Military review of fitness standards can find array of tests

Washington, Mar. 30: The defense secretary's decision to review military standards on combat and physical fitness and appearance opens a Pandora's box of widely differing rules among the services. And it will raise a crucial question: Should there be a cookie-cutter approach, or should service differences, evolving social norms and recruiting realities play a role in policy decisions?

Pete Hegseth has been very public about his opposition to women in combat jobs and his belief that standards were lowered to accommodate women, and he warned there would be reviews to address the issues. He is a staunch proponent of making all standards the same, regardless of gender, and military officials are braced for changes as reviews continue.

In a memo March 12, Hegseth said the undersecretary for personnel must gather information on military standards "pertaining to physical fitness, body composition, and grooming, which includes but is not limited to beards."

"We must remain vigilant in maintaining the standards that enable the men and women of our military to protect the American people and our homeland as the world's most lethal and effective fighting force," he wrote.

The effort is seen as a broadside against women serving on the frontlines — which they have been doing successfully for years. Hegseth's memo calls for a review of how standards have changed and the impact of those shifts since Jan. 1, 2015 — the year the Defense Department opened all combat jobs to women.

And it raises questions about whether he wants to make all fitness tests the same for the services and make them all gender- and age-neutral or whether he will set minimum standards and allow the services to require more stringent requirements as desired.

Eliminating the current policy of scoring annual fitness tests based on age and gender could hurt retention and recruitment if troops are suddenly told to meet a new, dramatically harder requirement. Such changes are generally phased in over time.

The military has long had what is largely a two-part system for physical fitness standards:

— Routine annual fitness tests with different requirements based on gender and age.

— More grueling standards for specific combat, special operations, infantry, armor, parajumpers and other jobs that are the same for everyone in that occupation, and are not adjusted for age or gender.

Right now, the fitness tests are a hodgepodge.(AP)