Army Will Add 2 Months to Infantry Course to Make Grunts More Lethal

I was infantry trained at Ft Polk. I was assigned to a regular line unit. When I got to my regular unit, I had no problems integrating. As you said, the experience gained in a line unit is incomparable.

Well I have to agree 100% with you! Being a former Drill Sergeant, sniper, 11B 11M, 19D, and worked other areas, been in combat, and served time in Berlin when we were 125 miles inside East Germany so with that I will state this from experience. While assigned to Berlin we spit shined everything from jeeps, to tanks, stood inspections with about 3 other country's and then reenlisted and went to Fort Ord Cal and I really thought I had died cause people did not take pride in anything. So the bottom line is this. In BCT you learn how to do everything from learning how to wash cloths, to making a bed, and working as a unit. A team not as a single person. The units have different missions, and it is up to the team, squad, platoon and company to train them for what there mission are. Cause when the bullets are flying no matter what you teach them in basic or AIT it comes down to the team and squad leader you makes it happen. Fort Benning is a training site from Basic to Air Borne to Ranger, to 11 Mikes sniper school there is no fricking way they can turn out super soldiers that comes from the person.

Now on other hand I really do think that the Army needs to do like the Marines do and that is everyone learns how to be a grunt, and yes that means the females also.

You mean catching mail before it made it through the window, and recreating my bunk outside one piece at a time weren't key skills?

They are teaching them those subjects. In fact, Army basic training has lengthened over the decades. I once heard that basic training in Vietnam years was only six weeks. My basic back in late 90s was nine weeks.

Issue may be either retention of too much knowledge all at once or units performing them differently than what was taught in basic training.

LTC Eugene Chu either way you look at it, you’re doing it wrong.

Doing it wrong for double the time isn’t an improvement...

PO3 Bob McCord - Are you double counting?

Boot camp and rating school are as different as basic training and AIT for Army. This article specifically talks about OSUT (Combined basic training and MOS training for Army combat arms)