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Army Guardsmen looking to reenlist soon might want to consider holding out for a few more drill weekends, as the service component's reenlistment incentives have been put on hold, according to an internal memo to the force reviewed by Military.com. "Effective immediately, the issuance of reenlistment bonuses is suspended," the March 1 memo said. The suspension is for bonuses that would have a payout between now and the end of 2025, effectively including anyone who would reenlist now, though existing contracts are not impacted, according to the document. The sudden suspension is due to a miscalculation by Army National Guard...

Airmen who have served for 12 years or more no longer have to re-enlist under a change made official Oct. 30. Previously, senior enlisted airmen were required to re-enlist every four years, a process described as lengthy and full of cumbersome paperwork that culminated in raising their right hand at a swearing-in ceremony. Now, under a new Noncommissioned Officer Career Status Program, that requirement is gone. Instead, an Oct. 30 Air Force release said, their separation dates will align with their high year of tenure date—when they must separate or retire. Effective Nov. 18, airmen with at least 12 years...

Sunday on “Fox & Friends Weekend,” former UFC Fighter Tim Kennedy said he decided to re-enlist in the U.S. Army Special Forces after noticing the change in leadership under new President Donald Trump following eight years with Barack Obama. Kennedy was inspired by the MOAB dropped in Afghanistan last week. “I’ve got hope again,” he said of Trump being commander-in-chief. “The military, we got our teeth back.”

WASHINGTON, April 23, 2010 – To mark the 102nd anniversary of the U.S. Army Reserve, a hand-picked group of 60 reservists representing units in every U.S. state and territory re-enlisted together at a ceremony held today on Capitol Hill. U.S. Army Reserve soldiers stand in formation in the Kennedy Caucus Room of the Russell Senate Building, Washington, D.C., during the fifth annual U.S. Army Reserve National Capitol Re-enlistment Ceremony, April 23, 2010. Sixty U.S. Army Reserve soldiers from across the United States took part in the event marking the U.S. Army Reserves 102nd anniversary.   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image...

Mathew and Emily Suhr, husband and wife sergeants from Headquarters, 81st Brigade Combat Team, Washington Army National Guard, are reenlisted by their company commander, 1st Lt. Buddy Francisco, in a ceremony at Camp Ramadi, Iraq, Feb. 13, 2009. Photo by Sgt. Amanda Gauthier, Multi-National Force - West. CAMP AR RAMADI — Mathew and Emily Suhr, married sergeants from Headquarters, 81st Brigade Combat Team, took the oath here to extend their enlistment in the Washington Army National Guard for three years, Feb. 13.In a quaint ceremony held on a patch of gravel outside their commander’s office, the two recited the oath...

Baghdad, July 5, 2008 – Servicemembers from all over Iraq gathered here today in the Al Faw Palace rotunda on Camp Victory, to re-enlist and celebrate America’s Independence Day. 1,215 U.S. servicemembers from all over Iraq re-enlisted during a ceremony in the Al Faw Palace rotunda at Camp Victrory in Baghdad, July 4, 2008. Multinational Force-Iraq Commander Army Gen. David Petraeus led the ceremony. Photo by MNF-I Public Affairs (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. All 1,215 servicemembers celebrated by raising their right hand and pledging to continue defending the ‘land of the free’ in what is the largest...

July 4, 2008 Military Re-Enlistment Ceremony of 1,215 members of our awesome US Armed Forces .. the largest re-up ceremony in history, *** Pt 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aAU1XE8MQk *** Pt 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcQqzISEqLY&feature=related *** Pt 3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqzMMrkDWyk&feature=related

WASHINGTON, D.C. — One year ago, as President Bush decided to send more troops to Iraq, the conventional wisdom in Washington among opponents of the war was that the U.S. Army was on the verge of breaking. In December 2006 former Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Colin Powell warned, "The active Army is about broken." Ret. Gen. Barry McCaffrey, in a much-cited memo to West Point colleagues, wrote: "My bottom line is that the Army is unraveling, and if we don’t expend significant national energy to reverse that trend, sometime in the next two...

CAMP VICTORY, Iraq — It was thousands of miles and many time zones away but through today’s technology the family of Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Mann was present in Iraq, when the 11th Signal Brigade soldier re-enlisted Sunday. For Mann, the brigade’s engineering noncommissioned-officer-in-charge, it was 6 p.m. and for his wife, Lorelei, and children Kaia, 7, and Nathan 5, in Sierra Vista it was 8 a.m. when he raised his right hand and took the oath from Chief Warrant Officer Ron Buckles. As the final preparations for the ceremony went on, Mann waved to his family and said to...

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Joshua Thomsen & U.S. Army Sgt. Karla Thomsen Couple Shares Re-enlistment 'Vows' at Taji By Sgt. Jon Cupp 1st Brigade Combat Team 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs CAMP TAJI, Iraq, Feb. 6, 2007 — Justin and Karla Thomsen do just about everything together - even go to war. So, it was no surprise that the two 1st Cavalry Division noncommissioned officers re-enlisted together here Jan. 25. Staff Sgt. Joshua Thomsen is a chemical operations specialist with Company D, 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment from Oxnard, Calif. His wife, Sgt. Karla Thomsen, is a joint network node...

FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. (Army News Service, Aug. 31, 2006) – The active Army reached its fiscal 2006 retention goal one month early today when a Fort Campbell Soldier reenlisted. Staff Sgt. Michael Obleton, a truck driver assigned to the 101st Airborne Division, became the 64,200th reenlistment since Oct. 1, 2005. Vice Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Richard Cody presided over the ceremony. “What a commitment. Our Army has been at war longer than we fought in World War II. Soldiers still reenlist knowing full well the dangers, knowing full well the sacrifice,” said Cody. Obleton, of Columbus, Ga.,...

Sgt. 1st Class Juanita Wilson yesterday stood at stoic attention on the steps of the U.S. Capitol -- a patriotic portrait of a soldier ready to give so much more for her country. "From the day of my injury, I never thought I was departing the military," said Sgt. Wilson, an Army reservist from Rosedale, Md., who lost her left hand two years ago while serving in Iraq. "It's an honor for me to be an American soldier. I'm very proud to wear the uniform." Sgt. Wilson was among nearly 40 Army reservists from across the country who re-enlisted yesterday...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 3, 2005 – Re-enlistment rates for the Army and Marine Corps are the highest they've been in a long time, specifically in units with high deployment tempos, military leaders told the House Armed Services Committee here today. Testifying at a committee hearing, titled "Your Troops: Their Story," the leaders said that soldiers and Marines re-enlist because they believe in the mission they are performing, and they feel comfortable knowing their families will be taken care of while they are deployed. "Our soldiers know that while they're deployed, while they're forward, they don't have to worry about what's going...

Recent media coverage has given extended time to the Army's difficulties in signing new recruits while largely ignoring the phenomenal recent success in getting combat veterans to re-enlist. The Army is already far ahead of the pace needed to reach its goal of persuading 64,162 current enlisted men, from privates to top sergeants, to commit to additional service. Among elite units bearing the brunt of combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, overwhelming numbers want to return to the fight: the 82nd Airborne, for instance, reached an astonishing 97 percent of its yearly re-enlistment goal by the end of May! These numbers...

Washington, D.C. - Buried in all the mainstream media coverage this week over new terrorist bombings in London, space shuttles that didn't launch, the trashing of Karl Rove, and the nomination of a new Supreme Court justice, was a little noted item about re-enlistments in the U.S. armed forces exceeding expectations. USA Today offered some prominence to the story, but it was widely ignored by most of the Fourth Estate. Perhaps that's because it's a "good news story." According to the Pentagon, all of the services are meeting or exceeding their re-enlistment requirements -- though the Army acknowledges shortfalls on...

With all the commentary, protests and Monday morning quarter-backing taking place on a daily basis regarding the Iraq war, I was struck by a USA Today report about the Army's re-enlistment rates. It turns out that soldier re-enlistment rates are one-third higher than the Army's target. The report attributes the increased numbers to better monetary bonuses and to "a renewed sense of purpose in fighting terrorism."I'm curious how much air time this particular report will receive in the mainstream media today and this week. "The biggest thing is that soldiers believe in what they are doing," said. Col. Debbra...

FORT HOOD, Texas - (KRT) - Spc. Brian Harris made a cold calculation about his future in fatigues. Then he signed the papers, raised his right hand and repeated the re-enlistment oath given by his platoon leader. He shook hands with the men from the 588th Engineer Battalion, posed for a picture and went back to work. An Iraq war veteran, Harris weighed the probability of another long deployment before his initial enlistment would expire. He decided the best option was to re-up with a guarantee that he could move to Fort Lewis, Wash., near his hometown. "I figured I...