The AirTEP rapid insertion system used by the Spanish Navy's Green Berets

Ship assaults are always a very complex operation with considerable risks for special operations units.

These are the soldiers and the training of the FGNE, the elite unit of the Spanish Navy
Spectacular assault exercise by the FGNE on the Spanish Navy's ship 'Carnota'

There are two ways to carry out these assaults: by boat and by helicopter. It's worth remembering that the British Marines tested the Gravity system in 2021, a jetpack that allows a soldier to be inserted into a ship at high speed, but this method is still under development and has certain drawbacks. Boat assaults are a very common option against civilian targets, as they put the operators carrying out the assault in a tactically inferior position when boarding the ship if its occupants are armed.

The helicopter option is widely used, generally through the fast-rope insertion system, which avoids the need for the aircraft to land on the ship (which is not always possible). This system involves operators descending via ropes located on the helicopter's cargo door. The risks of this system were illustrated in these two photos released last year by EUNAVFOR, showing operators from the Special Naval Warfare Force (FGNE), the Spanish Navy's Green Berets, during an assault exercise on the flight deck of the frigate "Reina Sofía" F-84.

The Spanish Navy's SH-60 Seahawk helicopters have only one side hatch, located on the starboard side of the aircraft, and it only allows for the deployment of one rope. Furthermore, these helicopters do not have a gunner's station to support the operation (as is the case with the UH-60 Black Hawk), so supporting fire must be provided from the same narrow hatch through which the operators exit.

While the Spanish Navy's new NH90 Sable helicopters reach their full operational capacity, the FGNE relies heavily on the SH-60 for this type of assault. Almost two decades ago, the French company Escape International presented a possible solution: AirTEP (Airborne Tactical Extraction Platform).

In April 2023, the Spanish Navy already demonstrated this system in action during a GNEX exercise carried out by the FGNE in Galicia alongside the Northern Marine Infantry Battalion and Mine Countermeasures divers. These two images are from that exercise.

The AirTEP system consists of a foldable platform that can transport up to ten people. The platform is suspended by a sling from the helicopter's centerline hook. In this way, ten armed soldiers can reach a ship, providing suppressive fire from a position of tactical superiority. According to the manufacturer, the AirTEP has already been adopted by the U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) and the National Gendarmerie Intervention Group (GIGN), among other operators.

In addition to the AirTEP device already used by the FGNE in Galicia in 2023, in August 2024 the Spanish Navy announced the purchase of two more devices of this type, given the need to equip the units embarked on the ships of Operation Atalanta in the Indian Ocean for their boarding operations.

This Wednesday, the NATO Joint Forces Command Brunssum (JFCBS) published a series of four photos of the FGNE during NATO's Steadfast Dart 26 exercise, during training carried out aboard the amphibious assault ship "Castilla" L-52.

In these photos we see operators from the First Commando Squadron of the FGNE in an exercise with an SH-60F Seahawk helicopter from the 10th Squadron (remember that until recently these aircraft were part of the 5th Squadron, dissolved on January 30).

The JFCBS has stated: "For the first time, Spanish Special Operations Compotent Command (SOCC) Units use AirTEP helicopter nets on a ship, fast insertions and extractions at sea during Exercise #SteadfastDart26.." It is worth noting that the Spanish Joint Special Operations Command (MCOE) is leading NATO's SOCC in this exercise for the second consecutive year.

Four years ago, Escape International released this video showing the AirTEP in action. It demonstrates both its military and civilian applications:

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Photos: NATO Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum (JFCBS) / Estado Mayor de la Defensa / EUNAVFOR / Armada Española / Escape International.