• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Old School Delta Force operators had such a vibe

EviLore

Expansive Ellipses
Staff Member
SgpQBaY.jpeg


Mike Vining, a founding member of Delta Force, EOD expert

Sergeant Major Mike R. Vining enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1968 and completed Basic Training at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Following his completion of Advanced Individual Training at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama in the Ammunition Renovation Course, he attended the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Course and the Nuclear Weapons Disposal Course at Indian Head, Maryland.

Following his training, SGM Vining deployed to Vietnam with the 99th Ordnance Detachment (EOD) where he was awarded the Bronze Star in 1971 for his meritorious service in ground operations and EOD duties. In 1973, he joined the 543rd Ordnance Detachment (EOD) at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, during which time he was awarded for heroism as an EOD specialist during a series of terrorist bombings in Quincy, Illinois.

In 1978, SGM Vining volunteered for a new unit being formed, the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment – Delta, where he served until 1985 as the unit’s first EOD specialist. During his assignment, he participated in Operation Eagle Claw in Iran and Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada.

Following an assignment with the 176th Ordnance Detachment (EOD) at Fort Richardson, Alaska, he returned to Delta Force where he served as Chief EOD Technician, Research and Development Sergeant Major, and Breaching Sergeant Major from 1986 until 1992. During this assignment, he deployed in support of Operation Pocket Planner and Operation Desert Storm.

Sergeant Major Vining culminated his Army career as the Special Plans Sergeant Major for U.S. Special Operations Command and Joint Special Operations Command. During this tour, he served as the Senior Enlisted Advisor for the Joint Special Operations Task Force during Operation Uphold Democracy and as the Explosives Expert on the Downing Assessment Task Force, which investigated the Khobar Towers bombing in Saudi Arabia in 1996.

Sergeant Major Mike R. Vining retired in 1999.

7zLqEh8.jpeg


Delta protecting General Schwarzkopf

gxmkxnS.jpeg


Delta guys

n0KW62S.jpeg
 

jason10mm

Gold Member
Lotta those guys look like that. The various elite teams tend to select primarily for mental attributes, not physical, so looks are deceiving. Plus big linebacker types have a hard time with all the endurance as they are hauling around a lot of extra mass and its hard to stay jacked when you are deployed to some third world country every few months.
 

winjer

Member
Without the guns, they would look like dads going to the shop.

This reminds me of Audie Murphy. A short, skinny guy, that makes Rambo look like a little pussy. And is the highest awarded american soldier in WW2.
Its not about the physique, its about the mental state.
 

Romulus

Member
They had an SAS sharpshooter on a podcast that trained with Delta Force in the early 2000s. He was asked how they were. "Nice guys, but they kicked my ass at shooting." -SAS sharpshooter lol
 

jason10mm

Gold Member
They had an SAS sharpshooter on a podcast that trained with Delta Force in the early 2000s. He was asked how they were. "Nice guys, but they kicked my ass at shooting." -SAS sharpshooter lol
Wouldn't surprise me if he was being serious though. The ammo budget of a unit like Delta Force alone probably covered the entire SAS training budget. I've known guys that BURIED* ammo in the sand because its too much to shoot and hiding it is easier than turning it back in

Not all of our defense spending goes to $1000 toilet seats and greasing the palms of contractors making aircraft carriers. Not ALL of it :p

*and no, I do not have the GPS coordinates of 10,000 rounds of linked 7.62 :p
 

Romulus

Member
Probably just British self-deprecation. No one ever talks trash about SAS guys within the special forces community.

He was adamant and very serious about the fact they were the best shooters he'd ever been around. Doesn't mean SAS isn't awesome and well rounded.
 
Last edited:

Trilobit

Member
It's always the least likely looking ones who are most dangerous, this guy looks like an accountant yet he is actually death incarnate.

Unfortunately the main character doesn't look dorky, but I highly recommend this movie:

the-acountant.jpg


Edit: I was thinking about how this movie absolutely could have had good sequels and now I read that Affleck is working on one! Hooray! :lollipop_grinning_smiling_eyes:


Edit #2: And it's the same director and writer as in the first one. Oh, now I have another movie to look forward to!
 
Last edited:

clarky

Gold Member
Joking aside, any good non fiction books written by Delta Force guys to recommend? Missions and training stories and the like.

Some of the SAS stuff is cracking, gut wrenching and harrowing in equal measures.
 
Last edited:

EviLore

Expansive Ellipses
Staff Member
He was adamant and very serious about the fact they were the best shooters he'd ever been around. Doesn't mean SAS isn't awesome and well rounded.
Yeah, I would expect our boys to be second to none at this point, given our modern age military traditions, tech, calculated refinement, and opportunities for action.

But the SAS does a lot too, they just keep a lower profile. SAS has a reputation for top tier toughness and bravery, and were of course the original blueprint for American special forces. Nothing but respect for those guys.
 

Gp1

Member
Joking aside, any good non fiction books written by Delta Force guys to recommend? Missions and training stories and the like.

Some of the SAS stuff is cracking, gut wrenching and harrowing in equal measures.

Not "exactly" what you are looking for but it is worth of recommendation :

Relentless Strike: The Secret History of Joint Special Operations Command (English Edition) https://a.co/d/eIPodWM
 
Last edited:

jason10mm

Gold Member
Joking aside, any good non fiction books written by Delta Force guys to recommend? Missions and training stories and the like.

Some of the SAS stuff is cracking, gut wrenching and harrowing in equal measures.
Inside Delta Force by Haney would be the obvious one, assuming you haven't read it yet and are interested in stuff well before the Global War in Terror. Black Hawk Down by Bowden is another one that features Delta Force a bit.

Not so many of those guys sharing stories versus the Navy SEALs, all of whom seem happy to write tell-all books :p

Edit: But some do. Killing Bin Laden by Dalton Fury as a Delta Force operator and Relentless Strike by Sean Naylor as a correspondent might scratch that itch.
 
Last edited:

clarky

Gold Member
Inside Delta Force by Haney would be the obvious one, assuming you haven't read it yet and are interested in stuff well before the Global War in Terror. Black Hawk Down by Bowden is another one that features Delta Force a bit.

Not so many of those guys sharing stories versus the Navy SEALs, all of whom seem happy to write tell-all books :p

Seems to be the other way over here quite a few SAS guys break ranks and are minor celebrities while the SBS tend to keep a lower profile.

Cheers for the recommendations also. Look like Haney is the man for the job.
 

Denton

Member
For some reason I find that "accountant" look way more bad-ass than the movie typical steroid guys with full beards and tatoos and shit.

I remember how unexpected the protagonist of Soldier of Fortune looked, and of course he was based on real guy

58-mullins.jpg
 

Tams

Member
They had an SAS sharpshooter on a podcast that trained with Delta Force in the early 2000s. He was asked how they were. "Nice guys, but they kicked my ass at shooting." -SAS sharpshooter lol

I never take any special forces people who go on podcasts, TV shows, write books, etc. that seriously.

It's not that I don't believe them; it's that the most talented of them don't have the need to do such self promotion.
 
Without the guns, they would look like dads going to the shop.

This reminds me of Audie Murphy. A short, skinny guy, that makes Rambo look like a little pussy. And is the highest awarded american soldier in WW2.
Its not about the physique, its about the mental state.
As the saying goes.
"It's not the size of the man in the fight, It's the size of the fight in the man."
 

jason10mm

Gold Member
I never take any special forces people who go on podcasts, TV shows, write books, etc. that seriously.

It's not that I don't believe them; it's that the most talented of them don't have the need to do such self promotion.
Certainly guys like Jocko Willinik and Jack Carr do a lot to "demystify" the spec-ops community. Probably do a bit to obfuscate some aspects as well. These guys are trading on their profession like any cop, soldier, doctor, or model for authenticity in their new endeavors. I think, overall, it's pretty beneficial to show that these guys are not supermen, are not Hollywood style terminators living in cryo-chambers, to be thawed out when some dictator is to be killed, and have an achievable mindset kids can aspire to. Moving away from tanks, artillery, and mass bombardment as "warfare" and going to surgical strikes, small unit actions, and guerilla actions probably saves lives and keeps places functioning better so putting these units into the forefront of policy instead of a fleet of battleships or a few armored divisions is good for all of us. Of course the US especially wants to have its cake and eat it too so we fund the battleships and strike bombers as well as the spec-ops stuff :p
 

clarky

Gold Member
I never take any special forces people who go on podcasts, TV shows, write books, etc. that seriously.

It's not that I don't believe them; it's that the most talented of them don't have the need to do such self promotion.
A lot of the guys when they leave the service fall by the way side from what ive read. They all dont end up in private jobs and if they do alot end up on a road to self destruction anyway. PTSD's a bitch.

Sad really.
 
Last edited:

poodaddy

Gold Member
Without the guns, they would look like dads going to the shop.

This reminds me of Audie Murphy. A short, skinny guy, that makes Rambo look like a little pussy. And is the highest awarded american soldier in WW2.
Its not about the physique, its about the mental state.
The physique is an absolutely massive component, make no mistake. Just because these dudes look like turbo 80's dads doesn't mean they weren't peak physical fitness.

Whole time I was in the Army I only ever "met" one Delta operator. Didn't really even meet him, but he trained at the same time we did. First of all, they all look pretty unique, as they can look however they want, but he definitely didn't go for the nerdy understated vibe here. Also, his physique was utterly surreal. We trained hard man....he could lap us with ease though, literally no work for him. He was about 6'4 ish, looked about 250 ish roughly, solid muscle, and was fast and durable to an extent that would make College ballplayers blush. I remember him having a very impressive beard, and I also remember wanting to say hey to him and invite him to train with us and my sergeant got quite mad at me for it, told me noone is to bother him. They enjoy a high level of autonomy, almost noone messes with them, even officers. Must have been nice, but I can't imagine the amount of training schools he had to complete to get there. Not fun man.
 

EviLore

Expansive Ellipses
Staff Member
A lot of the guys when they leave the service fall by the way side from what ive read. They all dont end up in private jobs and if they do alot end up on a road to self destruction anyway. PTSD's a bitch.

Sad really.
Yes, I don’t mind if they ghostwrite books about their experiences or start a coffee company or whatever, since it gives them purpose. Civilian life is just a completely different, alien world in comparison to what they have etched into their souls by the time they retire.
 

winjer

Member
The physique is an absolutely massive component, make no mistake. Just because these dudes look like turbo 80's dads doesn't mean they weren't peak physical fitness.

Whole time I was in the Army I only ever "met" one Delta operator. Didn't really even meet him, but he trained at the same time we did. First of all, they all look pretty unique, as they can look however they want, but he definitely didn't go for the nerdy understated vibe here. Also, his physique was utterly surreal. We trained hard man....he could lap us with ease though, literally no work for him. He was about 6'4 ish, looked about 250 ish roughly, solid muscle, and was fast and durable to an extent that would make College ballplayers blush. I remember him having a very impressive beard, and I also remember wanting to say hey to him and invite him to train with us and my sergeant got quite mad at me for it, told me noone is to bother him. They enjoy a high level of autonomy, almost noone messes with them, even officers. Must have been nice, but I can't imagine the amount of training schools he had to complete to get there. Not fun man.

Though that is all true, the fact remains that plenty of normal guys have performed except well in conflict and won many awards.
Audi Murphy and Alvin York are 2 great examples, of average folk doing the impossible.
 

StueyDuck

Member
Hollywood definitely coerced the modern image of a special forces soldier to be a roided up super mega hulk man, but in reality you don't want that, you want someone who is nimble, lightweight, a smaller target etc. Being South African i know many older men who were Recce's (if you know you know) and majority of them were smaller in stature(meaning they weren't hulked out, not that they were short), and we're a country that can produce huge fuckers just look at our rugby teams, but they were some of the most dangerous mental mother fuckers out there, they have a reputation for a reason.
 
Last edited:
My old man was in the Navy, and he was a PRO, a public relations officer, he retired at the rank of commander. He had a buddy he met in basic that went on to become a SEAL and he had some great stories.
My favorite didn’t even involve an op or a combat zone. My dad and him were staying in a hotel where a bunch of Army guys were celebrating completing AIT or something. They were being loud and raucous, so the SEAL went to their room to ask them to please quiet down a bit.
“Yeah, sure buddy, no problem!” and went right back to partying.
When the SEAL returned to the room to ask again, the guys decided they were gonna jump him, and he busted up the whole group, 7 dudes according to dad.
“They were kinda drunk so it wasn’t too hard.”

Guy was 5’10 and probably 150 pounds soaking wet, from remembering him as a kid he certainly didn’t look like a badass.
 
Last edited:

jufonuk

not tag worthy
Sicário (the movie) has a character that was clearly inspired on Vining

images


Khaki pants, Short sleeves, dockers, chevrons, prescription frame glasses...

Shady as fuck.
They guy must have “character wears fuck if glasses” in his contract. He was in shot caller as a character called bottles who wore fuck off glasses.
 
Unfortunately the main character doesn't look dorky, but I highly recommend this movie:
"Nobody" was a really fun movie with this sort of premise, and with an actor that did look the part of someone you wouldn't expect to be a badass. He plays a former "auditor," which you later learn isn't what most people think it is.
 

MrA

Member
Though that is all true, the fact remains that plenty of normal guys have performed except well in conflict and won many awards.
Audi Murphy and Alvin York are 2 great examples, of average folk doing the impossible.
Don't forget sas founder David sterling, looks like a guy that points at people with a pipe when talking to them.
The_Special_Air_Service_%28sas%29_in_North_Africa_during_the_Second_World_War_E21340.jpg

Sneaked into British command in Cairo on crutches to bring the idea of a special force straight to auschinleck (most under appreciated ww2 general in my opinion)
Plus he scolded his men after there first operations because they were told to blow things up not kill people.
 

jason10mm

Gold Member
Delta Force doesn’t get near the recognition that they deserve. (They probably prefer it that way).
The SEALs are pretty openly mocked for all the "tell all" books their former members tend to write.

SF guys who have moved on are somewhat open about their service activities, but you almost NEVER hear of a DF op. Much less the marine or air force equivalents. Or border patrol, FBI, ATF, Post Office, or IRS special response assault teams.

The real scary guys are the NASA space marines trained to board the three orbital space stations (what, you thought there was only TWO???) and respond to extraterrestial threats.
 

Romulus

Member
The SEALs are pretty openly mocked for all the "tell all" books their former members tend to write.

I think alot of it is so other SF guys putting them on blast, which the ones that do write books deserve. I think alot of is jealously though because they get alot of attention. The overwhelming majority are good operators and considered the best at what they do. Most green berets, delta guys will tell you if the mission in anywhere near water, SEALs all the way. The planet is 70% water and shorelines are everywhere so that gives them a massive range. Most are quiet operators that do their job, I knew and worked with them on many occasions. The vocal minority ruined perception.
 
Last edited:
Top Bottom