Combat Survival Training

[StuporMunky]

Does anyone know anything about this school? I know it's with the Air Force Academy, and that it's an Escape, Evasion, and...survival school. Any more information would be appreciated, bar classified.



"On the command of 'Fallout,' fallout. Fallout!"-CadetLand idiom

[CombatCady]

Are you talking about SEER school?
Survival, Escape, Evasion, Resistance, if I'm not mistaken.
Crazy shit, man. My dad had to go through it, since he was in choppers and there was a danger of being shot down. I can only tell you what I've heard, but I'm sure it would be easy to look up.

[GarryOwen]

i don't know much...but was interested in going when i was a two but went to airborne school instead....but a cadet from my school had gone 2 years earlier....

basically its a watered down sears school....at the AF academy...the first 2 weeks is all classroom training, academics and such...then the the field exercise begins...bascially...escape and evade and eventually get captured.....

they used to be able to abuse you there, but a few years back a female had her blouse torn off exposing her breasts and filed suit...so now the cadre can not touch at all.....

thats about all i know.....except i think only ms2's can go..but i'm not sure...hope it helped a bit

[Sammy Sandbag]

One of our members (thisguy (http://www.aisforarmy.com/bb/profile.php?mode=viewprofile&u=37)) went to it several years ago, you might try emailing him and seeing what he has to say. I remember him telling me it was pretty fun and you learn a good bit about surviving in the wilderness. It is by no means SEER school, but a good experience all around.

[cornbread]

yeah, in my special forces class a few green berets came in and talked about SERE school. they said that you have to stand lower than your captors, which sucks for the tall guys. the same guy (he was tall) said the worst part was when they nailed him shut in a tiny coffin and pumped smoke into it and then didnt let him out till he pissed himself. but other than that he said it was all camp fun fun. oh one other interesting note about SERE school--during the prison phase, especially during interogations, mens stress levels rise so high that their bodies stop producing sperm. fun!

[LSUSAF04]

Atually, CST is the first part of SEER training, it is taught by SEER instructors and everything. The only part that is not instructed upon at CST is the actual FTX where you are set up to be captured (that's wher they beat you and all of the other fun stuff). Everything else there follows along the exact training of SEER, and if you go to CST and have to go to SEER in the future you will only have to do the FTX where you get captured part of the training which significantly reduces the time you are on TDY in Washington State (a good thing). You do get to go out and train in the woods and kill a rabbit for food and do all of that stuff too.

[Sammy Sandbag]

There are several levels of SEER or SERE (can't recall which is correct) one is SEERb and the other is SEERc. The one the special forces folks go through is the "c" version. The main difference between the two, is that in the "c" school, you get the shit beat out of you. They run a "b" school here at Rucker that all pilots must go through, but there is talk of upgrading it to the "c" level.

[jehgunnz]

Its SERE.

[Sammy Sandbag]

Its SERE.

Well there you go. For some reason I thought that was right, but then I starting thinking and you know what happens when a soldier starts thinking.

[cornbread]

also pilots in the SOAR and a lot of the crew have to go through level c too, so if your thinking of being high speed sammy, better get ready. i was escorting a cw-3 in the SOAR today-he has been to afganistan 4 times and iraq once, probably heading back to iraq in a month or so. the best thing about them is the only spend about 60 dasy in theater before being rotated out. they do some good stuff over there.

oh and SERE level 'C' is at Camp MacKall in NC. im not sure if the lower levels are there also.

[Sammy Sandbag]

I believe I heard a rumor that they actually brought up some of the instructors from MacKall to Rucker to do a few "C" classes, but that's unconfirmed. I heard the "B" level is no picnic, but I wouldn't mind taking the "C". That's very valuable training, especially for a pilot. They actually had a couple warrant officers get caught with some Big Macs during SERE. Apparently they had a buddy pick them up in a car, or meet them somewhere. I guess they'll be eating plenty of Big Macs, since they'll be working at Burger King paying back the millions of dollers in training expenses.

[Kenai Hef]

I can't speak for the Army, but I've been through USAFA CST, then worked as cadre for it, and have done a few other SERE-type courses as well (water survival, RT Topoff (resistence, the R in SERE that they don't teach at CST), and Arctic Survival. Talking about what went on during some the courses is taboo, I'm fairly certain, but I would recommend the courses to anyone. Seriously. In every single course I've taken (or in the case of CST, worked as cadre for), I've simply been amazed at the quality of the instructors. On a whole, they're some of the sharpest enlisted people as a whole I've ever witnessed, and their instructional techniques are just amazing (not in a "beat your ass" kinda way, but in a "hey, this "could" be dry, but he's making it funny and interesting" kind of way). So...yeah. What I just said.

[Sammy Sandbag]

Talking about what went on during some the courses is taboo, I'm fairly certain,

Well ever since they made it into a Discovery Channel special, it sorta pointless.

[StuporMunky]

Not only is it taboo, it's classified. Heheh. "Hey baby, guess what I did this summer? NM, it's classified." 8)

[Holt]

That's what girls keep telling me. "Sure, I'd take off my clothes, but you're not cleared high enough to see them.

[CombatCady]

Holt, you mean the paperwork for your clearance hasn't gone through yet? Damn, that shit DOES take forever!

[Holt]

Ok, before this gets FOD'ed, how does one apply for this school?

[StuporMunky]

AFAIK, it's just like any other school. The school gets assigned slots by the school fairy (CC/TRADOC). Slots then get handed out by the cadre thus: as recruitment tools, then you might get a chance for being squared away if it's raining pigs. Fat ones. MSII's for this school only ,however, so we might have a pork bbq soon.

[cornbread]

has anyone done CTLT in germany or korea?

[Hammer6]

no, but I can hook you up with people who have... what are you wondering? Last year all the Korea's were cancelled for some reason... they were both in Germany.