[2] The Air Force has a Rapid Deployment Squadron (RDS) tasked with retrieving airmen behind enemy lines and it is the most recent addition to Kenya's specialized military units.

The 20th Paras are tasked with infiltrating enemy lines during high intensity conflicts, capturing strategic objectives and joint operations with regular infantry units.

The unit was deployed near the border with Uganda in Operation Okoa Maisha during the Mt Elgon insurgency in 2008 where although successful in quelling the SLDF they faced accusations of illegal detention and torture.

[5] In the mid 2000s Kenya's Ministry of Defence began looking into forming a new unit of special forces to better serve the military in light of the global war on terror.

[7] There have also been reports that some operators serving within these units were deployed to Beni, Eastern DRC to help FARDC combat ADF Islamist rebels in the area.

[citation needed] The Air Force formed the Rapid Deployment Squadron after losing a pilot whose jet developed technical problems over Southern Somalia.

The main operational focus of the unit is controlling maritime traffic between Kenya and Somalia and it employs Twenty-Five Foot Defender Class response craft.