What Does 'DEVGRU' Stand For In The US Navy?

The military world is full of initialisms and acronyms. Many of these are well known, NATO, USAF, and RAF all spring to mind. But what about the US Navy's acronym — DEVGRU? The lesser-known status of this term is unsurprising given the secrecy that surrounds the group it refers to. To understand what DEVGRU stands for, it's useful to start by looking at another famous acronym — Navy SEALs. The term SEAL stands for sea, air, and land, and refers to an elite group that is one of the world's most feared and secretive special operations forces. Famously, Navy SEALs were behind the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden. 

However, even in such an elite force, there are subdivisions. One of these is a team known as SEAL Team Six, which is where the DEVGRU acronym becomes relevant. Indeed, it was Seal Team Six, is the team that took part in the aforementioned Osama Bin Laden raid. Yet, officially, SEAL Team Six was decommissioned in 1987. That isn't to say that the team was retired, rather, it was replaced by the US Navy's Special Warfare Development Group — or DEVGRU. As is often the way with these things, the original name stuck, and although SEAL Team Six no longer exists, the name is often used interchangeably with the less glamorous-sounding DEVGRU. As is to be expected, much of what DEVGRU does is classified, but let's have a closer look at what we do know about this elite group.

The history of the US Navy's special operations arm dates from WW2, when the US Navy established highly-trained commando units. There are now 10 active-duty teams, each of which comprises more than 200 SEALs and support personnel. The DEVGRU team is a Tier 1 special missions unit. Otherwise known as Special Missions Units, Tier 1 units are under the direct command of the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) and are tasked with high-stakes missions including hostage rescue and counter-terrorism. The team is separated into "color-coded" squadrons named Gold, Red, Blue, and Silver. 

While the Osama Bin Laden raid is probably what the team is most famous for, it's far from being the only combat operation they've taken part in. The team has carried out thousands of missions, including one on April 8, 2009, when the team rescued Capt. Richard Phillips from Somali pirates after his ship was hijacked. The team has never strayed far from controversy, a point highlighted by the recent disclosure of an unsuccessful mission into North Korea in 2019. While Navy SEALs have access to some pretty cool gear, the mini-submarines used in the raid left them exposed to frigid waters, and the team was also compromised by local fishermen.