Example: In a hostage rescue or nighttime raid, a 4-man commando team might accomplish what a 40-man infantry platoon could not.
"Commando" is a psychological weapon.
In conventional military planning, “exchange ratios” exist. Historical studies suggest that an entrenched defender may be worth three attackers, or an armored unit might equal five infantry squads. Applying this to commandos, some analysts have loosely suggested a well-trained commando might be “worth” 10–20 regular soldiers in a direct firefight. But this is deeply misleading. Commandos are rarely deployed in stand-up battles. When the British Special Air Service (SAS) assaulted the Iranian Embassy in 1980, six operators neutralized five terrorists and rescued 24 hostages in 11 minutes—but no one would argue those six could hold a trench line against 60 regular infantry. Context is everything. 1 commando is equal to how many soldiers
Example: In a hostage rescue or nighttime raid, a 4-man commando team might accomplish what a 40-man infantry platoon could not.
"Commando" is a psychological weapon.
In conventional military planning, “exchange ratios” exist. Historical studies suggest that an entrenched defender may be worth three attackers, or an armored unit might equal five infantry squads. Applying this to commandos, some analysts have loosely suggested a well-trained commando might be “worth” 10–20 regular soldiers in a direct firefight. But this is deeply misleading. Commandos are rarely deployed in stand-up battles. When the British Special Air Service (SAS) assaulted the Iranian Embassy in 1980, six operators neutralized five terrorists and rescued 24 hostages in 11 minutes—but no one would argue those six could hold a trench line against 60 regular infantry. Context is everything.