The government and Ministry of Defence (MOD) have a policy of not commenting on the UKSF, in contrast to other countries including the United States, Canada, and Australia.[11][12] In 1996, the UKSF introduced a requirement that serving members sign a confidentiality contract preventing them from disclosing information for life without the prior approval of the MOD, following the publication of several books written by ex-service members.[13][14]
Special Forces Flight, No. 47 Squadron RAF which operated the Lockheed C-130 Hercules aircraft was formerly part of the UKSF.[23][24] No. 47 Squadron RAF was disbanded in September 2023 after the Hercules was retired from service in June 2023.[25][26]
Component units
The following units are part of UK Special Forces and UK Special Forces (Reserve).
The Armed Forces have raised special operations-capable forces that will conduct special operations to train, advise and accompany UK partner countries' forces in high threat environments.[31] These forces do not form part of UKSF.[10]
The Army formed the Ranger Regiment on 1 December 2021 within a new brigade, the Army Special Operations Brigade, established on 31 August 2021, that will take on some tasks traditionally done by special forces and work with partner forces.[32][33] The Ranger Regiment's battalions are to be restructured by April 2023.[32] The Chief of the Defence Staff has said that the Ranger Regiment will be similar to the United States Army Special Forces, known as the "Green Berets".[34][35] Two of the four Ranger Regiment battalions will be deployed to Africa, the third will focus on Eastern Europe and the fourth will be deployed to the Middle East.[36]
The Royal Navy is changing the Royal Marines through the Future Commando Force concept, adapting their role of amphibious infantry held at readiness to a versatile special operations–capable force.[37][38] The Marines will often be permanently deployed in two new Littoral Response Groups, with one in Northern Europe and the other in the Indian Ocean.[39]
^Secretary of State for Defence Geoffrey Hoon (14 January 2002). "Special Forces". UK Parliament. House of Commons Hansard. Archived from the original on 25 April 2010. Retrieved 14 April 2010.
^Knowles, Emily (July 2016). Britain's culture of no comment (Report). London: Remote Control; Oxford Research Group. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
^Evans, Michael (4 October 1996). "SAS troops ordered to sign contracts banning memoirs". The Times. p. 6.
^Ripley, Tim (November 2015). "Order of Battle; Joint Special Forces Aviation Wing - The Royal Air Force in 2015 (Supplement)". AirForces monthly - Officially The World's Number One Military Aviation Magazine. No. 332. Bourne, Lincolnshire: Key Publishing Ltd. pp. 12, 14. ISSN0955-7091.
^Redshaw, Bernard (August 2005). "A New Royal Signals Unit"(PDF). The wire : The Magazine of the Royal Corps of Signals. Vol. 59, no. 4. Portsmouth: Holbrook Printers Ltd. ISSN1462-9259. Archived from the original(PDF) on 10 January 2007.