Over the past six decades, the Britsh Army's Special Air Service Brigade-developed during World War II as a long-range commando unit to attack targets deep in enemy territory-has more than earned its reputation as the world's toughest fighting outfit. The SAS Combat Handbook is a action-packed guide to SAS tactics as well as those of other crack organizations, such as the U.S. Army's Delta Force and Green Berets.

Here you'll learn how to employ tried-and-tested combat tactics in hostile environments ranging from the Sahara to the Arctic.

Learn about:

Evasion, capture, and escape routines
Health and medical skills
Hijack and hostage rescue
Landings and raids in hostile territory
Navigation, combat tracking, and hazard avoidance
Wilderness survival (from improvising tools to finding food)

Also included are accounts of SAS actions worldwide, including key battles in Oman, the Falklands, and the Persial Gulf that reveal, in vivid gripping detail, the heroism and skill needed to become an elite soldier.

Jon E. Lewis, the editor of True World War I Tales (also available from The Lyons Press), is an expert in warfare and military history. He lives in England.

Contents

1 Elite units
The British Army Special Air Service Brigade (SAS)-Birth of a legend, N Africa 1941; SAS in South East Asia; The Australian SAS in Vietnam; With BATT in Oman; The Battle of Mirbat; The rescuers, Mogadish 1997; The Falklands War
American Army Special Forces-The Green Beret; Son Tay, Vietnam; Delta Force; Project Delta, Vietnam
Russian Army Special Forces-Spetnaz
2 Tactics and techniques
Arctic environments-Basic survival requirements; Food and drink; Elements for survival ; Travel in the Arctic; Avalanches; Transport; Arctic combat; Special operations
Desert environments-Desert sruvival; desert hazards; Emergency survival
Evasion, capture and escape-Equipment; Evading dogs; Evasion and capture; Ejecting behind enemy lines; Urban evasion; Jungle evasion; Interrogation; Surviving as a prisioner; Escape; The scud-hunters, SAS Iraq
Health and medical skills-Avoidable health risks; Sexually transmitted diseases; AIDS; Field sanitation; Health in cold conditions; Health in hot climates; First aid in combat; The four Bs; Resuscitation techniques; Controalling bleeding; Treating shock; Chest wounds; Treating abdominal wounds; Tackling burns; Fractures; Field first aid, improvisation; Casualty carrying techniques; Battle casualty evacuation
Hijacks and hostage rescue-Personal survival; Ending a hijack; Siege at Princess Gate, SAS London
Landings and raids on enemy territory-Aiborne landings; Waterborne landings; Submarine landing; River raiding; Raids and ambushes
Personal skills and techniques-Special forces personal protection; Personal camouflage and concealment; Vehicle camouflage; Booby traps; Mines; Navigation; River crossings; Combat tracking
Survival-Shelter; Making fire; Water; Food, plants; Preparing plants and fungi; Seashore food; Fish; Meat, trapping; Preserving food in the wild; Medicinal plants; Tools and equipment; Bows; Arrows; Shooting the bow; Spears
Index