Reorganization of Polish special forces

On June 30, a new special military unit - Jednostka Wojskowa Agat, JW Agat - a subordinate to Krakow's Special Forces Command was created on the basis of the Military Police Special Branch Gliwice (Oddział Specjalny Żandarmerii Wojskowej Gliwice - OSŻWG, established just in 2005), while the OSŻWG unit was formally dissolved. The first candidates for the future special soldiers will be selected from about 600 former gendarmes. The first stage of forming of the unit will last till the end of 2011. The first combat ready subunits should be operative by the end of 2014, the entire JW Agat - by the year 2016. The commander of the unit is Col. Sławomir Berdychowski, former Grom operator. The year 2014 is not accidental here, because this is the year when Poland becomes part of high command of NATO's special operations.

The name "Agat" comes from a WWII code-name of a combat subversion unit "Agat" (short for Anti-Gestapo) of Destruction and Sabotage Command (Kedyw), subordinated to Headquarters of Home Army in Poland. "Agat" will be an airborne and air assault military unit, tasked with safeguarding and supporting role during actions of the other special units commanded by Special Forces Command (DWS) - such as JW Grom, JW Komandosów, JW Formoza and JW Nil. 

So far only some detached military units of regular land forces have been used in this role, but - as our own and other countries' experience shows - the dedicated kinetic support units are preferable for such tasks. The closest example of similar existing units are the British Special Forces Support Group (SFSG) (battalion size, formed in 2006) and the American 75th Ranger Regiment. It is thought that in the future the new Agat unit will be the most intensively exploited formation of special forces; it will be present in all operations and it will be equipped with heavy machine guns and antitank weapons.

Future soldiers of all Polish Special Forces will be receiving their first basic training in JW Agat, in Gliwice. The unit will be well saturated with privates and noncommissioned officers - providing drills and other training. After the basic training, volunteers will be subjected to more specialized selection and then passed on other special units.

At the same time, as of 1 July 1st, 2011 the existing special units have had their names simplified: JW GROM, JW Komandosów (former: the 1st Special Commando Regiment, Pułk Specjalny Komandosów), JW Formosa (former: the Naval Special Operations Unit Formoza, Morska Jednostka Działań Specjalnych Formoza) and JW Nil (*) (former: the Support Unit of Command and Security of Special Forces "Nil", Jednostka Wsparcia Dowodzenia i Zabezpieczenia Wojsk Specjalnych "Nila").

(*) In anticipation of possible silly jokes I hurry to report that the unit name "Nil" (English "Nile" not "nil") was a nome de guerre of Brig. Gen. August Emil Fieldorf, war time commander of KEDYW (sabotage and destruction).

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