The U.S. Army’s preparatory course for the next Ranger School cycle ended with 5 out of 26 women completing the course. All were officers.
Out of 122 soldiers to start the course, 48 percent passed. There were 43 male dropouts in addition to the 21 women, Army Times reported Wednesday.
The army considers its two-week Army National Guard Ranger Training and Assessment Course to be a reliable litmus test for which soldiers are likely to have a chance at passing Ranger School. The army hopes that 40 women will pass the preparatory course between now and April.
“This first iteration of an integrated RTAC has provided significant lessons learned as we conduct a deliberate and professional way forward to the integrated assessment in April,” Maj. Gen. Scott Miller, commanding general of the Maneuver Center of Excellence, Fort Benning, said in a statement, Army Times reported.
Any female soldiers who attend Ranger School in April will be tested on a variety of skills, including land navigation, a Combat Water Survival Assessment, the Ranger Physical Assessment and a 12-mile road march. There is also a 62-day course composed of jungle, mountain and swamp phases.
The next RTAC will begin at Fort Benning, Georgia, in two weeks, the newspaper reported.
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• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
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