The Army wants to get the load soldiers carry down to 55 pounds
Army leaders say that the service’s new “squad as a system” approach to kitting our soldiers with less gadgets could cut down on the total gear infantrymen have to carry.
Patty Nieberg
Posted 17 Hours Ago
Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Juan Taiacardona dumps water on his head during the 2022 Best Squad Competition's 12-mile ruck march even at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, on May 17, 2022. Approximately 40 Soldiers from across the nation travelled to Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, to compete in the 2022 U.S. Best Squad Competition from May 14-21, 2022. The 2022 BSC is an annual competition that brings together the best Soldiers and squads from across the U.S. Army Reserve to earn the title of "Best Warrior" and "Best Squad" among their peers. Competitors are evaluated on their individual and collective ability to adapt to and overcome challenging scenarios and battle-focused events that test their technical and tactical abilities under stress and extreme fatigue. (Army Reserve photo by Sgt. David Barrette)
The Army wants to reduce the amount of equipment that close combat soldiers, like the infantry, have to carry. The obvious perks are that a lighter soldier can move (and fight) faster, is less likely to injure themselves carrying everything and the kitchen sink, and has less gear to worry about getting in trouble for losing.
“No longer will we hang things on them like we hang things on a Christmas tree,” Brig. Gen. Phil Kiniery, commandant of the Army’s Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia, told Task & Purpose in a statement. “In some cases, we’re giving our forces redundant capabilities at the squad level, the platoon level, and the company level. Is that necessary, effective, and efficient? In some cases, the answer will be yes, and in some cases no.”
The average infantry soldier carries or wears more than 80 items. The Army wants to reduce that weight to 55 pounds, or “no more than 30%” of their body weight, Kiniery told contractors at an event earlier this month.
The cuts would impact the Army’s close combat forces, which include infantry, scouts, combat medics, forward observers, combat engineers, and special operations forces.
https://taskandpurpose.com/news/army-reduce-infantry-equipment/
