Some professional athletes in top physical condition recently had an eye-opening experience when they tried their hands at some routine Army exercises.
The Fayetteville Observer reported on Fox Sports' annual "Spring Training to the Troops" program that will finish its second year Feb. 7. The event brings a collection of current and former Major League Baseball players to military bases to interact with troops and see how difficult their training can be.
Chris Archer, a pitcher for the Tampa Bay Rays, is one of the top young prospects in the league. When he tried to pack a parachute in the four minute window allotted to Fort Bragg troops, even he was at a loss.
"It looks tough," Archer said. "But actually doing it – it was way tougher than it looked."
Fox Sports collected photos and tweets throughout the event, as well as some reactions from the participants.
It wasn't just players who experienced life on a military base. Rex Hudler spends 162 days the year as the color commentator for the Kansas City Royals, but that side of him disappeared when he was put behind the grill at the fort's mess hall.
"I loved that so much that I want to go back tomorrow morning and do it again," Hudler told Fox Sports. "They serve us, and it was so nice, for one small moment, to be able to serve them."
While women are not yet allowed to operate under any capacity as a soldier, the Army is taking steps to make service in the military less dependent on gender.
More than 100,000 jobs remain closed to women who wish to become soldiers or progress in their military careers, but the Department of Defense reported Feb. 2 that about 33,000 positions previously closed to women will be opened to willing applicants. The new policy will take effect in April and only exclude designations under Special Operations command.
A serious initiative
The military is still not entirely open to women serving in combat roles, but this policy change represents a step in the right direction, Col. Linda Sheimo believes. Sheimo serves as chief of the Command Programs and Policy Division at the Directorate of Military Personnel Management.
"When we complete congressional notification in April 2014, the Army will have opened approximately 55,000 positions to women, across all three components, since May 2012. " Sheimo told the DOD.
The program also takes a new look at military occupational specialties, or MOSs. Of the 400 MOSs across the Army today, only 14 do not allow women. These specifications, like the 13B Cannon Crewmember that requires the handling of ammunition and operating large artillery, remain restricted to men primarily due to reasons of physical suitability.
But as military officials continue a process or reevaluating all MOSs, Sheimo says it may not be that way for long.
"Ensuring we have clear standards for all soldiers will ensure the best soldiers are assigned to positions, something the Army is calling the 'Soldier of 2020,'" she told the DOD. "What we are trying to do is get the best Solders for the future. The Army's efforts across various spectrums will ensure all soldiers have the opportunity to serve successfully."
March toward progress
With so many options likely opening up for female soldiers in the future, it is no surprise that the percentage of women serving in the Armed Forces has continued to rise. According to data provided on the Army's website, only 9.8 percent of all soldiers in 1983 were women. Ten years later in 1993, that number had jumped to 12.5 percent. In 2012, women represented 15.7 percent of all soldiers.
The collection of women serving in senior positions has also continued to rise over the last few decades, as officer grades, executive civilian position, and DOD appointments are increasingly being filled by women.
The 22nd Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia commence Feb. 7, and while most American citizens will have their eyes glued to their television sets as they watch the opening ceremony, a contingent of Navy sailors on board two state-of-the-art warships have arrived just in time to watch the Games from a different vantage point. Military.com reported that the two warships, a command ship and a frigate, sailed into the Black Sea Feb. 5 to provide extra security assistance to Russian forces if necessary.
Security for seaside Sochi
When Sochi was chosen in 2007 as the site of the 2014 Winter Games by the International Olympic Committee, BostInno.com explains how Russian president Vladimir Putin touted the resort town on the edge of southern Eurasia's inland Black Sea as pefectly situated to captivate a large number of tourists and athletes alike. It's hard to imagine, however, that Putin expected two U.S. Navy warships to be among the visitors to Sochi.
The USS Mount Whitney and the USS Taylor completed their journey several days ago and have already commenced training exercises in the Black Sea. The Mount Whitney is a 620-foot command vessel with .50-caliber machine guns, helicopter-launching capabilities, and Close-In-Weapons-Systems, which Military.com reported are used as an proximity defense weapon. The Taylor is a 435-foot frigate suited for protection and escort missions, as well as anti-submarine objectives.
In addition to combat readiness, the ship can also supply an evacuation population of 3,000 people and generates 100,000 gallons of fresh water a day. Sailors on both ships have been trained for emergency preparedness for their deployment at the Olympics.
Always vigilant
With only hours remaining before the Sochi Games officially begin, concerns over the comprehensive security expected at international events of its caliber continue to mount. The Los Angeles Times reported that the Department of Homeland Security has issued a warning to all airlines flying to Sochi to be wary of explosive materials smuggled inside toothpaste tubes or cosmetic containers.
"If we should receive information in the coming days and weeks that changes our assessment of whether people should travel to Sochi, we will make that information public," National Security Council spokeswoman Laura Magnuson said in a press release.
This latest warning over security at the Olympics joins several other indications of instability in the Caucasus region in Russia. In January, a suicide bomber attacked a train station in the city of Volgograd, only 500 miles away from Sochi, and NBC News recently reported that even powering up a laptop or a mobile device and connecting to the Internet while at the Olympics could automatically infect your system with viruses.
Making the journey
While only one of the ships traveled all the way across the Atlantic on its way to Sochi – the USS Mount Whitney was already stationed in Italy – some family members and fans of U.S. Olympians will be making the lengthy trip despite the security concerns.
Mark Caldwell told the Washington Post that he intends to be one of those Americans in attendance. His daughter, two-time Olympian Ashley Caldwell, will compete in Freestyle Skiing Aerials.
"I've stood at the top of the Deer Valley aerials hill and looked down on the 60-foot jump into space without any landing in site," the elder Caldwell the Washington Post. "My daughter [confronts] that fear daily, repeatedly. Of course we are concerned about the terror prospects in Sochi, but the Olympics are a once-in-a-lifetime event. And for us, twice now."
If Caldwell was at ease over the security in Sochi before, the presence of U.S. Navy soldiers in the Black Sea is sure to put his mind even more at rest.
It was called the end of an era when the U.S. removed the last of its tanks from European soil where they had been a continuous presence since World War II, but after a new fleet of tanks landed at American bases in Germany, a new chapter in history has begun.
Military.com reported that 29 M1A2 SEPv2 Abrams tanks were delivered to the Grafenwöhr training facilities in Germany Jan. 31. Less than a year ago, the U.S. recalled 22 M1A1 Abrams tanks from the base, making this new fleet an upgrade of modernization. The new tanks will join the European Activity Set (EAS) under the authority of the Joint Multinational Training Command (JMTC).
"The EAS is a pre-positioned, battalion-plus-size equipment set with headquarters pieces and command-and-control elements," said Col. Thomas Matsel, an operations officer within the JMTC. ""We have the best light infantry training facilities, the best medium training area with the Strykers. The only thing missing was the heavy piece."
The M1A2 tanks complement a collection of Strykers, the Army's newest troop transport vehicle, and M2/M3 Bradley Fighting Vehicles, which can be optimized for transport or combat, according to GoArmy.com. The M1A2 tanks represent an impressive upgrade in military capabilities in their ability to protect troops from nuclear, biological or chemical attacks.
With the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan and the Middle East in its final stages, the House Armed Services Committee held a series of hearings to discuss the next major strategic move of the country's military might: the Asia pivot.
Stars and Stripes reported that several Congressmen on the committee voiced their concerns over a China grown economically and militarily confident and the need for U.S. forces to protect the interests of various allies in the region.
"The trajectory for our relationship with China is uncertain today, where we're going to go in the future," said Frank Kendall, an advisor to the Secretary of Defense. "One of the reasons we're focused on the Asia Pacific is we want to do our best to influence that trajectory to go in a positive way."
Part of that uncertainty comes from a lack of hard intelligence on China's military capabilities. In 2012, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) published a report that cast doubt on the reported figures of China's military spending. While China itself reports that it spent over $100 billion on its armed forces, the SIPRI report alleges that contributions from other branches of government most likely push that number upwards of 50 percent higher.
With a lack of details surrounding the U.S.'s role as a player in the Pacific, many see the rebalancing of armed forces as the first step in securing that future.
In an unexpected move, Italian customs agents have begun withholding packages and letters bound for U.S. troops stationed in the country unless the normally waived taxes and duties are paid on the incoming shipments.
Stars and Stripes reported that Italian officials are enforcing a new interpretation of a rule contained in the agreement between the two countries that allows the U.S. to station troops on foreign bases. Normally, mail meant for soldiers stationed at foreign bases is exempt from customs taxes and duties. The new interpretation applies to a host of odd items such as lottery tickets, roasted coffee, typewriter ribbons, nutmeg, hair products and playing cards.
Common items that fall under the heading of living necessities are taxed at a low rate, but for more obscure items, soldiers are now being forced to pay upwards of 22 euros – or about $30 – before the packages can be released from customs.
There are roughly 10,000 servicemembers stationed in Italy, according to CNN, though Italian customs have only held a dozen packages so far.
Representatives from the Navy and the American embassy in Rome continue to meet with Italian officials to resolve the issue.
In an effort to allay some of the concerns of Team USA , Uncle Sam will be looking out for them when they travel to Sochi for the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Amidst terrorist attacks in Volgograd and further threats against the events in Sochi by militant groups, the Pentagon has pledged to aid Russian security agencies in their efforts to protect the athletes and spectators of the 22nd Winter Games, according to Business Week. It may not be empty talk, either – during a meeting between Army Gen. Martin Dempsey and Russian General Valery Gerasimov in Brussels, the U.S. is reported to have lent Russian authorities equipment designed to detect homemade explosive devices.
The threat is real enough for most athletes and their families to consider the risks of traveling to Sochi, a resort town only a few hundred miles from the long-unstable North Caucasus area of the country.
Fred Evans' daughter Aja will be competing as part of Team USA's bobsled contingent and though he had the opportunity to watch his daughter chase the gold in person, he passed.
"What I like is the fact that there's coverage of this," Evans told the Washington Post from his Chicago home. "What I like is the advice people are getting. What I don't like is that it could be a reality."
Since the Pentagon lifted its ban on women serving in combat last year, the military has been gradually adjusting to the new roles of female soldiers. While the military has witnessed many milestones recently, including the first three female soldiers to pass the Marine Corps combat training course, one challenge that remains is physical fitness.
Marine officials are still unsure whether female soldiers will be able to complete the pullup portion of the Physical Fitness Test, a new service-wide standard of fitness, according to Military Times. Currently, female Marines are not required to perform pullups when taking the test, but have the option to do either pullups or the traditional flexed-arm hang.
Officials have decided to delay any changes to the PFT to June 30, and any modifications made to the test won't be enacted until January 2015. A Marine spokesperson told the news source that female soldiers can continue to choose between pullups or the flexed-arm hang until then.
The delay "allows more time for studies to be done to determine exactly when the Marine Corps will make a decision on when and whether or not pull-ups will be instituted in the female PFT," Marine spokesperson Capt. Maureen Krebs said, as quoted by the news source.
Nearly 14,000 women serve on active-duty status in the Marine Corps, and comprise approximately 6.8 percent of the branch, according to data compiled by the Department of Defense.
For the military, the Super Bowl is not just about football. Fighter jets from the Continental United States North American Aerospace Defense Command Region will be at next Sunday's game to protect the skies above the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.
According to Pentagon officials, air defense practices are expected to begin in the greater East Rutherford area this week. The exercises, which are closely controlled and planned, will consist of a series of training flights in coordination with various other national and regional agencies, including the Federal Aviation Administration, Customs and Border Protection, Civil Air Patrol, the FBI and CONR's Eastern Air Defense Sector.
"There are a lot of interagency partners involved in the air defense of this year's Super Bowl," said CONR commander and Air Force Lt. Gen. William H. Etter. "With multiple agencies involved, coordination between all air-defense partners is crucial. This exercise allows all of the interagency partners to come together before the game to hone their air defense skills and ensure communications are working properly."
CONR fighters have responded to more than 5,000 possible air threats in the U.S. since 9/11. Etter stated that Super Bowl Sunday is just another day that CONR personnel are "making sure our skies are safe."
A recently launched online program provides aid to military spouses who are in need of career and education guidance. Called My Individual Career Plan, or MyICP, the new interactive resource lets military spouses build digital career roadmaps based on their own goals and objectives.
The web resource debuted Jan. 10 on the Military OneSource website with the help of the Department of Defense's Spouse Education and Career Opportunities program. It's available to all active-duty Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps spouses, as well as National Guard and Reserve spouses. Surviving spouses are also eligible to use the program. However, all military spouses have to first register at the SECO website before accessing MyICP.
"SECO provides expert career and education guidance to military spouses worldwide, supporting them in four career lifecycle stages: career exploration, education, training and licensing, employment readiness, and career connections," said SECO program analyst Lee McMahon in a statement.
McMahon added that MyICP allows military spouses access to the 200 companies and organizations that compose SECO's Military Spouse Employment Partnership, so that military spouses can more easily find job openings.
A recent study from the RAND Corporation found that while a majority of military spouses are employed, they are more likely to be seeking work and earn less on average than civilian spouses.