Special ops or special operations are specialized military activities. They employ specially trained armed forces who are deemed fit for the specific operation. Special ops may conduct reconnaissance, counter-terrorism, and other specialized activities. Special ops troops are deployed by the air force, the navy, and other armies. Based on what rank they are in; they are paid accordingly. Let us know ‘How Much Do Navy Seals And Other Special Ops Make?’.
How Much Do Navy Seals And Other Special Ops Make?
The truth, however, is not as glamourous as it seems. Most special ops personnel do not make a huge amount of money. Even though they earn around $50000 or more per year, that is not more than most high-paid civilian jobs. Also taking into consideration the amount of danger they put their lives in, it can be understood that they are not paid much. They, however, get substantial bonuses and other perks. These bonuses, although lucrative, seem to dampen the actual harsh truth about their salaries.
Various special ops forces and their average salaries are listed below:
Navy SEALS (Sea, Air, and Land)
The base salary of a Petty officer Third class (E-4) with no more than 2 years of experience is paid $2089 a month on average. That pay rises to around $7845 a month for E-9 class with a total of 40 years of experience.
The NCO SEALs earn around $3379 for a W-2 rank and around $9500 after 40 years of total experience.
The active-duty SEALs with the lowest (O-1) rank earn around $3035 per month. With an increase in rank (O-2), their salary increases to $3500 per month. The SEAL officer with the highest rank (O-10) earns around $15600 per month.
However, along with monthly salaries, SEALs are paid handsome bonuses which include:
- Training Qualification bonus of $12000
- Training completion bonus of $40000
- Re-enlistment bonuses ranging from $30000 to $160000
- Other bonuses including hostile fire pay, jump status pay, etc, combine to around $10000 per year. Each bonus falls under a range of $150-$300.
AFSPECWAR (Airforce Special Warfare)
E-3 ranked officers earn around $2303 per month with 3 years of experience. They receive $343 as a food allowance. They also receive $981 as a housing allowance. Along with that, they receive around $765 total on other payments. Including bonuses and other pay, their monthly salary rises to around $4422.
E-6 technical sergeants with a wife and a child receive around $3995 monthly salary. Their housing allowance is $3003 per month. They also receive $373 as food allowances. BASIP and SDAP payments aggregate to $1065 per month. Their total monthly salary rises to around $9055.
O-2 officers with 3 years of experience earn around $4968 per month. The housing allowance is around $1167. The food allowance is around $257. BASIP is around $150. This takes their total monthly earnings to $6542.
Major O-4 with 12 years of experience and with a wife and a child will earn around $7832 per month. They get a housing allowance of $3288 and a food allowance of $257. BASIP contributes around $600-$615. COLA contributes $833. Their total monthly salary increases to $12810 as a result.
Army Special Forces
The salary of a Special Forces captain with no more than 2 years of service is around $4143. The warrant officers operate just below the captain. W-1 officers with no more than 2 years of experience earn around $3037. Officers with more than 20 years of experience i.e., W-5 officers, earn around $7614.
Enlistment soldiers make up the remainder of the special forces. Master sergeants with 8 years of experience earn around $3845 per month. Corporals with no more than 2 years of experience earn around $2139 per month.
Bonuses are paid as compensation for the life-threatening and harsh environments the people have to work in. Hardship duty amounts to $50-$150 per month for army personnel who have been deployed for 30 days in a poor working environment. Army personnel who are fluent in different languages are paid bonuses of $1000. They use their linguistic skills to carry out certain missions.
Conclusion
Navy seals and other special ops might seem to be earning handsome amounts in general. However, taking into consideration their work environment and constant threat to life, the amount does not seem to be that much. Bonuses and allowances are given but even they are not capable of fully justifying the hardships of those in the forces.
