The U.S. Army is rolling out a new physical assessment designed to measure battlefield fitness for soldiers serving in combat roles, the service announced on Wednesday.
The new Combat Field Test is designed to evaluate how soldiers perform under conditions that more closely resemble warfare on the modern battlefield, the Army said, launching a program that emphasizes strength, endurance and movement with loads.
The test will also be age- and sex-neutral and scored on a pass/fail standard.
The test begins with a one-mile run, followed by 30 dead-stop pushups, a 100-meter sprint, 16 lifts of a 40-pound sandbag onto a 65-inch platform and a 50-meter carry of two Army water cans weighing 40 pounds each. The soldier then completes a 50-meter movement drill with high crawl and a 25-meter three-five second rush before a final one-mile run.
Soldiers have 30 minutes to complete the entire assessment — with a continuously running clock — while wearing the Army Combat Uniform with boots. The Combat Field Test does not replace the Army Fitness Test, the service said.
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The Army will begin to implement the new test this month, and it will be required annually. The service said no adverse administrative actions would be taken against soldiers who fail to pass the test for the first year. Soldiers in combat specialties who cannot meet the new standards can request a voluntary reclassification.
The specialties that will require this assessment include soldiers in infantry, combat engineering, field artillery, armor and explosive ordnance disposal roles, among others.
Eve Sampson is a reporter and former Army officer. She has covered conflict across the world, writing for The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Associated Press.