Special Operators: The Night Stalkers, United States.

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Video originally published on May 31, 2024.

This analysis examines Special Operators: The Night Stalkers, United States. in historical and strategic context. It traces how the core developments unfolded, which institutions and actors shaped outcomes, and what those decisions changed on the ground. Rather than repeating headline-level claims, it focuses on concrete mechanisms, constraints, and tradeoffs that explain the trajectory of events. The discussion moves from Key Developments through Strategic Implications to Risk and Uncertainty, then evaluates wider consequences. The goal is to clarify not only what happened, but why these developments still matter for current planning, risk assessment, and policy decisions.

Key Takeaways

They are called the Night Stalkers, and if you need a gang of high-level operators with a helicopter, they're the ones you call.
The year was 1980, and America's Commander-in-Chief at that time was one Jimmy Carter, who had a pretty major problem—or, to be specific, fifty-two individual problems that happened to unify into a big problem.
Unfortunately, just about none of that operation went according to plan, and by the time it was aborted, eight servicemen would be dead and several aircraft would be damaged or lost, without ever having even approached.
That particular helicopter would become a mainstay of the Night Stalkers for decades, and it's still among the aircraft they operate today.
The Night Stalkers' versions get a bit of extra weaponry too, including two onboard miniguns and two onboard machine guns.

Key Developments

They are called the Night Stalkers, and if you need a gang of high-level operators with a helicopter, they're the ones you call. Across four decades of American modern warfare, the Night Stalkers have served as the United States' premier helicopter-warfare element. Riding the best rotorcraft that Pentagon money can buy, they've been a mainstay of special-ops combat operations in every major and minor conflict the US has seen in many years. Whether it's Delta Force, the Navy SEALs, the Army Rangers, or anyone else in the back of the chopper, it's the Night Stalkers behind the stick, spreading their motto to every enemy who dares invite a visit: “Death waits in the dark.” Formation and Qualities. In today's American military, the Night Stalkers go by an official name: the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), or 160th SOAR (A). But when the unit that would evolve into the Night Stalkers first came together, they went by a different name: Task Force 158, cobbled together within America's arsenal at a time of desperate need. But when the unit that would evolve into the Night Stalkers first came together, they went by a different name: Task Force 158, cobbled together within America's arsenal at a time of desperate need. The year was 1980, and America's Commander-in-Chief at that time was one Jimmy Carter, who had a pretty major problem—or, to be specific, fifty-two individual problems that happened to unify into a big problem. Those were the fifty-two American diplomats and other US citizens being held hostage, at that time, by the recently founded Islamic Republic of Iran, who had just taken over a nation that had previously been regarded as among America's most dependable allies in the region. Now, those fifty-two citizens had become bargaining chips…and Carter had just failed spectacularly in trying to bring them home. The attempt had been called Operation Eagle Claw, a joint effort by the newly-formed Delta Force, the US Army Rangers, and the Special Activities Division of the Central Intelligence Agency or CIA, plus the combined resources of the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps. If it had gone to plan, it would have seen a combination of helicopters and C-130 transport aircraft rendezvous on a salt flat, transfer a whole lot of very talented special operators onto those helicopters, infiltrate the mountains outside of the Iranian capital city of Tehran, and raid the city in order to rescue the Americans held hostage inside. Then, those troops and hostages, with the aid of a CIA team operating out of Iran, would fly out of a Tehran stadium to an airport sixty miles out, which Army Rangers would capture and secure in order to fly them home. Unfortunately, just about none of that operation went according to plan, and by the time it was aborted, eight servicemen would be dead and several aircraft would be damaged or lost, without ever having even approached Tehran or made meaningful contact with Iranian forces.

Strategic Implications

The year was 1980, and America's Commander-in-Chief at that time was one Jimmy Carter, who had a pretty major problem—or, to be specific, fifty-two individual problems that happened to unify into a big problem. Those were the fifty-two American diplomats and other US citizens being held hostage, at that time, by the recently founded Islamic Republic of Iran, who had just taken over a nation that had previously been regarded as among America's most dependable allies in the region. Now, those fifty-two citizens had become bargaining chips…and Carter had just failed spectacularly in trying to bring them home. The attempt had been called Operation Eagle Claw, a joint effort by the newly-formed Delta Force, the US Army Rangers, and the Special Activities Division of the Central Intelligence Agency or CIA, plus the combined resources of the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps. If it had gone to plan, it would have seen a combination of helicopters and C-130 transport aircraft rendezvous on a salt flat, transfer a whole lot of very talented special operators onto those helicopters, infiltrate the mountains outside of the Iranian capital city of Tehran, and raid the city in order to rescue the Americans held hostage inside. Then, those troops and hostages, with the aid of a CIA team operating out of Iran, would fly out of a Tehran stadium to an airport sixty miles out, which Army Rangers would capture and secure in order to fly them home. The aftereffects of Operation Eagle Claw cascaded far and wide across the American military, but it also pointed out a glaring issue with the way that the military's flight capabilities worked. Well-trained, well-equipped Army helicopter pilots, the sort who were vital to making special-operations missions happen, were hard to come by, and often, the people chosen to go on a certain mission were chosen because of things like rank or availability, without much thought to whether or not they were capable of operating in a very specific mission environment. America needed a reliable pool of helicopter pilots who could keep up with special-operations forces, carry out their missions expertly, and potentially, even take part in a successor operation to succeed where Operation Eagle Claw had failed. Now, that second try at a rescue would ultimately never happen, but a unit was cobbled together anyway. Dubbed Task Force 158, it took some of the best pilots from across the Army's 101st Aviation Group, particularly ones who could fly the Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk. That particular helicopter would become a mainstay of the Night Stalkers for decades, and it's still among the aircraft they operate today. They'd also get access to several dozen Chinook helicopters, heavy lifters that can weather a good deal of damage and keep on flying. Finally, they'd get access to a hidden inventory of OH-6 Cayuse aircraft, small two-seater helicopters that had been squirreled away in a holding area called the SHOC Pad on Fort Campbell, Kentucky, where the Night Stalkers are still headquartered today.

Risk and Uncertainty

Unfortunately, just about none of that operation went according to plan, and by the time it was aborted, eight servicemen would be dead and several aircraft would be damaged or lost, without ever having even approached Tehran or made meaningful contact with Iranian forces. The aftereffects of Operation Eagle Claw cascaded far and wide across the American military, but it also pointed out a glaring issue with the way that the military's flight capabilities worked. Well-trained, well-equipped Army helicopter pilots, the sort who were vital to making special-operations missions happen, were hard to come by, and often, the people chosen to go on a certain mission were chosen because of things like rank or availability, without much thought to whether or not they were capable of operating in a very specific mission environment. America needed a reliable pool of helicopter pilots who could keep up with special-operations forces, carry out their missions expertly, and potentially, even take part in a successor operation to succeed where Operation Eagle Claw had failed. Now, that second try at a rescue would ultimately never happen, but a unit was cobbled together anyway. Dubbed Task Force 158, it took some of the best pilots from across the Army's 101st Aviation Group, particularly ones who could fly the Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk. By the time their first batch of aviators completed their advanced training, learning to master things like stealthy flying, night flying, flying fast at low altitudes, and dealing with adverse or unexpected weather conditions, they had already become the US Army's foremost aviators, as well as designated night fighters. The aircraft they used could pack on a whole lot of weaponry, they had the capacity to transport and guard over small units of elite special operators, and they were versatile enough to serve in a wide range of mission roles. Barely more than a year after the task force was designated, it was splintered off into its own unit, the 160th Aviation Battalion, and after a couple of name changes, it became the 160th SOAR. The unit's stated core mission is rather straightforward; according to the website for US Army Special Operations Command, the Night Stalkers exist, quote, “to organize, equip, train, resource, and employ Army special operations aviation forces worldwide”. In practice, so far as we can tell, the bulk of their work falls into one of three main categories: insertion-extraction, combat search-and-rescue, and attack. First, insertion-extraction: take a team of special operators, and fly them to precisely where they need to go, often on very short notice and with minimal or no planning, and get them to a target and back safely. This often involves pilots having to fly deep into enemy territory, hug the landscape even at night to avoid detection, attack enemy targets if necessary, and survive—often still in the air—until their fellow special operators are ready for pickup.

Outlook

That particular helicopter would become a mainstay of the Night Stalkers for decades, and it's still among the aircraft they operate today. They'd also get access to several dozen Chinook helicopters, heavy lifters that can weather a good deal of damage and keep on flying. Finally, they'd get access to a hidden inventory of OH-6 Cayuse aircraft, small two-seater helicopters that had been squirreled away in a holding area called the SHOC Pad on Fort Campbell, Kentucky, where the Night Stalkers are still headquartered today. By the time their first batch of aviators completed their advanced training, learning to master things like stealthy flying, night flying, flying fast at low altitudes, and dealing with adverse or unexpected weather conditions, they had already become the US Army's foremost aviators, as well as designated night fighters. The aircraft they used could pack on a whole lot of weaponry, they had the capacity to transport and guard over small units of elite special operators, and they were versatile enough to serve in a wide range of mission roles. Barely more than a year after the task force was designated, it was splintered off into its own unit, the 160th Aviation Battalion, and after a couple of name changes, it became the 160th SOAR. In their combat search-and-rescue role, the Night Stalkers are charged with flying through the heat of battle in order to get to wounded or trapped ground forces, potentially breaking through an entrenched enemy position or even trying to get the job done while actively being shot at. Then, in their attack role, they're capable of providing close air support to ground troops while carrying out combat operations, often alongside small units of special operators. When you hear reference in military fiction to calling in the cavalry…well, for the US, the Night Stalkers tend to be the cavalry. When it comes to their kit, there's no firearm, headset, explosive device, or tool that could ever rival their most important piece of hardware: the helicopter. Officially, the Night Stalkers operate three choppers: the Boeing CH-47 Chinook, the Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk, and the McDonnell Douglass MH-6, with just under 200 helicopters in total designated for the unit's use. When it comes to the Chinook, the Night Stalkers primarily use a variant called the MH-47G. That's a special-operations-ready version of the aircraft that integrates sophisticated avionics, increased fuel capacity, in-flight refueling capability, a fast-rope rappelling system, and terrain-avoidance radar that enables the aircraft to fly at low altitudes whilst hugging the ground. Capable of flight at a top speed of 196 miles per hour or 315 kilometers per hour, with a 460-mile range and a service ceiling at 20,000 feet, the Chinook is the US Army's premier heavy-lift helicopter. Inside, it can carry a complement of up to 55 troops, and it can carry payloads of up to 24,000 pounds, or nearly 11,000 kilograms.

Origins of the Night Stalkers: Formation and Early Years

The Night Stalkers' versions get a bit of extra weaponry too, including two onboard miniguns and two onboard machine guns. The Chinook is capable of inserting large contingents of special operators into a wide variety of mission sets, as well as recovering important cargo from contested or enemy territory, and tanking a good deal of small-arms fire when trying to perform search-and-rescue. The Black Hawk is just as important in the Night Stalkers' arsenal, specifically the MH-60L and M variants designed for special operators. The L variant integrates specialized radars, color-display weather mapping, auxiliary fuel, and a laser designator, as well as the potential, on some choppers, to receive in-flight refueling. The M variant is even more impressive, with advanced glass cockpits and sensors, high-powered engines, and terrain-following radar. Special-ops Black Hawks can either serve as gunships, laying down covering fire, or assault craft, carrying small teams of special operators into the fray. The Black Hawk tops out at 183 miles per hour, nearly 300 kilometers per hour, it's got a combat range of 370 miles and it can carry two copies of either a machine gun, a minigun, or a rotary heavy machine gun, along with four hardpoints carrying up to 76 rockets, sixteen air-to-ground missiles, eight air-to-air missiles, or several additional gun pods, depending on which flavor of fuck-up-your-day the Night Stalkers have chosen for the occasion. When carrying troops onboard alongside its crew of four, the Black Hawk can transport up to eleven seated special operators, or, if it needs to transport cargo, it can carry some 3,200 pounds on the inside or 9,000 pounds on the outside. Finally, the US is known to have at least experimented with stealth versions of the Black Hawk, which the Night Stalkers are known to have operated…but more on that shortly. And rounding out the Night Stalker arsenal is the Little Bird, specifically the AH-6 and MH-6 light attack aircraft. The Little Bird can serve as a miniature command post or electronic warfare aircraft, it can carry up to six operators sitting on the sides with equipment to fast-rope down to the ground, it can operate in a stealthy role—although not meeting the criteria to be considered a proper stealth aircraft—and it carries all the onboard hardware that a Night Stalker would be used to finding on the Chinook and the Black Hawk, albeit in a smaller, stripped-down package. Boasting a top speed of 175 miles per hour, 282 kilometers per hour, and a range of about 270 miles, the Little Bird can carry miniguns, heavy machine guns, Hellfire or Stinger missiles, or rocket pods. Alongside its three known helicopters, the Night Stalkers also utilize the General Atomics-made MQ-1 Predator drone, capable of flight at a top speed of 192 miles per hour or 310 kilometers per hour, and capable of carrying up to four air-to-ground or eight air-to-air missiles.

The Evolution of Helicopter Warfare: Historical Context

Their two-hundred-ish aerial death machines are shared among an estimated 2,700 soldiers, across four designated battalions and a regimental headquarters company. The headquarters and the 1st and 2nd Battalions operate out of Fort Campbell, Kentucky, while the 3rd Battalion operates out of Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, Georgia, and the 4th Battalion operates out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, just outside of Tacoma, Washington. 1st Battalion gets to work with the light-assault Little Bird helicopters, 2nd Battalion gets the Predator drone, and all battalions share access to the Chinook and the Black Hawk, with 1st Battalion granted the special honor of playing with the Black Hawk's gunship version. Becoming one of the Night Stalkers is no easy task; the organization doesn't recruit from either the Air Force or the Navy, but exclusively among Army aviators, and there's no direct path to get there after just signing on the dotted line in a recruiter's office. In order to even be considered, a soldier must already be trained in a relevant discipline, be able to qualify for a high security clearance, and be financially stable, so as to eliminate points of leverage by which a soldier could be compromised by a bad actor. For enlisted troops, you've got to score highly on Army assessments, meet the criteria to become an airborne operator, and, informally, you've got to be deemed ready to get the opportunity to try out. Officers must hold the designation of Pilot in Command, they've got to have 1,000 hours behind the stick of a rotary-wing aircraft including 100 with night-vision goggles, and they've got to be able to get an even higher security clearance than enlisted troops. Once a soldier is selected, they'll travel to Green Platoon, a six-week training and orientation course that assesses whether or not a prospective applicant is ready to receive the meat of the Night Stalkers' training regimen. During Green Platoon, recruits go through all the physical tests you'd expect: pull-ups, road marches, runs, rope climbs, that sort of thing. They'll be trained on the weapons the Night Stalkers use, and fire thousands of rounds over the course of their combat qualifications. They'll be assessed in their skills as first responders, their abilities in land navigation, and their ability to work with their colleagues. In the Night Stalkers, only officers actually fly aircraft; those who are enlisted, will be in a support role; as such, enlisted personnel will train for about five weeks to assess readiness to perform the tasks that wouldn't require them to sit behind the stick; for officers, the process is far more extensive, lasting anywhere between 20 and 28 weeks depending on the aircraft they'll learn to fly.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who are the U.S. Night Stalkers?

See the full article for details on Who are the U.S. Night.

Are Night Stalkers considered special forces?

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How elite are Night Stalkers?

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Where are Night Stalkers stationed?

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What are the requirements to join the Night Stalkers?

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Jackson Reed

Jackson Reed creates and presents analysis focused on military doctrine, strategic competition, and conflict dynamics.

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