Special Operations Command (Australia)

Special Operations Command
Active2003–present
CountryAustralia
RoleSpecial operations
Size2,050 (active in 2014)[1]
750 (reserve in 2014)[1]
Part ofAustralian Defence Force
Headquarters locationGeneral John Baker Complex, Bungendore[2]
Motto(s)Acies Acuta
(The Cutting Edge)
Commanders
Current
commander		Major General Garth Gould

The Special Operations Command (SOCOMD) is an Australian Defence Force command that was established on 5 May 2003 to unite all of the Australian Army's special forces units and by 2008 was fully operational.[3][4][5] Australia's Special Operations Command is of equivalent status to Australia's Fleet, Forces and Air Commands.[3] It is modelled on the equivalent commands in the United States and British military forces, and is led by a major general as Special Operations Commander Australia (SOCAUST).

The origins of SOCOMD began in 1979 with the army creating a small Directorate Special Action Forces—Army. On 13 February 1990, Headquarters Special Forces was established, which was renamed in 1997 to Headquarters Special Operations and in 2003 to Special Operations Headquarters or SOCOMD.[5][6][7]

  1. ^ a b The Australian Army – Modernisation from Beersheba and Beyond (PDF) (Report). Australian Army. 26 August 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 July 2017.
  2. ^ "The Australian Army: An Aide-Memoire" (PDF). Australian Army. Directorate of Plans – Army. April 2014. p. 53. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 January 2020.
  3. ^ a b Senator Robert Hill, Minister for Defence (5 May 2003). "New Special Operations Command" (Press release). Department of Defence. Archived from the original on 2 June 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  4. ^ Prime Minister John Howard (19 December 2002). "Expansion of Special Forces Counter Terrorist Capability and new Special Operations Command" (Press release). Prime Minister of Australia. Archived from the original on 23 February 2003.
  5. ^ a b Goh, Puay Hock (Francis) (June 2011). How should SOF be organized? (PDF) (Master's thesis). U.S. Navy Postgraduate School. OCLC 743235192. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
  6. ^ Grant (Ret.), Brigadier William 'Mac'. "Reserve Commandos inherit a remarkable legacy" (PDF). Defence Reserves Yearbook 2004–2005. Executive Media Pty Ltd. Australian Defence Force. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 June 2011.
  7. ^ Davies, Andrew; Jennings, Peter; Scheer, Benjamin (2014). A Versatile Force: The Future of Australia's Special Operations Capability (PDF). Barton, Australian Capital Territory: Australian Strategic Policy Institute. ISBN 9781921302978. Retrieved 7 September 2017.