rank of rear admiral. He has served as the commander of Naval Special Warfare Command since August 19, 2022. He was the commander of U.S. Special Operations Command South, United States Southern Command from 2020 to 2022. Previously, he served as director of the White House Military Office during the Presidency of Donald Trump. Earlier in his career, he was commanding officer of the Naval Special Warfare Center and SEAL Team One.
Colin James Kilrain is a retired United States Navy vice admiral who last served as the assistant to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from October 20, 2021 to February 2023. He previously served as the associate director for military affairs (ADMA) for the Central Intelligence Agency from 2019 to 2021. He is the former commander of Special Operations Command Pacific and Naval Special Warfare Group Two.
Milton James "Jamie" Sands III is a United States Navy rear admiral and Navy SEAL who has served as the chief of staff of United States Special Operations Command since August 2023. He most recently served as the commander of Special Operations Command Africa from July 1, 2021 to July 21, 2023. Prior to that he served as commander of the Naval Service Training Command from April 25, 2019 to May 27, 2021. Prior to that, he served as vice president of the Joint Special Operations University from 2018 to 2019, with prior tours as commodore of Naval Special Warfare Group 2 from 2016 to 2018 and commander of Seal Team 8.
Frank Mitchell Bradley is a United States Navy vice admiral who serves as the commander of Joint Special Operations Command since August 10, 2022. He most recently served as the Commander of Special Operations Command Central from July 20, 2020 to July 1, 2022. Previously, he served as the Assistant Commander of the Joint Special Operations Command from 2018 to 2020.
