You should now watch the news footage. I watched it live as it unfolded. Nobody knew who they were or what was going on including the news reporters. They operate all over the world in complete secrecy. They are the first special forces unit in the world and every special forces in the world bases their training on them. ✌️❤️🇬🇧
This was one of the TV moments of the 1980's. I remember The Krypton Factor being interrupted by... "We interrupt this programme for a Newsflash!" and then that iconic shot of those balcony windows being blown in by the SAS in balaclavas.
This event caught the imagination of the British press and public, and was credited with boosting UK military prestige (two years before the Falklands conflict). It even inspired a 1982 feature film, Who Dares Wins, which incorporated elements from the siege.
The SAS (Special Air Services) and the SBS (Special Boat Services) are the best in the world. Very few people make it into these services as the training is so hard. The rest of the world copy our SAS/SBS.
In the British forces if you have carried out two years of service you can then and only then volunteer yourself for the SAS or the SBS, in other words you need to be a soldier first.
It's funny you mention how everything went wrong. Being short of kit and improvising to make up the gap is a tradition of the SAS (and the British Army all round). Resources were tight and the wide range of their remit meant that a huge range of situations had to be covered so things got thin on the ground in places. They didn't have enough climbing rope on hand so bought some new in London while preparing for this job. New rope tends to twist, which is why there were so many tangles. Supposedly there weren't enough MP5 submachineguns to go round so the team was carrying every one that the Regiment possessed (this is why there's a mixture of types visible in video footage). They wore black coveralls because they were originally bought for tank operators (fireproof and black hides oil stains). They only got their famous base at Hereford because the previous unit left and nobody else wanted it. During WW2 they primarily got their gear by begging from, trading with, or stealing from other units. This lack of resources continued for decades, even after the SAS became famous. In the early 1990s SAS patrols deployed to Iraq with jackets leftover from WW2 because that's all the desert kit there was available. What allowed the SAS to pull off all sorts of amazing feats is very careful selection of recruits, top-notch continuous training, and meticulous planning. If you're interested in the SAS there's a lot more things to watch. I'd suggest looking at SAS Selection (how they decide which recruits to accept) and their brutal training scheme. There's also the Special Boat Service (SBS), which is similar to the SAS but mainly do stuff at sea. The Royal Marine Mountain and Arctic Warfare Cadre is pretty nails too.
You really need to watch the actual footage of this, there is much better videos of this than the one you watched. The SAS are the best in the world and are involved in training the special forces of several countries.
Please do the simple history channels video on Obi want Nairobi, he was a British special forces soldier who heard about a hostage situation in Nairobi whilst he was off duty but drove straight there and saved many lives a true hero.
Another SAS operation you might find interesting. A raid on an argentine outpost on pebble island. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-tuSXwOKsjdA.html
A pity that this video was neither totally accurate nor clearly explained There are much better vids of this operation available. and without the monotone and boring narration.
