- Jul 25, 2002
- 10,053
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New York Times
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The Army is looking for a few good sailors and airmen. Actually, more than just a few.
In what some military experts see as another sign of how the Army's commitments in Iraq and Afghanistan have strained it, the service for the first time will soon begin aggressively recruiting thousands of sailors and airmen who are otherwise scheduled to leave the Navy and Air Force because of cutbacks.
Under a new program called Operation Blue to Green, the Army plans to offer bonuses of up to $10,000, in some cases, and four weeks of extra training to airmen and sailors willing to trade in their dress-blue uniforms for Army green fatigues. The Army is especially interested in men and women who have jobs that are readily transferable to Army positions, like mechanics and logisticians.
Many details must still be worked out and final Pentagon approval is still pending, but Army officials say the new program is a marriage of convenience. The Army is temporarily increasing its ranks by 30,000 soldiers by 2006, and will need to recruit at least 77,000 soldiers this year and 80,000 next year to meet that goal.
Meantime, the Navy and Air Force are shrinking. The Air Force intends to cut its forces by 22,500 next year, the Navy by 7,900.
"This is an opportunity for all the services to work together," said an Army officer who is working on the new program. "It's a way to make sure those men and women who want to serve can continue to serve."
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<CLIP>
The Army is looking for a few good sailors and airmen. Actually, more than just a few.
In what some military experts see as another sign of how the Army's commitments in Iraq and Afghanistan have strained it, the service for the first time will soon begin aggressively recruiting thousands of sailors and airmen who are otherwise scheduled to leave the Navy and Air Force because of cutbacks.
Under a new program called Operation Blue to Green, the Army plans to offer bonuses of up to $10,000, in some cases, and four weeks of extra training to airmen and sailors willing to trade in their dress-blue uniforms for Army green fatigues. The Army is especially interested in men and women who have jobs that are readily transferable to Army positions, like mechanics and logisticians.
Many details must still be worked out and final Pentagon approval is still pending, but Army officials say the new program is a marriage of convenience. The Army is temporarily increasing its ranks by 30,000 soldiers by 2006, and will need to recruit at least 77,000 soldiers this year and 80,000 next year to meet that goal.
Meantime, the Navy and Air Force are shrinking. The Air Force intends to cut its forces by 22,500 next year, the Navy by 7,900.
"This is an opportunity for all the services to work together," said an Army officer who is working on the new program. "It's a way to make sure those men and women who want to serve can continue to serve."
</clip>
There's more - register - it's free.
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