Army To Cut 40,000 from Ranks

The Army announced plans to reduce strength to 450,000, down from 490,000, by Sept. 30, 2018. Another 17,000 civilian Army employees will lose their jobs as well. Six posts – Fort Benning, Ga., Fort Hood, Texas, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, and Fort Bliss, Texas, will bear the brunt of the cuts. Benning will lose 3,402 soldiers; Hood, 3,350; Elmendorf-Richardson, 2,631; Lewis-McChord, 1.251; Schofield, 1,214; and Bliss, 1,219. In total, 30 installations will be affected by the cuts. Brig. Gen. Randy George, director of force management, blamed the tight budget climate for the cuts. “The Army has to operate within the budget provided. Part of doing that is restructuring and reorganizing to be able to accomplish the Army’s mission in the best manner possible,” George said. The service will try to make the cuts gradually, George said, to have as minimal an impact on readiness and morale as possible.