The Special Forces Command (German: Kommando Spezialkräfte) is an infantry corps of the Swiss Armed Forces specialised in rapid offensive operations, intel gathering and operations in urban areas, open fields and other difficult terrains, capable of acting on short notice.Grenadiers are subjected to considerable physical strain, applicants are required to be in excellent physical conditions, and recruits are chosen through a strict selection process. The Grenadiers have been part of the Grenadier Command 1 since the “Army XXI” reform in late 2004, before which Grenadier units were integrated in other regiments. Grenadier Command 1, subordinated to the “Reconnaissance Formations of the Armed Forces and Grenadiers”, is headquartered in Rivera. The Grenadiers’ motto, shared with many other military institutions and most famously with the US Marines, is “Semper Fidelis”.
The recruitment process of Grenadier units takes place one year before recruit school, and generally matches the ones of other corps, with the exception that one must volunteer to become a Grenadier. Those interested are subjected to comprehensive medical and psychological tests. Recruit school, extending over a period of 25 weeks, is very demanding, both physically and psychologically. Those who, during the first 11 weeks, prove incapable of the necessary performances, are moved to other incorporations. Training for NCOs and officers begins after 9 weeks of recruit school, who undertake respectively 41 and 56 additional weeks of grade-specific training. Additional courses offered to recruits include basic training of shotguns (notably the Remington 870, which is designated as MzGw 91, Mehrzweckgewehr 91) and for marksmen/snipers (for the 8.6 mm Sako TRG) (SSGw 04, Scharfschützengewehr 04) and 12.7 mm PGM Hecate II rifle 12.7mm PGw 04 (12.7 mm Präzisionsgewehr 04 ) and survival techniques.
