15-Year Retirement Extended...Good Idea?

Two separate issues here, both are beneficial to the service member at that point in time....for those that join at age 18, retiring at age 33 sounds like a pretty good deal.

http://myarmybenefits.us.army.mil/Home/Benefit_Library/Federal_Benefits_Page/Temporary_Early_Retirement_Authority_(TERA).html?serv=147

This has existed since 2011.

TERA is not separation pay. It is retirement. Those that qualify for and receive TERA do not receive separation pay. They are retired, early, with a slightly lower pension than a 20-yr retirement, based on time served.

Yes, TERA should continue to be authorized during the drawdown. I expect that as the Army will continue the drawdown past 2018, that Congress will authorize TERA to extend past 2018.

Should they allow TERA, yes in limited situations? However, it shouldn't be a guarantee that if you involuntary separate you will get it. Why? Because if I knew for a fact I would get TERA if separated, I could just purposefully trigger my separation. Start failing your APFT's at 14.5 years and you get to bail out early with TERA. This seems distasteful, but forcing someone to go to 20 years to qualify for retirement is also a form of coercion if they don't want to be there.

It wasn't extended, it was always until 2018.
You must be a non-select for promotion to next rank and be between 15-20 years.
It is a pay check and all retirement benefits for life, but you might be getting out a little earlier and less pay, if you were hoping to get promoted and serve a few more years.

They had a similar program in the 1990s during the post Cold War drawdown. It is a way for those who spent that much time in to get something. I think it benefits the Soldiers and the Army.

SGM, I think its a fantastic idea. The army needs a reboot. I think that we should be allowed to opt in and that the Army should do a monthly dump of the numbers needed for the drawdown. I do feel, however, that we are rewarding those that didn't make the cut with early retirement. I would happily trade losing 12% of retirement for regaining 5 years of my life and I've done *mostly all the right things, aside from SSD 3 of course.

I would hit my 15 year mark this next February. Now I wish I'd stayed in!

At first I thought it was a bad idea ...but after reading the responses to this post? Fire it up. If it gets rid of all the toxic or crappy 14.5+ yr Soldiers, then let's do this. I don't give a damn what they pay someone who has put in the time ...but I'd rather see shi**y Soldiers ushered out as swiftly as possible. If this gives people an easy out, then do it. I only want to be surrounded by people who want to be here for the right reasons ...not because they're fat, broken, and contractually bound or obligated. Army of the willing.

Yes as long as there is a QMP and a QSP then the 15 year retirement should stay.

SGM Matthew Quick i'm willing to bet that this applies to QSP and people who want out vs QMP. With a QMP, you do not qualify for retirement unfortunately.