Combat Survival · SERE · Personnel Recovery

Knowledge

SERE, combat survival and personnel recovery: military training, SERE and evasion techniques, and specialist courses across international armed forces.

Combat Survival

Isolation, pressure and decisions under military threat.

Instructor crawling beneath an obstacle with his upper body held low

Combat SurvivalHow isolated people under military threat treat injuries, find shelter, manage supplies and plan their return to friendly forces.

SERE specialist holding an open lensatic compass in front of his eye

Military survival trainingHow military survival training prepares personnel to sustain themselves, move unseen, cope with captivity and assist in recovery, with examples for ground troops and aircrew.

Pilot and SERE instructor checking a survival radio together in the field

Survival, combat survival and SERE comparedHow hostile threats and captor control change rest, sustenance, information protection and recovery.

SERE specialist demonstrating CSEL-radio operation to students in the field

The Development of Military Survival TrainingThe development of military survival training: environmental hazards, hostile searches, information protection in captivity and cooperation during recovery.

A lone exercise participant observing the terrain from a low position beside a tree

Military isolation: assess the situation and actAfter separation from friendly forces, assess the situation, condition and remaining resources: choose a concealed halt or movement, including after losing equipment and prepared plans.

U.S. Air Force personnel watch for opposing exercise forces during evasion training on the Eglin Range.

Military situational assessment: choose the next actionAssess observations and available resources, then choose whether to halt, move or make contact. New threats and changes in physical condition may require a different decision.

Survival radio with display, controls and antenna in a fabric carrying pouch

Military survival equipment and personal kitsWhich personal capabilities remain after baggage loss, and how medical supplies, weather protection, water, repair items and recovery aids stay accessible and usable.

Student supporting his body weight with hands and legs on a horizontally tensioned rope

Stress, sleep loss and exhaustion in military isolationObserving and deciding under threat with little sleep and declining strength: checking cues, taking task breaks, using sleep opportunities and allocating effort.

A group working with a handheld radio and documents they carry

Individuals and groups in military isolationHow isolated people handle several tasks in sequence when alone, and how a group divides observation, sustainment and movement, with responsibilities towards casualties and fellow captives.

SERE

Training levels, captivity and preparation for survival and recovery.

Hands press the transmit key on a CSEL survival radio

SERESurvival, evasion, resistance and escape or extraction: staying alive, avoiding capture, resisting exploitation and returning to friendly forces.

Hands tying a clove hitch around a wooden pole

SERE Level AThe foundational SERE level: what isolated personnel should know about sustenance, evasion, captivity, position reporting and contact with friendly forces.

U.S. Air Force SERE Specialist Training participants during the coastal and open-ocean phase near Tillamook.

SERE Level BPractical survival and evasion for a moderate risk of isolation, including navigation, personal equipment, supplies and preparation for recovery and captivity.

Student gripping a horizontal pole above water with both hands and legs

SERE Level CAdvanced practical training for a high risk of isolation: survival under threat, extended evasion, captivity scenarios and recovery.

Students working with compasses on maps laid out on the ground

SERE Levels A, B and C ComparedHow SERE A, B and C differ in field tasks, captivity and recovery, and how individual countries implement the levels.

Hand holding a canteen cup in a shallow stream

Survival under threat: condition, protection and sustenanceHow an isolated person treats injuries, protects against cold and heat, uses limited supplies and finds rest under threat.

Two Air Force personnel observing their route from wooded terrain

Evasion: Avoiding Capture and Returning to Friendly ForcesHow isolated personnel assess their situation, move and sustain themselves under threat, and prepare to contact friendly forces.

Role players securing a Polish exercise participant’s wrists

Resistance: Conduct and Tasks in CaptivityHow captives protect information and fellow prisoners, manage their welfare and limit exploitation, with differing national rules for conduct.

A person suspended from the rescue hoist beneath a hovering UH-1

Escape and extraction: preparation and physical pickupMaintain the ability to escape and knowledge of the location under captor control, continue evasion after escape if needed and prepare contact, recognition and pickup by friendly forces.

Instructor’s hand bringing a thin piece of wood to the flames

SERE instructors and specialistsHow SERE instructors and specialists qualify and prepare personnel at risk for survival, captivity and recovery.

Blindfolded participant being guided into a van by a role player

Captivity and isolationHow restricted access to food, hygiene, rest and contact shapes daily life in captivity, and which actions remain within the captive’s control.

U.S. Air Force participant applying camouflage paint to his face with the aid of a mirror

SERE C in GermanyGerman C training for personnel and aircrew at particular risk: field sustainment, evasion and captivity, with additional preparation for resisting interrogation and personal recovery tasks.

Personnel Recovery

Contact, recognition and pickup of isolated personnel, followed by reintegration.

Pararescuemen carrying a casualty through the desert towards a waiting helicopter

Personnel recoveryHow isolated personnel are located, supported and recovered, and how the individual, coordination centres and recovery forces work together.

A medical team member applies an ankle bandage to a participant in a reintegration exercise.

Reintegration after military isolationCare after recovery, personal participation and US reintegration phases: debriefing, contact with family and return to the unit.

SERE and evasion techniques

Hides, camouflage, reducing signs and movement during evasion.

U.S. Air Force personnel use vegetation for concealment during an evasion exercise near Thetford.

Evasion hides: hide sites and hole-up areasHow isolated personnel use a concealed stay to assess the situation, rest and prepare further evasion, with hide sites, hole-up areas and the BLISS criteria.

Original NSA 5-by-5 tap-code table with C/K in the first row and all 26 Latin letters

Tap Code: Communication in CaptivityTransmitting letters through counted groups of taps: structure, use and limits of a communication technique used by prisoners of war.

Close view of a footprint showing depressed and displaced material in loose soil

Reducing Ground and Vegetation Sign during EvasionHow footsteps, vegetation contact and equipment leave visible sign, and how unnecessary disturbance can be reduced during military evasion.

U.S. Soldiers using different body positions behind a rocky edge while observing terrain

Evasion on Ridges: Military Crest and SilhouetteHow slope shape, background and viewing direction determine which movement space below a ridge edge is actually screened.

FLIR monitor showing a false-colour thermal image of two people, with different apparent temperatures on exposed skin and clothing

Evasion under thermal observationHow barriers screen the body, how movement and contact heat can stand out, and why the thermal background changes during a halt.

Morse symbols A to J, cropped from the full chart

Eye-blink Morse: visual communication in captivityPrepare and send a short message of your own through eyelid closures, then check the received content: characters, gaps, replies and repetition.

Aircrew from the 66th Rescue Squadron establish their position on a map during a night SERE exercise near Nellis, 2013. Red light illuminates the immediate working area.

Night observation without night-vision equipmentDark adaptation, off-centre viewing and orderly scanning for observation halts during night evasion.

Signals and communications

Signalling and communication during isolation and recovery.

Gloved hand holding a signal device emitting coloured smoke

Signalling, recognition and pickup in military isolationHow an isolated person uses mirrors, light, ground signs and sound, checks contact and chooses between prepared recognition and conspicuous distress marking.

Historical Pointie-Talkie with English and Chinese language rows and phrase cards in a USAF Museum display case

Pointee-talkee: communication during evasionHow a prepared military language aid conveys specific questions and replies without a shared language, and keeps their meaning aligned throughout an exchange.

Training worldwide

National training systems, associated courses and the differences between them.

Australia

1 article

Marines pulling a person over the inflatable tube into a Zodiac

Combat Survival and SERE in AustraliaHow Australian aircrew use accessible survival aids, combine sustainment with evasion and prepare for captivity and recovery.

The appearance of U.S. Department of War (DoW) visual information does not imply or constitute DoW endorsement.