By This is probably going to make many an airman’s day:
Even as the Air Force prepares to toughen physical fitness standards for airmen, it’s proposing to do away with mandatory physical training.
That means commanders no longer would have to provide airmen at least 270 minutes per week to exercise during duty hours. But airmen would still have to be prepared to pass more stringent PT tests twice a year.
If approved, the Air Force would be the first of the military services to eliminate mandatory PT. [Stars & Stripes]
Read the rest of the article for the rationale behind the decision, but commanders can still hold unit PT, but airman just conduct their own individual work outs is how the article makes it sound like how this policy will play out. It will be interesting to see if this works out or not, but such a policy would never happen in the Army. PT in the Army is such a part of the culture that no one would even dare to bring such a subject up. Plus PT in the Army is more then just keeping soldiers in shape, it is a big part of espirit de corps and unit cohesion.
I guess the Air Force has other ways that they promote espirit de corps within in the ranks.
5:25 am on October 31st, 2009 1
Small, but good step in the right direction. Maybe we have a few leaders who realize the AF is not the Army.
11:26 am on October 31st, 2009 2
"That means commanders no longer would have to provide airmen at least 270 minutes per week to exercise during duty hours. But airmen would still have to be prepared to pass more stringent PT tests twice a year."
It looks to me as if the Air Force has found four -and-a-half more hours in the week for work while requiring the airmen to lose a similar amount of off-duty time. A win for management and a loss for staff that looks like a win until the fitness test. Of course I have no idea what is required in the old nor the new test; perhaps even the new, more stringent test standards can be achieved in only a month or so of training.
1:06 pm on October 31st, 2009 3
I have heard this same thing from Army soldiers over and over again "why doesn't the Army just let me do PT on my own", as usual the Air Force provides it's people with what they ask for. Watch the Air Force scores go up as a result of this. There will be those that don't excercise at all but for the most part these Airmen will be better rested and have more energy after work to go to the gym and work out or run. The Army should drop mandatory PT for a year and see what happens and only make those people who fail their PT test a year later return to mandatory PT.
1:41 pm on October 31st, 2009 4
AF goes drinking to promote espirit de corps.
3:25 pm on October 31st, 2009 5
During my 20 years in an Aviation Support Unit (9 of them in Korea), PT was simply a waste of time. Espirit de corps is hard to come by during a run with a five foot tall female as the pacesetter. Or waiting in line to do pull ups while some female hangs on the bar kicking her legs to do one–repeat ONE—pullup. Or being in charge of the "Profiles" who are walkin in circles, because going to the gym to lift weights while the platoon "runs" would be wrong somehow. So it is better to waste the time walkin while the platoon runs. PT as espirite de corps my ars.
My best espirite de corps was at camp Humphreys in the 80s before curfew arrived, bar hoppin till 0300 with the squad, or starting after work and ending at midnight, with the squad.
I know that activity is not "PC" these days. But we had some good times that obviously are still with me years later. We looked out for each other and had fun doing it.
At Fort Hood, wake up at 0430 drive to PT for 0545 formation. Waste time, do pushups, situps and "run". Drive home, change and drive back. Start the jobs, lunch, four more hours and then meetings and COB.
If the General wants his bird to fly that day you don't need E.D.C. just go to work.
Oh and PT in Iraq in 2004 with the CAV! Did anyone in the Command stop to think about Mortars? NO! Untill they started fallin that is. Talk about your peacetime mind set. Formations in the open after said attacks for accountability? SURE! Sounds great! Till a couple of late rounds got lucky that is. Not my unit, lucky for us. Organized PT during a war time deployment? SURE!
Nothing like large groups of people out in the open in shorts and T shirts. OH, but after PT, make sure your battle rattle is on. We are in a war deployment remember. And No Sarge, you can't send your people to the (concrete building)gym for PT.
Espirit de corps and PT have nothing in common, unless your a ground pounder. Then it is your job.
Lets talk about that great waste of time known as "Sergeants Time" next. Or did they do away with that already?
3:57 pm on October 31st, 2009 6
Nope. Every Thursday – just like clockwork – Army posts shut down for business.
Conceptually, I don't have a problem with this. But what gets me is that a lot of offices with all or mostly all civilians also shut down…and the civilians then spend the morning noodling around on the internet. This is especially true of the local hire national civilians.
If they also used it as a half day of training – that would be a different story. But that isn't the case.
4:07 pm on October 31st, 2009 7
I never understood it. My first assignment to Korea at Osan, my barracks was just across from the Army ADA barracks. We would see them out in the ville every night. At midnight, we would ride the last drunk bus from the main gate to the barracks area. But, at 0600, an Army dude would stand outside yelling "Get up! Get up! It's time for PT." Almost in unison, you would hear bunch of voices from the Air Force barracks yelling "Shut the f@#k up! We're trying to sleep."
8:01 pm on October 31st, 2009 8
There are only a handful of people who like to get up at 0500 to prepare for PT. I think that whole “espirit de corps” thing is a load of crap. I bet if the Army did a mandatory survey of all U.S. Army troups and posed the question of “would you rather do PT or get an extra 2 hours sleep” the extra sleep would win out. Some of these soldier are only getting 4 or 5 hours sleep a night and sleep is important to the body.
12:00 am on November 1st, 2009 9
Conceptually, it was for the "first line supervisor" also know as the Squad Leader to train his/her soldiers on those areas that were felt to need some additional training. Squad Leader being the person who knew the soldiers best, by vertue of the close working relationship.
What REALLY happened during my time of service, was this time was taken over by the Company First Sergeant. Task were high lighted for training and Squad Leaders instructed on "proper display of Lession Plans" and "visiter Logs" for Sergeants Major to sign as they moved thru the Battalions to observe the effectiveness of this "high speed traing".
Squad Leaders had nearly ZERO input in task to be trained. Needs of the Squad were of no importants. Another wasted day.
No wonder I drank so much while I was in the Military. You can only experience so much stupidity before the only thing that makes since is the jucy girl workin at the Olympia Club. At least she knew what she was doing and why.
I was in Angeles City last month. Met a retired Marine. It was pointed out that I am retired army. He said that he was sorry about that. I said, "not as sorry as I was". That being said, I was/am proud to have served. But if I had known at the beginning, what I now know—maby the Marines or Air Force.
That is what I tell those around me now.
1:50 pm on November 1st, 2009 10
11:02 pm on November 1st, 2009 11
Yeah that is pretty damn funny.
Up in 2ID at some of the smaller camps I am sure the Koreans were thinking the same thing because you can hear soldiers singing cadence from off post.
11:26 pm on November 1st, 2009 12
I'm glad the AF is at least making their PT tests tougher. It's one of the few things they're doing right nowadays. They need to work more on teamwork, camaraderie, esprit de corps, but they need to produce better leaders to get that done.