Current enlistment age limits??? and historic draft age limits???

[SkullBone]

Was reading on Wiki ?? that draft age was 18-45 in WW II and 21-29 in Vietnam? Are these correct?? I don't really trust wiki. Also, what is the current age limit for enlistment now? Would the current age limit for enlistment reflect a potential draft age if it were reinstituted? A friend and myself have been talking of this possibilty for years since Iraq part one(we were both 18 for part one). I did a search on this and found some topics but they didn't really answer this question.

[DennisH82]

You can enlist at 17 with parental permission but you can't deploy overseas until you are 18. As for the draft, no matter what the fear mongers spew the draft isn't around the corner for a number of reasons so don't look to run off to Canada anytime soon.

[SkullBone]

I was wondering more about the older end of the age scale as far as current enlistment. And was wondering if those wiki numbers for WW II and Vietnam were correct? I probably wouldn't run off and my friend's knee is totally screwed, so canada isn't even in the thoughts.

[Franky4Fingers]

I was wondering more about the older end of the age scale as far as current enlistment. And was wondering if those wiki numbers for WW II and Vietnam were correct? I probably wouldn't run off and my friend's knee is totally screwed, so canada isn't even in the thoughts.

Every branch is different. The Marine Corps is 29 for Enlisted (max age). I think the Army is in the 30's. I think it use to be 35, it might be 39 or 40 now, they recently changed it. They are the highest. The other 3 branches are anything in between. To register for the draft you have to be 18. And like mentioned above you can officially join at 17.

[DennisH82]

I was wondering more about the older end of the age scale as far as current enlistment. And was wondering if those wiki numbers for WW II and Vietnam were correct? I probably wouldn't run off and my friend's knee is totally screwed, so canada isn't even in the thoughts.

While the oficial age was 18 for 1945 my father was 16 when he joined up in 1944 with the 82d and went overseas. It was common for young men to ALTER paperwork to sign up and go to war. My dad had to try the MARINES first and they showed him what was wrong with his documents so when he went to Army he had it right.

[SkullBone]

Just checked the usarmy web site and the current enlistment age is 42 for the army. I looked for that a couple months ago and found nothing. Shows my searching skills.

[customloaded]

Just checked the usarmy web site and the current enlistment age is 42 for the army. I looked for that a couple months ago and found nothing. Shows my searching skills.

Yes Sir, you are correct that the current max age for enlistment in the Army is 42. If you are prior service, your prior service time is added to the max enlistment age. Example: if you served 4 years from 88-92 and are now 45 years old, you could enlist up to the age of 46, completing 20 years of service at the max age of 62, which is now the mandatory retirement age for enlisted personnel.

Enjoy,

CL

[ReconLdr]

^^^^ What he said.

[RaisedByWolves]

WOOOOT!!!


I can still enlist!

.

[OneLungMcClung]

Current maximum age for enlistment in active duty US Army is 35. Reserve appears to be the same.

source : http://www.2k.army.mil/faqs.htm#maxage

The Army reduced the maximum enlistment age for enlistees from 42 to 35 April 1, 2011, in order to position the Army to better address lower accession missions and end strength.

This is the most current data.

Here's goarmy.com:


http://www.goarmy.com/about/service-options/enlisted-soldiers-and-officers/enlisted-soldier.html

To become an Enlisted Soldier in the U.S. Army, you must be:

A U.S. citizen or permanent resident alien
17-35 years old
Healthy and in good physical condition
In good moral standing
Have a High School Diploma or equivalent

As for the draft....... good thought on not trusting wiki.

Draft falls under the selective service act. Males who are eligible for DRAFT are between 18-26 years old. It was that way in WWII, it was that way in 'Nam.

An excellent article ... from the "draft board" itself:
http://www.sss.gov/lotter1.htm

I think the ENLISTMENT age was 18-45 for WWII, and 18-29 for Vietnam, but I have no non wiki source for that.

As for a draft in our near future? Improbable. The us army itself is taking less and less people, manpower requirements are reduced, we are out of Iraq in terms of a combat role, Afghanistan will likely join this list soon. This is especially true with many of the non-combat specialist positions being farmed out to contractors. There just isn't a need for the bodies that a draft brings in.

Also - sorry for the thread necromancy.