to
Tandjung Priok beach,
Djakarta, circa 1963. Kopaska was heavily influenced by the early US Navy Frogman
Underwater Demolition Teams (UDTs) and modern
Navy SEAL Teams. Kopaska was officially established on 31 March 1962 by President
Sukarno to help his campaign
Operation Trikora in
Western New Guinea. However, in 1954, Captain (Navy)
Iskak had an idea to form a frogman unit in the Navy which eventually act as precursor to Kopaska. Early Kopaska members Captain (Navy) Urip Santoso, Lieutenant (Navy) Joko Suyatno, and PO1C EMP Joseph trained with the UDTs in the United States. The tradition of overseas training has continued with a few men from the unit travelling each year to
Coronado, California, and
Norfolk, Virginia, to participate in SEAL training. Returning to Indonesia, these men then recruit new personnel for Kopaska. Recruitment was difficult in the early years of Kopaska as only a few navy members could pass the qualification process. Recruitment became even more difficult when President Sukarno announced in 1961 the commencement of
Operation Trikora in Western New Guinea (then the
Netherlands New Guinea), as Kopaska were required to conduct beach reconnaissance, beach clearing, prisoner snatches, and
human torpedo missions. The latter two missions were the most daring planned by Kopaska – the first planned to snatch Rear Admiral Reeser, Commander-in-Chief of the Dutch Armed Forces in the Territory, and the human torpedo was aimed at Dutch aircraft carrier
Karel Doorman. Due to a lack of personnel, Kopaska had to borrow 21 troops from the
army special forces, which at that time was still called RPKAD -
Army Paracommando Regiment, including Colonel
Sarwo Edhie Wibowo, the then-regimental commander, and three from the
Greater Jakarta Military Region Command (Kodam Jaya, now known as Kodam Jayakarta). The plans were cancelled when a ceasefire was implemented between Indonesia and the Netherlands. Of the troops assigned to the Trikora campaign, the three Army personnel from Kodam Jaya (Maksum, Alex Sunaryo, and Budi Suroyo) attended Seaman School in the Naval Education and Training Command (Kodikal) and became regular members of Kopaska. 18 of 21 RPKAD wanted to stay with the Navy, but the Commander of RPKAD (Major General Mung Pahardimulyo) did not approve the transfers. Instead, he accommodated the ex-KOPASKA members by creating a new special unit in
Kopassus SAT GULTOR 81-2 Batt. Until the present, Kopaska trained their specialities to other Indonesian Special Forces units: •
Army Kopassus counter-terrorist
combat divers, now known as Paska GULTOR. •
Army Strategic Command Reconnaissance Platoon and counter-terrorist team, the Tontaipur. •
Air Force Satuan Bravo 90 counter-terrorist team. Both
SAT-81 GULTOR and
DENBRAVO-90 continues to send its best members for three months of training in Frogmen School () at the Special Training Centre (), Naval Warfare Centre (), Naval Education and Training Command () located in Naval Base Moro Krembangan in
Surabaya, East Java. ==Organization==