Army draws close to endstrength target of 490,000

Posted 2015-06-16 16:45 by Grunt Report with 0 comments

A combination of personnel cuts has drawn the Regular Army to within about 2,000 soldiers of its endstrength objective of 490,000 officers and enlisted members for the fiscal year that ends Sept. 30.

Since the beginning of fiscal 2015 in October, the Army has reduced active-component manning by 16,172 soldiers. Over the past 12 months Army personnel strength has dropped by 26,425, according to statistics compiled by the Defense Manpower Data Center.

The service is scheduled to continue the drawdown in 2016 toward an endstrength goal of 475,000. Barring an unexpected halt in the cuts, the force reduction will move toward an endstrength of 450,000, to possibly 420,000 soldiers by the end of the decade.

The DMDC statistics, which reflect personnel calculations for May 1, show the active-component force is comprised of 94,439 officers,393,426 enlisted soldiers and 4,286 West Point cadets.

The Regular Army component includes 15,731 female officers, 52,745 enlisted soldiers and 759 cadets. Women comprise 14.06 percent of the active component.

The Army’s Reserve components have a combined strength of more than 547,000 soldiers — 349,093 in the National Guard and 198,106 in the Army Reserve.