Hostage Rescue Team
The Hostage Rescue Team is the Federal Bureau of Investigation's elite tactical unit. The HRT was formed to provide a full-time federal law enforcement tactical capability to respond to major terrorist incidents throughout the United States. Today, the HRT performs a number of tactical law enforcement and national security functions in high-risk environments and conditions and has deployed overseas, including with military Joint Special Operations Command units. In an article to mark its 40th anniversary, it was reported that since its formation in 1983 the HRT had deployed more than 900 times.
The HRT, along with the Crisis Negotiation Unit, the SWAT Operations Unit that manages the field office SWAT program, and the Tactical Helicopter Unit, comprise the Tactical Section of the FBI's Critical Incident Response Group. The Hostage Rescue Team was founded in 1983 by Danny Coulson, former Deputy Assistant Director of the FBI, and completed its final certification exercise in October 1983.
History
The HRT was conceived during the late 1970s after FBI director William H. Webster witnessed a demonstration by the U.S. Army's Delta Force. When Webster reviewed the equipment used by the force he noticed there were no handcuffs. An operator told him:"We put two rounds in their forehead. The dead don't need handcuffs."The HRT was to be an augmented SWAT and counter-terrorist team, capable of handling extraordinary hostage situations, large-scale counter-terrorist operations, situations involving nuclear or biological agents, or operations that local law enforcement or the regional FBI field office were not trained or equipped to handle.
Final approval for the HRT was given in early 1982, and formal planning began in March that year.
The initial HRT selection course was held in June 1982 and consisted of three groups of 30 candidates each. Most candidates were experienced SWAT team members and former military veterans including former Navy SEAL Thomas R. Norris.
Of this group, 50 candidates were selected to continue to more advanced training.
The final touches were added to the facilities just before Thanksgiving 1982 and, after a short holiday break, the team began its initial training program.
After receiving tactical SWAT instruction, each individual was given expertise to research, such as explosives and door breaching tactics. Each operator also served as a liaison to one of the existing elite counter-terrorism teams from around the world.
As part of their liaison duties, the men attended training exercises held by their assigned counter-terrorism unit and shared their experiences with the team. The team spent most of January 1983 honing their shooting and tactical skills at Quantico, and then traveled to Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in February for a month of training and instruction with Delta Force. The team returned to Quantico for further training. It became operational in August 1983.
The team's final certification exercise, code-named Operation Equus Red, was held in October 1983 at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico. During the exercise, the HRT, a local SWAT team, and a United States Department of Energy Nuclear Emergency Search Team were tasked with assaulting a terrorist stronghold.
The "terrorist" group was also believed to be in possession of a simulated nuclear device, which was at a separate location and had to be recovered or neutralized. After the NEST aircraft confirmed the location of the device, HRT operators infiltrated the terrorist safe house, secured the device, and managed to "kill" the terrorist involved in approximately 30 seconds.
The FBI's senior leadership viewed the exercise as a complete success and granted final approval for the team to become fully operational.
Upon completion of the certification exercise, the HRT began to expand its capabilities by sending small teams of operators out for more specialized training courses.
Approximately a dozen operators visited Naval Amphibious Base Coronado to receive combat diver, maritime operations, and tactics training from the United States Navy SEALs. Other team members conducted helicopter operations and aerial insertion training with the US Army's Task Force 160.
Every operator also received 80 hours of medical training. The HRT traveled to Camp Peary, near Williamsburg, Virginia, for counter-terrorism training courses to develop skills in breaching barricades, running roadblocks, and defensive driving.
Over time, HRT operators studied with the U.S. military, along with local, federal, and foreign tactical teams, and attended private courses to learn more about air assault tactics, rappelling, close quarters combat, chemical agents, terrorist psychology, surveillance methods, sniping/counter-sniping, communications and more. Tactics learned during training were shared with the team.
Eventually, for close quarter battle training, the HRT decided to make things more realistic on advice from SEAL Team Six commander Richard Marcinko, and the HRT introduced blood bags and wax bullets. The wax bullets were used for team-versus-team drills.
The HRT became part of the Critical Incident Response Group upon its formation in 1994, due to the need to consolidate the assets necessary to respond to a critical incident in one group. Since being added to CIRG, HRT has been used to conduct law enforcement operations and counterterrorism operations globally, sometimes deploying with military special operations forces and intelligence units.
Capabilities
The HRT's equipment and tactics are the most advanced of the FBI's 56 SWAT teams and the 14 enhanced SWAT teams.The HRT's capabilities are distinguished because the HRT operators serve full-time and train daily.
The HRT has the ability "to deploy within four hours, with part or all of its personnel and resources, to any location within the United States or its territories". The unit is able to operate in a variety of environments.
The HRT's tactical teams have the ability to fast-rope, a technique in which the team rapidly descends a rope from the side of a helicopter. This technique is useful for deploying troops into an area where a helicopter cannot touch down.
Even more advanced capabilities are possessed by the HRT, including High Altitude Low Opening parachute operations, to name just one. The HRT's capabilities include advanced ground tactics, advanced maritime operations, and advanced tactical aviation operations.
Maritime capabilities
The HRT, as a whole, possesses enhanced capabilities in the maritime domain, including advanced "breaching" capabilities and ship-boarding capabilities.The HRT has vessels that are outfitted for maritime assaults, most of which have been upgraded since 2004.
HRT also has a specialized maritime team with additional maritime capabilities including subsurface diving, closed-circuit diving, and combat swimming undergoing the second phase of BUD/S.
In addition operators of the maritime assault team element are also qualified to pilot and operate a freighter.
Aviation capabilities
The HRT's Tactical Aviation Unit is staffed by FBI special agents. The Tactical Helicopter Unit, a sub-unit of the Tactical Aviation Unit, contains a variety of specially modified helicopters.These include military converted tactical Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawks and tactically enhanced Bell 407s and Bell 412s.
Unlike the military, whose aircraft are not always in the same location as their tactical operators, the HRT's Tactical Helicopter Unit is in the vicinity of HRT central command.
The HRT's tactical aviators are required to fly daily.
Training facilities
In addition to the HRT's own facilities, the HRT routinely uses private and 1st SFOD-D Delta Force shoot houses and ranges. The HRT has also been known to train at Camp Peary and Harvey Point.Organization
Roles
The primary roles of the HRT are hostage rescue and counter-terrorism. Secondary roles of the HRT include:- Apprehending barricaded subjects;
- Executing helicopter operations and rescue missions;
- Executing mobile assaults;
- Performing high-risk raids, searches, arrests, and warrants;
- Coordinating manhunt and rural operations
- Providing force protection for FBI personnel overseas.
Teams provide support for missions overseas and support Joint Terrorism Task Forces.
Teams at home and abroad perform typical law enforcement activities, such as making arrests, processing scenes for evidence recovery, and testifying in court.
The HRT has provided traditional law enforcement during hurricane relief operations, tactical surveys, and special events such as the Olympic Games, presidential inaugurations, and political conventions.
Selection and training
Prospective HRT operators are selected based upon their background and experience, as well as their demonstrated performance during the HRT selection course.Selection course
The rigorous two-week selection process includes long-distance runs, forced marches, obstacle courses, and other tests of physical and mental stamina.Throughout the entire selection process, candidates are evaluated on their ability to think under pressure and to perform whilst physically exhausted.
NOTS
After a six-month initial training period known as "New Operator Training School", they are headquartered at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia.Both the selection course and NOTS are near mirror images of the 1st SFOD-D selection and training courses, with some minor adjustments for mission differences.
Role-based training
Experienced HRT operators assigned to observer/sniper teams are sent to the United States Marine Corps Scout Sniper Basic Course. After successfully completing the course, they receive further instruction from HRT snipers.Maritime HRT operators are sent to a variety of maritime special operations courses, including Phase II of U.S. Navy BUD/S at Naval Amphibious Base, Coronado, California.