Arnold Ahlert: U S Army Prioritizes Inclusion Over Readiness — The Patriot Post patriotpost.us - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from patriotpost.us Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
13 May 2021
Christine Wormuth, the Army secretary nominee, said Thursday at her confirmation hearing she is concerned about the implications of the Army’s test for combat fitness for retaining women.
The latest iteration of the test, officially known as the Army Combat Fitness Test, was launched earlier this year and a recent report showed nearly half of the women who take it fail.
“Internal Army figures from April show 44% of women failed the ACFT, compared to 7% of men since Oct. 1. ‘Female soldiers continue to lag male soldier scores in all events,’ according to a United States Army Forces Command briefing,” Military.com reported.
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Cpl. Alexis Chinchillas, a combat medic with Havoc Troop, 3rd Sqdn., 3rd Cav. Regt., works with fellow medics and other Soldiers to assist a fellow Soldier who suffered an illness during the Brave Rifleâs Spur Ride May 6. Chinchillasâ efforts possibly saved the fellow Soldierâs life, who made a full recovery after later being treated at Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center.
Photo by 1st Lt. Clarence Richardson, U.S. Army
Cpl. Alexis Chinchillas, a combat medic with Havoc Troop, 3rd Sqdn., 3rd Cav. Regt., fell back on her medical training and took decisive action to provide care for a female she observed slurring her speech and becoming incoherent. She was quickly assisted by her teammate Spc. Trevor Hawkins May 6 at Fort Hood.
By SARAH CAMMARATA | STARS AND STRIPES Published: May 13, 2021 WASHINGTON Substandard military housing, an increased reliance on the National Guard and the service’s fitness test are all readiness and retention issues that President Joe Biden’s nominee to be Army secretary wants to make a priority. “I intend to prioritize the whole range of people issues. To ensure our soldiers and civilians have the best quality of life possible, I will strive to continue improving our Army housing, health care, child care and spouse employment opportunity,” Christine Wormuth said Thursday at her confirmation hearing in front of Senate Armed Services Committee members.
(Robin Trimarchi/Ledger-Enquirer via AP)
Some of the training numbers coming out of the United States Army this year aren’t looking as good as we might like and that’s particularly true of our female soldiers. All of the troops are required to pass the Army Combat Fitness Test, requiring the completion of six challenging athletic events. For the past decade or so, the test has been applied equally to both male and female troops. But while all but a small fraction (seven percent) of the males are making the grade, almost half (44%) of the women are failing. This is once again raising questions about whether or not this test is truly suitable for female soldiers and potentially eliminating some otherwise highly qualified candidates. And any honest assessment of this situation should also have us asking why we continue to insist that men and women meet the same physical standards when there are obvious differences between them. (Daily Caller)