{"id":45232,"date":"2020-02-11T21:01:33","date_gmt":"2020-02-11T21:01:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/02\/11\/plans-to-extend-soldiers-initial-training-curtailed-in-army-budget-request\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T03:38:41","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T03:38:41","slug":"plans-to-extend-soldiers-initial-training-curtailed-in-army-budget-request","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/your-army\/2020\/02\/11\/plans-to-extend-soldiers-initial-training-curtailed-in-army-budget-request\/","title":{"rendered":"Plans to extend soldiers\u2019 initial training curtailed in Army budget request"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The plan was for engineers, cavalry scouts and armor crewmen to join infantry soldiers next year in starting extended initial training programs <\/a>that would last 22 weeks, giving higher quality new troops to units.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, that push has been put on hiatus for all except armor crewmen, who will begin attending roughly six more weeks of One Station Unit Training<\/a> sometime in 2021 if the budget is approved by Congress as the Army requested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt this time, plans are on hold for extending those OSUT programs to the 22 weeks,\u201d said Col. Britt Walker, director of resource analysis and integration for the Army\u2019s G-3\/5\/7. \u201cThe Army\u2019s plan is for infantry to continue to have the 22-week program and for armor to meet the 22-week program.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Engineers and cavalry scouts are not currently budgeted to start extended OSUT courses<\/a>. Army leaders didn\u2019t address why specifically the extensions were put on hold when asked by reporters at the Pentagon on Tuesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cExtending that OSUT for those two combat-oriented schools is really where the Army decided to put its emphasis,\u201d Walker said, adding that while cavalry scouts are considered combat specialties, \u201cat this point, the Army has decided to stick with the armor and the infantry.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Pentagon\u2019s 2021 budget request to Congress features overall cuts to the Army\u2019s top line. That forced the ground combat branch to make cuts to some programs in order to fund its modernization priorities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But leadership didn\u2019t go so far as to say the cuts to OSUT extensions were part of any trade-off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know that they were part of the cuts, but I think it was decided that we could potentially assume risk there \u2014 if you would \u2014 by not extending those OSUT programs,\u201d Walker said. \u201cReally, the Army wants to focus on readiness with the combat formations first and we want to maintain that tactical readiness.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t