Behind the Cover: The Drawdown Plan
April 9th, 2012 | Afghanistan Battle Rattle Behind the Cover budget Camp Lejeune Drawdown Manpower Marines | Posted by James Sanborn
By now it’s no news that the military is facing serious cuts. The Marine Corps alone will drop 20,000 over the next five years. But just how leaders will make those cuts has been a mystery — until now.
To get the lowdown on how the Marine Corps will drawdown by 2016, and what the plan means for you, check out this week’s edition of Marine Corps Times.
For our cover story, we traveled to Camp Lejeune, N.C., to sit in on a briefing by the drawdown’s architects who are now on an eight-week tour of the fleet. In it, we learned what cash incentives are up for grabs, how it will effect re-up and promotion opportunities, and what MOSs and ranks are most at risk.
Also in this week’s issue is a pair of great faker stories by staff writer Gina Cavallaro. The first is about a Pennsylvania man who claims to be a Marine first sergeant. Even his brother has called him out, but he was still able to dupe a Canadian soldier who started a foundation for Afghanistan veterans grappling with PTSD. The second revisits the case of Skyler Whalen. He once claimed to be a gunny, but has now moved on to impersonating a police officer.
Pick up Marine Corps Times on newsstands now or click here to subscribe.
Behind the Cover: 9 ways Marines face manpower cuts
February 20th, 2012 | Behind the Cover Drawdown Manpower | Posted by Dan Lamothe
It’s no secret that the Marine Corps will trim 20,000 Marines from its end strength by fall 2016, but Commandant Gen. Jim Amos has offered few details so far about how that will occur.
Amos and other top Marine officials have been clear about how it won’t be done, of course. The Corps will not “break faith” with its Marines, they’ve said repeatedly, a catchphrase that represents their promise to not authorize reductions in force, which would result in existing contracts being broken.
What about how it will be done, though? This week’s Marine Corps Times cover story addresses that, laying out the programs the Corps has at its disposal to trim the ranks. The squeeze will affect Marines of nearly all ranks, whether they’re first-term personnel seeking a new contract or a senior officers nearing the end of their career.
As the cover image above suggests, the drawdown will likely be painful for some. The options available include paid early outs, forced retirements for officers and enlisted personnel and boatspace caps for Marines coming up on the end of their second enlistments. That’s life in the fast lane during a drawdown, even if its phased and deliberate.
This week’s Marine Corps Times also includes an interview with Sgt. Maj. Mike Barrett, the Corps’ top enlisted Marine; a look at new dirtbike training at Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command and a feature on the service’s earch for an amphibious tractor that won’t make Marines lose their lunch.
Behind the cover: Cutting 20,000 Marines
February 7th, 2012 | Behind the Cover budget Force Structure Review Manpower | Posted by Andrew deGrandpre
Throughout the Corps, anxiety is high as Marines and their families wait to learn how the commandant intends to execute massive force cuts ordered in January by Defense Secretary Leon Panetta. And their uneasiness certainly is justified. The reality is that over the next five years, the service will purge some 20,000 from the active-duty force — about as many as it added during the latter part of the last decade to sustain operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.
This week’s cover story, which was co-reported by Marines Corps Times’ senior staff writers Gina Cavallaro and Dan Lamothe, examines how the drawdown is expected to take shape and what means the service will employ in reducing overall end strength by 3,500-5,000 personnel a year, as the top Marine, Gen. Jim Amos, has forecast. It analyzes future force structure also, and how budget cuts will drive the elimination of units and diminish certain capabilities. As Marine Corps Times first reported last week, officials now are looking beyond last year’s force structure review, which accounts for about 15,000 personnel cuts, with thoughts of axing some light armored reconnaissance assets and an additional infantry battalion while dialing back planned expansion of the Corps’ special operations command.
A companion piece, reported by staff writer James K. Sanborn, looks at the future of the Marine Corps Reserve. Although it’s not targeted for personnel cuts, smaller budgets could influence training deployments in the coming years, according to the Reserve’s three-star commander.
All in all, it’s vital career news for Marines everywhere. The issue is on newsstands now. To read it immediately, subscribe to our digital edition.
Army 3-star general: Army should be more like Marines
January 31st, 2012 | Afghanistan Manpower Reserve | Posted by James Sanborn
The head of the Army Reserve said Tuesday that the Army should be more like the Marine Corps — at least in the way the Marine Corps cultivates a strong life-long brotherhood.
Although Marines and soldiers usually boast about being better than the other, Lt. Gen. Jack C. Stultz, head of the Army Reserve, said at this year’s Reserve Officers Association symposium in Washington, D.C., that the Marine Corps does a good job inculcating the idea of “once a Marine, always a Marine.” That helps them pull active duty Marines into the Reserve at the end of their service.
The Army would do well to mimic that as a way to retain hard-won experience in Iraq and Afghanistan.
While many soldiers see their four-year contract as finite, many Marines see it as just the first chapter of their military career. Army leadership, he said, often paints a black and white picture by asking soldiers near the end of their service if they are re-enlisting or getting out. They should be asking if soldiers are re-enlisting or transitioning to the Reserve, he said. They could do more to make a career in the reserve an enticing prospect.
Behind the Cover: The plan to cut the Marine Corps
August 15th, 2011 | Behind the Cover Capitol Hill Leadership Manpower The CMC The Sgt. Major of the Marine Corps | Posted by Dan Lamothe
For nearly a year, the Marine Corps’ top officials have stayed on message with two main points regarding manpower: A drawdown wouldn’t begin until after the war in Afghanistan, and it would reduce the service to 186,800 Marines.
Those points were reinforced early this year with the release of the Corps’ force-structure review recommendations. It called for a 13 percent reduction in ground combat forces, but stuck with that 186,800 end-strength figure.
It’s time for a reality check. In light of the nation’s financial trouble, that plan may not be feasible. In this week’s Marine Corps Times cover story, we outline what could happen instead, relying on interviews with top service officials, past reporting and a look at previous drawdowns.
Commandant Gen. Jim Amos acknowledges that force reductions could now begin as soon fiscal 2013, which begins next October. He and Sgt. Maj. Mike Barrett, the Corps’ top enlisted Marine, offer up their thoughts and advice to Marines, but acknowledge life in the Corps will soon be a whole lot more competitive.
To check the story out, pick up this week’s Marine Corps Times on newsstands. You also can read it online by subscribing here.
Behind the Cover: The plan to overhaul military retirement
August 1st, 2011 | Behind the Cover budget Manpower | Posted by Andrew deGrandpre
Listen up, Marines!
This week’s cover story is a must-read for all — from the lowliest privates to tomorrow’s general officers. Marine Corps Times Pentagon correspondent Andrew Tilghman lays out in stark detail an aggressive new plan to revamp the military retirement system, one that would dump today’s 20-year model in favor of something akin to a corporate 401(k).
The proposal, pitched by an influential Pentagon advisory board, calls for everyone to receive at least some retirement cash when they leave the service. Even Marines who complete just one enlistment and get out as lance corporals would clear about $20,000.
Career-mind troops planning to stay in for 20 years or more would take a massive hit, however. Replacing the current pension system with a civilian-style 401(k) would result in retirement packages worth hundreds of thousands of dollars less, on average, according to the Defense Business Board’s plan.
Also in this week’s print edition, senior staff writer Dan Lamothe outlines two abrupt announcements from Marine Corps headquarters: one freezing housing allowance requests for single NCOs and below; the other implementing new top-end service limits for sergeants. Both changes mean that day-to-day life is about to change drastically for the Corps’ junior leaders.
To read up on these and other important stories, pick up a copy of this week’s Marine Corps Times — on newsstands now. Or you can subscribe online here and get instant access to our digital edition.
Behind the Cover: Big changes for Marine NCOs
July 19th, 2011 | Behind the Cover Infantry Leadership Manpower Sangin | Posted by Dan Lamothe
This week’s Marine Corps Times cover story gets to the heart of the newspaper’s audience: It focuses on changes coming for non-commissioned officers, and the junior enlisted Marines they lead.
The lengthy story outlines plans that are underway this summer to reconsider the NCO’s role in the Corps. Of course, they’ll still serve as the backbone of the service, but top leadership has moved to sharpen it. That could mean big changes for infantry NCOs, in particular, but changes to training and education could stretch well beyond that.
Th new edition also includes an account from Sangin, Afghanistan, where senior writer Gina Cavallaro and photographer Tom Brown recently returned from an embed with 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, out of Camp Pendleton, Calif. They share the latest, with candid comments from the battalion’s commanding officer, Lt. Col. Tom Savage, and rank-and-file Marines.
To check it all out, look for Marine Corps Times on newsstands or subscribe here and read it now.
Behind the Cover: 2012 re-enlistment outlook
June 27th, 2011 | Behind the Cover Manpower | Posted by Dan Lamothe
This week’s Marine Corps Times cover story zeroes in on a perennial issue of concern for Marines: re-enlistment bonuses.
The new rates, effective July 1, go a long way toward showing what the Corps is prioritizing in its fight to retain good Marines. Even with a tightening fiscal outlook, the service will shell out tens of thousands of dollars to keep Marines in high-demand fields such as intelligence and special operations. Other fields will feel the pinch, but there are still dozens of specialties open to lateral moves that offer large sums of cash to Marines willing to do something new.
We outline the options, explaining what’s coming and why certain priorities were set. Officials with Manpower & Reserve Affairs weigh in, too, offering guidance and answering tough questions about the plan.
This week’s paper also include an early look at a new plan for the Physical Fitness Test that could incorporate pull-ups for women. It isn’t a done deal yet, but based on what we’ve seen, it sure looks like it’s coming for women who want to rack up a high score.
Check it out on newsstands this week or subscribe here to read it online today.
Behind the Cover: Four big re-enlistment changes
May 9th, 2011 | Behind the Cover Manpower | Posted by Dan Lamothe
This week’s Marine Corps Times cover story should strike close to home for tens of thousands of Marines preparing for that big decision: To re-enlist, or not?
Effectively immediately, the service has unveiled four big changes that will affect how the Corps’ re-enlistment process works. They’ll play a big role in retention decisions made this summer, when most Marines submit re-up packages. The Corps’ selective re-enlistment bonus rates for fiscal 2012 will be released by July 1.
I traveled to the 2011 Career Planners Conference in Tampa, Fla., last week to get the scoop, sitting through several briefs and interviewing several officials with Manpower and Reserve Affairs, including Maj. Gen. Angela Salinas, director of the manpower management division. The new plan comes in direct response to a challenge from Commandant Gen. Jim Amos to Manpower to make sure the service was keeping its best Marines, rather than those who submit packages first.
To learn more, pick up this week’s Marine Corps Times on newsstands or subscribe here and read it online.
Behind the Cover: The push for sniper changes
February 28th, 2011 | Afghanistan Behind the Cover Infantry Manpower | Posted by Dan Lamothe
Few jobs in the military have as much mystique as Marine scout sniper.
Army Ranger? Sure. Navy SEAL? Fair enough. The scout sniper has his own special reputation, though, and its one that’s earned the hard way.
Nevertheless, there is room for improvement, say many Marines who know the community. Scout snipers have no primary military occupational specialty, have limited career options and cannot compete for big bonuses unless they leave their conventional infantry battalions for the bright lights of a job in the reconnaissance field or Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command. And it’s hurting the scout sniper community as a whole, they say.
In this week’s Marine Corps Times cover story, I take a look at the push to professionalize the scout sniper corps. It’s especially relevant because the Infantry Operational Advisory Group, an influential group of Marine colonels, has pushed a recommendation up to general officers that the Corps consider big changes for scout snipers. What’s next, though? And how did the service get where it is? We lay it all out, using a combination of interviews and military documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act.
The cover story package also includes a separate story on the new sniper rifle that Marines are using in Afghanistan, and what could be fielded next. Insurgents won’t be fans, to say the least.
To check it out, head down to your exchange or subscribe here.