French Army Special Forces Command


The Army Special Forces Command is the French Army's special forces unit. It is based in Pau, Pyrénées-Atlantiques.

History

The COM FST is the heir of the groupement spécial autonome created in 1997 and then commanded the 1er RPIMa and a special operations flight belonging to the 4e Régiment d'Hélicoptères de Commandement et de Manœuvre of the ALAT.
In 1998, the Détachement ALAT des Opérations Spéciales was created.
The brigade des forces spéciales Terre was activated on 1 July 2002 and included the 13e RDP. The BFST conduct an annual exercise called Gorgones to ensure interoperability of the three units. The name Gorgones refers to the three units, as the three mythological figures.
The BFST has supported the peacekeeping operation in Côte d'Ivoire and Afghanistan.
The brigade des forces spéciales Terre became the commandement des forces spéciales Terre on 1 July 2016.

Structure