What changes would you make to the APFT if given the chance?
I thought the Army was going in the correct direction by making a test based upon job field, but then they switched to adding a supplement to the current test and things started falling apart. The issue is this, there is no one standard. The APFT standard changes by age and gender. This makes it wildly unpredictable at predicting a baseline of any given units actual physical capability. A 50 year old female SGM for example has to perform 34 pushups, 66 situps, and a 17:36 two mile to Max the APFT. How is it right and just to consider that performance (a 300) at the same level as a 30 year old male SGT performing 77 pushups, 82 situps, and 13:18 for the same score? The SGT is physically far more capable so how in any way is the current test standard geared toward a capability to expect any given level of performance? The issue is that the APFT should be in 2 parts. One, a common core minimum for all ages, ranks, and genders for either making or failing the standard (a 1/1/1 assessment). Two, their must be a difference in MOS physical qualifications. For example, all infantry must be able to ruck a x pound pack in x amount of time to be infantry eligible, a artillery soldier must be able to curl x pound bar x times, a medic must be able to drag a x pound dummy, x yards. Stop connecting promotions to PT and weapons quals and make technical and tactical competencies the leading variables. Stop trying to integrate old tools into a new test and pretending its innovative... We as Soldiers have the common sense to know that the APFT is a feel good tool to compare one unit to another on a curved scale.
Please don't interpret this as I'm saying the female NCO is unfit to serve, many can out perform their male counterparts and consistently do. I think the APFT is more of a retention tool than an indicator of physical capability.
Bullets, mortars, and rockets don't discriminate.
I'll let you all figure out where I stand on this issue.