08.09.2025.
Advanced combat diver training
Advanced specialized training is currently underway at the 72nd Special Operations Brigade for selected unit members preparing for the role of combat divers.
The training lasts six months and is conducted at the Serbian Armed Forces’ training areas, as well as on canals, rivers, and lakes. It is designed to prepare trainees for sabotage, counter-sabotage and counter-terrorism missions, as well as for intelligence-gathering operations conducted on land, in water and underwater.Special Forces personnel who apply for this course undergo an exceptionally demanding training program, both in water and on land. The program includes tactical and specialized training, with a minimum of two dive days per week and numerous 30-kilometre loaded marches.
One of the trainees in the course, who has served in the unit for five years, explains that he applied to test whether he is sufficiently skilled to take on the special missions assigned to combat divers.— To be selected for the combat diver course, we first have to undergo detailed and rigorous medical screenings and physical fitness tests. Selection happens naturally, the course lasts six months, and we are currently about halfway through. After completing the initial phase of instruction and basic training, we start diving independently, i.e. with our diving partners. This test of brotherhood and the experience of diving in pairs mean a great deal to us. Without that, we wouldn’t be able to dive independently. Every mission we carry out is done in pairs and we must never rely on a third person – emphasizes the course participant and candidate for the combat diver company.
Combat divers of the Serbian Armed Forces are versatile soldiers trained to execute the most complex missions, both on domestic territory and in areas under enemy control. Being exceptionally well-trained is a prerequisite for the successful execution of special operations under all hydro-meteorological and tactical conditions. For this reason, they undergo complex and demanding training throughout the year.
PHOTOGALLERY
VIDEOGALLERY08.09.2025
mp4 (108,6 MB)Training
