41 thoughts on “PHOTOS: Marcos On Hostage Drill At Reliance Rig”
Kannan
Wow! Big improvement on Tactical helmet..better than embarassing bike helment by MARCOS in previous pics..H&KMP5 sucks..feels so outdated..why not P-90 or Micro-Tavor..
They look a little better kitted than the NSG. Helmets look way better than NSG's. Gloves & ballistic goggles are missing though. And i dont see an integrated comm unit.
Nice!! Still a little grouse left!!!!Eye protection. One NSG commando lost an eye in the Chabad House op due to a fragment.Ballistic eye protection would have given him a chance at least.
Its surprising that in the 3rd pic… while the guy on the left has a rifle with threads around its barrel looking like as if a last-min. repair, the guy on the extreme right in both the 2nd & 3rd pic has some optical device on his rifle.. and yes, most of them have those picatinny rails for mounting optical equipments which looks quite promising……. The clothes, without the gloves doesn't luk quite satisfying…. Seems as if this was some randomly bought clothes that was given 2 them….. But, happy that a least the navy is concerned about safety (& Appearance!!!!!!!) keeping in mind the knee pads, the helmets & the masks…… But as usual, still unfulfilled expectations from our beloved defence organisation!!!!!!!!
However I too do not understand that why they still use the H&KMP5. Is it indispensable or its utility value has increased with the changing times or it has been already purchased in excess.
The Marcos are no doubt the best but it would be better for all of us that we get our finest troops the equipment they most deserve & need to do their jobs.
As pointed by some of the friends on the blog through their comments , Marcos are lacking some very useful tools, kit that their western counterparts likely boast of in day today operations and training drills.
Such lack of equipment means putting lives of soldiers in needless danger.
I would like Mr.Shiv Aroor to come forward with suitable comments or posts ,whether we lack such procurement process or are their any background schemes running to get the troops the material they need.
I did not know that someone can take reliance oil rig as hostage. Thanks Shiv for letting the whole world to get an idea of taking hostage offshore oil rigs by publishing these kind of photos (not sure if you will "censor" this comment)
as usual..our best has crappy equipment…very sad…take any SWAT team in america and ull clearly see the difference..and SWAT is just an ordinary 'police' unit…..our guys can whip their ass anyday..surely they deserve better kit and equipment…sad…
Everyone rubbishes the MP5 ? why ? Its uncool? Its standard gear for practically every SF in the world. But I agree with the last Anon 3:24am – at least they could be maintained better / new ones could be bought. Once in Delhi I saw some Black Cats get out at a signal and assume a ready stance (for some passing Fat Cat) – all their MP5s had lost their black paint and at some places the metal could be seen.
i think that the marcos are luking n dere is no douut india is d best but i am not sure if d navy will b pleased to see these type of link,pics vids etc in d open
Everyone who speaks about MP-5 as a crap is a immature kiddo who doesnt know about the rifle`s capability but just know to criticize it just because it is old. As KVR says, MP-5 is a best standard rifle for special ops and specially for the maritime forces all over the world. Dont compare it with SWAT because SWAT only operates on land and it stands nowhere in front of MARCOS. And on land none of our SF operates with MP-5(hope you people can observe that). Lastly, no one on this earth has the right to say any nonsense about any war machine. Yes you can criticize the authorities responsible for its maintenance but not the machine.
To all above the gloves are at the waist where they should be after having served their purpose during the rappelling down from the sea king.
Chipped paint on the mp5; to me means that they are seeing some hard use. Alls well people, I would be more worried if they looked brand spanking new, Indicating a show for the cameras.
Yeah we got a long way to go by any measure but lets not worry about the paint, few days ago bike helmets were taking the place of ballistic helmets.
Viewers should know that MP5 is still considered as the best CQB weapon in spite of later variants emerging. Further its just not the MP5 the MARCOS are equipped with. This present mission needed a CQB.
Why is the color of Kneepads different from that of their uniform? Don't you think this may give away their "stealth"? IMHO, all their gear and eqp must have the same color and avoid white colored material as far as possible as this will give away a soldier's camouflage. As far as I know MP5s fire 9mm bullets which are not effective against heavy body armor. MP7 is much more lighter, smaller and fires armor piercing rounds.
Instead of black our naval special forces can switch to gray or steel gray color which blends much better with the surroundings. Black color is effective at night but in daytime it can be highly conspicuous.
Black and Yellow combination is the best to draw attention even in the dark. This is the reason why cabs have this black and yellow color combination. These guys have black color outfit emblazoned with bright yellow MARCOS symbol. This color combination again gives away their camouflage and will make them excellent targets. The fawn colored pistol holster again does something similar. All their gears and eqp must have the same color. In one of the pics of MARCOS we saw one guy wearing camouflaged outfit and carrying a black colored backpack with big white "Puma" logo. These are the things which gives away a soldier's position. This lackadaisical attitude also reeks of unprofessionalism which we saw during 26/11 attacks by few kids from Pakistan.
The boots that these guys are wearing how effective are they in a commando operation? They look quite heavy to me and they are likely to make heavy noise. I don't see any hands free communication devise. How will they communicate with one another? Their helmets lack provision for fitting night vision goggles.
To some poster….the gloves are not just meant for rappelling purposes……they are used to provide grip of the weapons they're holding on to in explosive situations which will leave them sweating profusely. Anyone notice the lack of color coordination on all these items? An uniform black color is preferred so that it blends in most environments which will usually be urban. The elbow and knee pads on some of these soldiers are misplaced above or below where they should be. As a result, it not only looks stupid but can cause some serious injury. Lack of protective googles…COME ON! If this is the best of India….geezus God save India! 2 Years later and the gov't still hasn't made adequate purchases or given more training. I can see rust on the ships as well. Look at how other navies perform top maintenance of their navies…..look at our adversaries. Stop defending, its time we take steps to prevent the criticism by solving these issues. A force that looks tough, will feel tough, and act tough! Like someone pointed out, in the US a tactical SWAT team is better prepared than our special forces wtf! Don't we have the common sense to place one person in the group to perform check on each soldier, making sure that they are all dressed properly at least.
Shiv, Half the guys posting comments here do not know what they are talking. Half baked knowledge at it best. How a commando wears a protection gear is being highlighted rather than appreciating that these picture show a major change in the combat dressing pattern of the marcos. Further the dress they wear may completely change in case they are doing HALO jumps. A gun for a commando is like a pet for him. One very important factor that makes a mission successful is the the equipment that these people use and how they treat their weapons as part of their own body. Let me mention to the benefit of those half baked posters that MARCOS is the only force in the world that lost only two lives in their entire existence of almost two decades. One more factor in all such operations is stealth hold a very minute portion. Its the speed that matters. Speed is the only factor that goes on improving in spite of stealth being compromised. By the way to the gentleman who wrote that MP5 bullets do not pierce armor, MP5 can also be loaded with Armour piercing rounds. They have proved very effective from close quarter. And by the way a good shot takes the forehead not the chest.
During daytime how will black color help you to blend with the environment particularly when you are at sea? In fact during daytime black color particularly in sea or on board a ship which is usually painted white, will make the soldier a sitting duck as terrorists and pirates can spot them from miles away. Nowadays logos and symbols are almost the same color as that of the dress. You don't have bright shiny logos on military dresses. From these few pics we can make out that our commandos have a long way to go. I don't know we practice with almost all the major and not so major forces of the world. Why don't we learn from them?
Marcos has such low official casualties bcoz officially you cannot declare the true figures. Btw, our major commando operations are against landlubber terrorists from mountain caves and sand dunes who loath water.Hence, our MARCOS have hardly been exposed to real combat situation. During 26/11 attacks, although the Naval base is literally a stone's throw away from Taj Hotel, yet our Marcos were nowhere in sight. Our NSG guards were waiting in the airport for BEST buses to ferry them to Taj. During Akshardham attack 2 terrorists managed to kill one commando apart from killing dozens of civilians. This actually proves that we have a long way to go. Our comments are not to bad mouth soldiers who are risking their lives. But, on the contrary we hope our views help them in minimizing casualties. Several of the commentators are complete laymen. What we are pointing out is out of common sense.
Lol @ Ram…..being patriot is great but it clouds your judgement completely. I have encountered this numerous times, where folks will blindly say India is better than the USA. When asked why they don't have a damn reason to support their claims. The loss of two soldiers is very significant but do you know other special forces activities and losses are kept completely secret. Not only does it affect morale, it is and should be a national secret. India's special forces have never operated outside of India. Other nations have, at least the US. Plz don;t be a fool. Theses guys look great compared to the other INDIAN forces but they are hardly comparable to 1st world nations. You said it in 2 decades they lost two lives, well consider the folks that they were fighting? Also, in these two decades till 26/11 look at their supplies and equipment. Pathetic. Why are other nations saying that 26/11 could've been completed with less loss of life? Because it could've been. We didn't want help coz it would affect the Indian as well our enemies psyche. Knowledge of weaponry is essential, but the way we messing up the basics it speaks volumes of our preparedness. Even this mock or staged exercise, are the soldiers actually conducting this with an opposing team. I highly doubt it otherwise no photographers should be present. We are only going to gain much needed and valuable info regarding tactics only if opposing teams fight each other, thus relying on the skill sets of individual soldiers to overcome situations and then all of them will learn from it. This is called Ingenuity or how you make the best of a bad situation. Sorry if I offended you but I call it how I see it and I don't sugar coat shit. Call a Spade a spade! If the Chinese and every other nation places great emphasis on "how we look", don;t you think we may be missing something! If your enemy thinks these guys are not prepared, it already gives them the higher ground. As for the weapons, they lack a lot of extra's and there is no excuse for the maintenance of these guns. When you are not in a combat situation, the guns should be well maintained no if's and's or but's!
Anon… well black at sea is a different matter I guess but in a Urban environment, this mash up of different colors makes our guys stick out like a sore thumb. I HARDLY THINK NAVAL SPECIAL FORCES WOULD DRESS IN WHITE. YOU ARE FORGOING A SF PHILOSOPHY, YOU ATTACK WHEN THE ODDS ARE IN YOUR FAVOR, SO NIGHT IS RIGHT! COME ON… YRS HAVE GONE BY AND IT LOOKS WE HAVE NOT LEARNED MUCH…..JUST DRESS UP AND POSE A LITTLE BETTER. One of the issues I see is that our forces lack exposure to the outside. I have tried to help but you have this mindset that I am an outsider. I even tried to join the INdian army but I am a foreign citizen. Most MOD officials will handsomely pay a "consultant" who would give some info but not not train individually with the soldiers. If you ask me, we should hire some well experienced mercenaries with proven battle experience. That could provide valuable insight. Out training with other SF's does hardly anything, because we need folks with the right mind state to ask certain questions instead of just saying "Yes sir" and copying what we are told to do. It comes to down to the INdian psych, not the folks with computers or access to computers but the ones who lack it. Their exposure is kept at a minimum at best, thus compounded by a "caste" mentality which creates slaves who don't beyond much what they re told to do. Once we shake these mental shackles off, the possibilities are endless. This requires more folks who love these types of sites to give up their day jobs and become professional soldiers and help our own. I tried, have you guys? I don;t think so! Let me point out something, when I lived in India for 3 years continuous in Bangalore back on 1998, I got myself a driver's license from Nagaland and I had access to AK-47's for 5,000 rupees! Dimapur Gun selling market was exposed by the news media after 11 years. Even now I know where to go to change my dollars to Indian rupees for a higher exchange rate (the dollars I suspect is being used to change black money to white) and this place is run by Kashmiris. I have always wanted to help India but its hard to find folks and the authorities are either scared of soon coming in to clean up shop or they're just too dumb to see a good thing.
Another final thought before I leave, most terrorist type of situations in Indian cities should be manned by a SWAT like team like the ones in US cities. Special forces should only be called as a last resort. But nothing won;t change unless our soldiers can shoot straight because as I read recently, they only get very little time with shooting a gun, usually once as a cop. God save India…..that should be our rallying cry. Sorry to be a meanie, but I write to wake you guys up to the crisis we face. At least on this site I see other folks who want to see a strong, defensive India. At least the operator of this site can pass on our thoughts to his connections and they can make improvements. PS Im still willing to join the Army if someone can help let me know. I am a foreign national of indian descent though!
Anonymous at 4.08pm: "Btw, our major commando operations are against landlubber terrorists from mountain caves and sand dunes who loath water.Hence, our MARCOS have hardly been exposed to real combat situation.". You need to brush up on the Kanekesunthurai jetty operation in Srilanka as well as clearing the coastal road operation outside Jaffna university. That is why i said half baked knowledge. Though both these ops are classified, the reported only in short paras in journals, it speaks of the the world most dreaded terrorist out fit like LTTE was ripped apart. "During 26/11 attacks, although the Naval base is literally a stone's throw away from Taj Hotel, yet our Marcos were nowhere in sight." One more half baked statement. MARCOS wwre the first to enter and kept the militants tied till the NSG Arrived. It was reported in news channels. "During Akshardham attack 2 terrorists managed to kill one commando apart from killing dozens of civilians." Every terrorist attack takes it toll. The reason is the terrosist willing ness to cause maximum damage at the cost of life. On other hand Spl Forces have to invest a lot of restraint and wait for appropriate chance, The reason why one NSG was killed in Akshrdham was, due to a deliberate brave effort of NSG of walking in the open to attract fire from terrorist so that their position could be spotted, Have you ever heard of such a thing happening event with the Israelies. Lets no undermine the effort of our spl forces.
to timmy p: "India's special forces have never operated outside of India" – Best bluff in the entire discussion. There are acknowledged records of overseas operations atleast in 7 countries. Please, please read before you write. "Theses guys look great compared to the other INDIAN forces but they are hardly comparable to 1st world nations." Though the MARCOS initial training was done with SEALS, Marcos is the only unit that operates in Murkier waters. The exercise patter adopted in marcos is a combination of the best from SEALS and SBS of SAS. All their drills are done in real time scenario and with real ammunition. Its the only unit in the world that still has hell week for its men – just to keep them fit. MARCOS have entered into the Limca book of records for the highest number of night HALO jumps. These are just some of the information on public domain. Timmy , my sincere advise is read , learn and write. You dont even know a fraction about the Special Forces in India and you judge them by the colour of their weapons butt?!!!!!!! Oroifessional advise nothing personal.
"Btw, our major commando operations are against landlubber terrorists from mountain caves and sand dunes who loath water.Hence, our MARCOS have hardly been exposed to real combat situation." Half baked statement. Refer to the operation at Kanekesenthurai Jetty during IPKF.The supply ships and the jetty itself was blown sky high with more than a hundred LTTE guarding it. Only causality was sprained ankle. Second refer to day light blitz on the Nallanthurai Coastal Road, Jaffna University, when the road was cleared of mines and militants (almost 140) LTTE militants. Both operation first time baptism by fire. Read, read, research, find out before you let your mouth off
Timmy P – you should be put behind bars for sedition and purchasing gun and act of money laundering. Are you one of those ABC desi's. You need to learn a lot, read a lot and "understand a lot" about how SF work in India. Its a necessity for you because you are an "outsider". yes we have our own limitations, but still, it was our foot soldier that kicked the ass of Pakistani NLI and terrorist in Kargil – the worlds highest battle field. Before 26/11, 9/11 happened. Was America sleeping. They were very well aware of imminent threat of terrorist attack, but they could not save themselves. Dear Jhonny, this happens with every country. Terrosts have the grater advantage of self sacrifice where as Security personnel have to look to sfety of others during operation.
Anonymous 4.08 : "During 26/11 attacks, although the Naval base is literally a stone's throw away from Taj Hotel, yet our Marcos were nowhere in sight". marcos were the first to enter the hotel. They kept the miltants tied till the NSG arrived. read, see, learn assimilate before you post !!!!!!!!!!!!
Just so the PSU worshippers know, all their equipment besides the guns(because private cos aren't allowed to manufacture automatic weapons) is supplied by private manufacturers.
well…modeled after the US navy SEALS. i think the picture is the main problem. coz i have recently seen a few of MARCOS pictures at BR and defence.pk. i found them a little different from this one except the PASGAT helmets and elbow-knee pads. in that picture they were looking well equipped including ballistic eye gears, gloves, tactical shields, re-breathers, tasers. may be thats also not enough. these standards should be deployed to every major city special forces. delhi has already got its SWAT team and mumbai got FORCE ONE. but with PASGAT helmets, they only look like SWAT, they have nothing but nothing like the real SWATs. need major improvement in both the coasts and the urbs.
OUR MARCOS NEEDS EYEGEAR LIKE THE OAKLEY PLUTONITE FOR THE US ARMY…….. THOSE EYEGEARS PROVIDE ALMOST NO REFRACTION THUS AIMING DOWN A METAL SIGHT WILL BE NO PROBLEM AND CAN TAKE HITS FROM QUARTER-INCH METALLIC BALLS TRAVELLING AT MORE THAN 100M/H……..WE SERIOUSLY NEED THESE, EYE INJURY CAN CRIPPLE ANY SOLDIER…….
Wow! Big improvement on Tactical helmet..better than embarassing bike helment by MARCOS in previous pics..H&KMP5 sucks..feels so outdated..why not P-90 or Micro-Tavor..
this is the first time i am seeing marcos with all gears. they are awesome and deadly .they are one of the best in the world jai hind
MARCOS are looking awesome in this uniform.Best pictures of MARCOS ever!
They look a little better kitted than the NSG. Helmets look way better than NSG's.
Gloves & ballistic goggles are missing though. And i dont see an integrated comm unit.
DEAR Please post more pics of MARCOS……
they look deadly!!!
@ Kannan,
MP5 is anything but rubbish, hence it being in use by just about everyone for this purpose
Nice!!
Still a little grouse left!!!!Eye protection.
One NSG commando lost an eye in the Chabad House op due to a fragment.Ballistic eye protection would have given him a chance at least.
Awesome pics.. MARCOS look really deadly.. thanks a lot shiv 🙂
Its surprising that in the 3rd pic… while the guy on the left has a rifle with threads around its barrel looking like as if a last-min. repair, the guy on the extreme right in both the 2nd & 3rd pic has some optical device on his rifle.. and yes, most of them have those picatinny rails for mounting optical equipments which looks quite promising……. The clothes, without the gloves doesn't luk quite satisfying…. Seems as if this was some randomly bought clothes that was given 2 them….. But, happy that a least the navy is concerned about safety (& Appearance!!!!!!!) keeping in mind the knee pads, the helmets & the masks…… But as usual, still unfulfilled expectations from our beloved defence organisation!!!!!!!!
shiv bhai shahab aisi thodi aur pic upload kijie ….pls pls
Indians can also improve the things. Lol…
However I too do not understand that why they still use the H&KMP5. Is it indispensable or its utility value has increased with the changing times or it has been already purchased in excess.
The Marcos are no doubt the best but it would be better for all of us that we get our finest troops the equipment they most deserve & need to do their jobs.
As pointed by some of the friends on the blog through their comments , Marcos are lacking some very useful tools, kit that their western counterparts likely boast of in day today operations and training drills.
Such lack of equipment means putting lives of soldiers in needless danger.
I would like Mr.Shiv Aroor to come forward with suitable comments or posts ,whether we lack such procurement process or are their any background schemes running to get the troops the material they need.
I did not know that someone can take reliance oil rig as hostage. Thanks Shiv for letting the whole world to get an idea of taking hostage offshore oil rigs by publishing these kind of photos
(not sure if you will "censor" this comment)
I dont have any problems with MP5 but shouldnt they buy new MP5 for them because they lokking a bit rusty.
I dont have any problems with MP5 but shouldnt they buy new MP5 for them because they lokking a bit rusty.
as usual..our best has crappy equipment…very sad…take any SWAT team in america and ull clearly see the difference..and SWAT is just an ordinary 'police' unit…..our guys can whip their ass anyday..surely they deserve better kit and equipment…sad…
-vishal
Everyone rubbishes the MP5 ? why ? Its uncool? Its standard gear for practically every SF in the world. But I agree with the last Anon 3:24am – at least they could be maintained better / new ones could be bought. Once in Delhi I saw some Black Cats get out at a signal and assume a ready stance (for some passing Fat Cat) – all their MP5s had lost their black paint and at some places the metal could be seen.
i think that the marcos are luking n dere is no douut india is d best but i am not sure if d navy will b pleased to see these type of link,pics vids etc in d open
Everyone who speaks about MP-5 as a crap is a immature kiddo who doesnt know about the rifle`s capability but just know to criticize it just because it is old.
As KVR says, MP-5 is a best standard rifle for special ops and specially for the maritime forces all over the world.
Dont compare it with SWAT because SWAT only operates on land and it stands nowhere in front of MARCOS.
And on land none of our SF operates with MP-5(hope you people can observe that).
Lastly, no one on this earth has the right to say any nonsense about any war machine. Yes you can criticize the authorities responsible for its maintenance but not the machine.
To all above the gloves are at the waist where they should be after having served their purpose during the rappelling down from the sea king.
Chipped paint on the mp5; to me means that they are seeing some hard use. Alls well people, I would be more worried if they looked brand spanking new, Indicating a show for the cameras.
Yeah we got a long way to go by any measure but lets not worry about the paint, few days ago bike helmets were taking the place of ballistic helmets.
Viewers should know that MP5 is still considered as the best CQB weapon in spite of later variants emerging. Further its just not the MP5 the MARCOS are equipped with. This present mission needed a CQB.
Why is the color of Kneepads different from that of their uniform? Don't you think this may give away their "stealth"? IMHO, all their gear and eqp must have the same color and avoid white colored material as far as possible as this will give away a soldier's camouflage.
As far as I know MP5s fire 9mm bullets which are not effective against heavy body armor. MP7 is much more lighter, smaller and fires armor piercing rounds.
Instead of black our naval special forces can switch to gray or steel gray color which blends much better with the surroundings. Black color is effective at night but in daytime it can be highly conspicuous.
Black and Yellow combination is the best to draw attention even in the dark. This is the reason why cabs have this black and yellow color combination. These guys have black color outfit emblazoned with bright yellow MARCOS symbol. This color combination again gives away their camouflage and will make them excellent targets. The fawn colored pistol holster again does something similar. All their gears and eqp must have the same color. In one of the pics of MARCOS we saw one guy wearing camouflaged outfit and carrying a black colored backpack with big white "Puma" logo. These are the things which gives away a soldier's position. This lackadaisical attitude also reeks of unprofessionalism which we saw during 26/11 attacks by few kids from Pakistan.
The boots that these guys are wearing how effective are they in a commando operation? They look quite heavy to me and they are likely to make heavy noise.
I don't see any hands free communication devise. How will they communicate with one another?
Their helmets lack provision for fitting night vision goggles.
To some poster….the gloves are not just meant for rappelling purposes……they are used to provide grip of the weapons they're holding on to in explosive situations which will leave them sweating profusely. Anyone notice the lack of color coordination on all these items? An uniform black color is preferred so that it blends in most environments which will usually be urban. The elbow and knee pads on some of these soldiers are misplaced above or below where they should be. As a result, it not only looks stupid but can cause some serious injury. Lack of protective googles…COME ON! If this is the best of India….geezus God save India! 2 Years later and the gov't still hasn't made adequate purchases or given more training. I can see rust on the ships as well. Look at how other navies perform top maintenance of their navies…..look at our adversaries. Stop defending, its time we take steps to prevent the criticism by solving these issues. A force that looks tough, will feel tough, and act tough! Like someone pointed out, in the US a tactical SWAT team is better prepared than our special forces wtf! Don't we have the common sense to place one person in the group to perform check on each soldier, making sure that they are all dressed properly at least.
Shiv,
Half the guys posting comments here do not know what they are talking. Half baked knowledge at it best. How a commando wears a protection gear is being highlighted rather than appreciating that these picture show a major change in the combat dressing pattern of the marcos. Further the dress they wear may completely change in case they are doing HALO jumps. A gun for a commando is like a pet for him. One very important factor that makes a mission successful is the the equipment that these people use and how they treat their weapons as part of their own body. Let me mention to the benefit of those half baked posters that MARCOS is the only force in the world that lost only two lives in their entire existence of almost two decades. One more factor in all such operations is stealth hold a very minute portion. Its the speed that matters. Speed is the only factor that goes on improving in spite of stealth being compromised. By the way to the gentleman who wrote that MP5 bullets do not pierce armor, MP5 can also be loaded with Armour piercing rounds. They have proved very effective from close quarter. And by the way a good shot takes the forehead not the chest.
For those half baked guys I am posting two links wherein you can see Marcos combat dress.
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_1Xu-G1EdE84/ST1XyfRV6zI/AAAAAAAAAOI/b4OhTGyPrGo/s1600-h/Marcos3.JPG
http://www.onesixthwarriors.com/forum/sixth-scale-action-figure-news-reviews-discussion/87655-indian-marcos-marine-commandos-gulf-aden-2008-a.html
check this first before ou guys let your mouth off
@Timmy
During daytime how will black color help you to blend with the environment particularly when you are at sea? In fact during daytime black color particularly in sea or on board a ship which is usually painted white, will make the soldier a sitting duck as terrorists and pirates can spot them from miles away. Nowadays logos and symbols are almost the same color as that of the dress. You don't have bright shiny logos on military dresses. From these few pics we can make out that our commandos have a long way to go. I don't know we practice with almost all the major and not so major forces of the world. Why don't we learn from them?
@Ram,
Marcos has such low official casualties bcoz officially you cannot declare the true figures. Btw, our major commando operations are against landlubber terrorists from mountain caves and sand dunes who loath water.Hence, our MARCOS have hardly been exposed to real combat situation.
During 26/11 attacks, although the Naval base is literally a stone's throw away from Taj Hotel, yet our Marcos were nowhere in sight. Our NSG guards were waiting in the airport for BEST buses to ferry them to Taj. During Akshardham attack 2 terrorists managed to kill one commando apart from killing dozens of civilians. This actually proves that we have a long way to go. Our comments are not to bad mouth soldiers who are risking their lives. But, on the contrary we hope our views help them in minimizing casualties. Several of the commentators are complete laymen. What we are pointing out is out of common sense.
Lol @ Ram…..being patriot is great but it clouds your judgement completely. I have encountered this numerous times, where folks will blindly say India is better than the USA. When asked why they don't have a damn reason to support their claims. The loss of two soldiers is very significant but do you know other special forces activities and losses are kept completely secret. Not only does it affect morale, it is and should be a national secret. India's special forces have never operated outside of India. Other nations have, at least the US. Plz don;t be a fool. Theses guys look great compared to the other INDIAN forces but they are hardly comparable to 1st world nations. You said it in 2 decades they lost two lives, well consider the folks that they were fighting? Also, in these two decades till 26/11 look at their supplies and equipment. Pathetic. Why are other nations saying that 26/11 could've been completed with less loss of life? Because it could've been. We didn't want help coz it would affect the Indian as well our enemies psyche. Knowledge of weaponry is essential, but the way we messing up the basics it speaks volumes of our preparedness. Even this mock or staged exercise, are the soldiers actually conducting this with an opposing team. I highly doubt it otherwise no photographers should be present. We are only going to gain much needed and valuable info regarding tactics only if opposing teams fight each other, thus relying on the skill sets of individual soldiers to overcome situations and then all of them will learn from it. This is called Ingenuity or how you make the best of a bad situation. Sorry if I offended you but I call it how I see it and I don't sugar coat shit. Call a Spade a spade! If the Chinese and every other nation places great emphasis on "how we look", don;t you think we may be missing something! If your enemy thinks these guys are not prepared, it already gives them the higher ground. As for the weapons, they lack a lot of extra's and there is no excuse for the maintenance of these guns. When you are not in a combat situation, the guns should be well maintained no if's and's or but's!
Anon… well black at sea is a different matter I guess but in a Urban environment, this mash up of different colors makes our guys stick out like a sore thumb. I HARDLY THINK NAVAL SPECIAL FORCES WOULD DRESS IN WHITE. YOU ARE FORGOING A SF PHILOSOPHY, YOU ATTACK WHEN THE ODDS ARE IN YOUR FAVOR, SO NIGHT IS RIGHT! COME ON… YRS HAVE GONE BY AND IT LOOKS WE HAVE NOT LEARNED MUCH…..JUST DRESS UP AND POSE A LITTLE BETTER. One of the issues I see is that our forces lack exposure to the outside. I have tried to help but you have this mindset that I am an outsider. I even tried to join the INdian army but I am a foreign citizen. Most MOD officials will handsomely pay a "consultant" who would give some info but not not train individually with the soldiers. If you ask me, we should hire some well experienced mercenaries with proven battle experience. That could provide valuable insight. Out training with other SF's does hardly anything, because we need folks with the right mind state to ask certain questions instead of just saying "Yes sir" and copying what we are told to do. It comes to down to the INdian psych, not the folks with computers or access to computers but the ones who lack it. Their exposure is kept at a minimum at best, thus compounded by a "caste" mentality which creates slaves who don't beyond much what they re told to do. Once we shake these mental shackles off, the possibilities are endless. This requires more folks who love these types of sites to give up their day jobs and become professional soldiers and help our own. I tried, have you guys? I don;t think so! Let me point out something, when I lived in India for 3 years continuous in Bangalore back on 1998, I got myself a driver's license from Nagaland and I had access to AK-47's for 5,000 rupees! Dimapur Gun selling market was exposed by the news media after 11 years. Even now I know where to go to change my dollars to Indian rupees for a higher exchange rate (the dollars I suspect is being used to change black money to white) and this place is run by Kashmiris. I have always wanted to help India but its hard to find folks and the authorities are either scared of soon coming in to clean up shop or they're just too dumb to see a good thing.
Another final thought before I leave, most terrorist type of situations in Indian cities should be manned by a SWAT like team like the ones in US cities. Special forces should only be called as a last resort. But nothing won;t change unless our soldiers can shoot straight because as I read recently, they only get very little time with shooting a gun, usually once as a cop. God save India…..that should be our rallying cry. Sorry to be a meanie, but I write to wake you guys up to the crisis we face. At least on this site I see other folks who want to see a strong, defensive India. At least the operator of this site can pass on our thoughts to his connections and they can make improvements. PS Im still willing to join the Army if someone can help let me know. I am a foreign national of indian descent though!
Anonymous at 4.08pm:
"Btw, our major commando operations are against landlubber terrorists from mountain caves and sand dunes who loath water.Hence, our MARCOS have hardly been exposed to real combat situation.". You need to brush up on the Kanekesunthurai jetty operation in Srilanka as well as clearing the coastal road operation outside Jaffna university. That is why i said half baked knowledge. Though both these ops are classified, the reported only in short paras in journals, it speaks of the the world most dreaded terrorist out fit like LTTE was ripped apart.
"During 26/11 attacks, although the Naval base is literally a stone's throw away from Taj Hotel, yet our Marcos were nowhere in sight." One more half baked statement. MARCOS wwre the first to enter and kept the militants tied till the NSG Arrived. It was reported in news channels.
"During Akshardham attack 2 terrorists managed to kill one commando apart from killing dozens of civilians." Every terrorist attack takes it toll. The reason is the terrosist willing ness to cause maximum damage at the cost of life. On other hand Spl Forces have to invest a lot of restraint and wait for appropriate chance, The reason why one NSG was killed in Akshrdham was, due to a deliberate brave effort of NSG of walking in the open to attract fire from terrorist so that their position could be spotted, Have you ever heard of such a thing happening event with the Israelies. Lets no undermine the effort of our spl forces.
to timmy p: "India's special forces have never operated outside of India" – Best bluff in the entire discussion. There are acknowledged records of overseas operations atleast in 7 countries. Please, please read before you write.
"Theses guys look great compared to the other INDIAN forces but they are hardly comparable to 1st world nations." Though the MARCOS initial training was done with SEALS, Marcos is the only unit that operates in Murkier waters. The exercise patter adopted in marcos is a combination of the best from SEALS and SBS of SAS. All their drills are done in real time scenario and with real ammunition. Its the only unit in the world that still has hell week for its men – just to keep them fit. MARCOS have entered into the Limca book of records for the highest number of night HALO jumps. These are just some of the information on public domain.
Timmy , my sincere advise is read , learn and write. You dont even know a fraction about the Special Forces in India and you judge them by the colour of their weapons butt?!!!!!!! Oroifessional advise nothing personal.
"Btw, our major commando operations are against landlubber terrorists from mountain caves and sand dunes who loath water.Hence, our MARCOS have hardly been exposed to real combat situation." Half baked statement.
Refer to the operation at Kanekesenthurai Jetty during IPKF.The supply ships and the jetty itself was blown sky high with more than a hundred LTTE guarding it. Only causality was sprained ankle.
Second refer to day light blitz on the Nallanthurai Coastal Road, Jaffna University, when the road was cleared of mines and militants (almost 140) LTTE militants. Both operation first time baptism by fire. Read, read, research, find out before you let your mouth off
Timmy P – you should be put behind bars for sedition and purchasing gun and act of money laundering. Are you one of those ABC desi's. You need to learn a lot, read a lot and "understand a lot" about how SF work in India. Its a necessity for you because you are an "outsider". yes we have our own limitations, but still, it was our foot soldier that kicked the ass of Pakistani NLI and terrorist in Kargil – the worlds highest battle field. Before 26/11, 9/11 happened. Was America sleeping. They were very well aware of imminent threat of terrorist attack, but they could not save themselves. Dear Jhonny, this happens with every country. Terrosts have the grater advantage of self sacrifice where as Security personnel have to look to sfety of others during operation.
Anonymous 4.08 :
"During 26/11 attacks, although the Naval base is literally a stone's throw away from Taj Hotel, yet our Marcos were nowhere in sight".
marcos were the first to enter the hotel. They kept the miltants tied till the NSG arrived. read, see, learn assimilate before you post !!!!!!!!!!!!
Just so the PSU worshippers know, all their equipment besides the guns(because private cos aren't allowed to manufacture automatic weapons) is supplied by private manufacturers.
well…modeled after the US navy SEALS. i think the picture is the main problem. coz i have recently seen a few of MARCOS pictures at BR and defence.pk. i found them a little different from this one except the PASGAT helmets and elbow-knee pads. in that picture they were looking well equipped including ballistic eye gears, gloves, tactical shields, re-breathers, tasers. may be thats also not enough. these standards should be deployed to every major city special forces. delhi has already got its SWAT team and mumbai got FORCE ONE. but with PASGAT helmets, they only look like SWAT, they have nothing but nothing like the real SWATs. need major improvement in both the coasts and the urbs.
OUR MARCOS NEEDS EYEGEAR LIKE THE OAKLEY PLUTONITE FOR THE US ARMY……..
THOSE EYEGEARS PROVIDE ALMOST NO REFRACTION THUS AIMING DOWN A METAL SIGHT WILL BE NO PROBLEM AND CAN TAKE HITS FROM QUARTER-INCH METALLIC BALLS TRAVELLING AT MORE THAN 100M/H……..WE SERIOUSLY NEED THESE, EYE INJURY CAN CRIPPLE ANY SOLDIER…….