Blain, from the description posted by the Indian members, I didn't think the Garud's roles were similar to the SSW (sorry Kasrkin). I thought (maybe wrongly so) that the SSW was a full-on commando unit with a focus on CSAR but also on other Special Operations as well, whereas the Garud seem to be more like land-based guard units (hence the name). I don't think we could rightly call the Garuds a Special Operations Force, whereas the SSW would fit the definition almost perfectly. The Garuds would better fit under the "specialized infantry" category (if any such thing exists).
Edit
Pardon the sources, but here's what Wiki has to say on the subject:
Special Service Wing
Seems quite accurate to me.
1st Special Operations Wing
75th Ranger Regiment
Scratch the "light infantry" part.
PAFace,
I think as to the actual role of Garuds, we would have to dig it up or ask some of the Indians to clarify. What I have stated is based on the general roles for any Air force special operations capability. I think in general the two would perform similar tasks with a little give and take.
But I am sure they referred to it as a training course. Can't really call it a "competition" for PR purposes. Red Flag USA is also called a training exercise, but that doesn't stop anybody from getting competitive. Can you shed some light on who else was there and how we performed relative to the others? Also, what exactly do you mean by Tactical Transport (Airborne, I assume)?
See this:
"Air Mobility Rodeo; or just plain Rodeo, is sponsored by Air Mobility Command and is a Multi-national Competition designed to allow the World's Best of the Best to fly-off in competitions to determine who is the absolute, most professional at Air Mobility for a living! This years Competiton saw a Multi-cultural fly-off with 9 different Countries flying C-130's. Teams included Belgium, Brazil, Germany (with C-160D), The Netherlands,
Pakistan, S Korea,Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. The USMC joined in with no less than 3 C-130 Teams."
By tactical transport, I was referring to the aircraft used. USAF has tactical and strategic airlift capability. The multinational aspect of this competition is essentially one that involves Tactical airlift with C-130s.
All we know about the Garud is that they have some kick-*** (or kick-butt) gear, so it's only natural that that's all we've discussed here. In terms of capability, it doesn't seem, to me at least, that anyone in Pakistan will lose any sleep over them. So why not enjoy the pictures?
Agreed. Plus you have to keep in mind that the smaller the force, the easier and quicker it is to equip it with good gear and toys. The SSW have a pretty good kit as well (as do all Pakistani SF elements including SSG/A and SSG/N). Indians are no exception.