US Navy to allow women to join SEALs
The US Navy plans to open its famed SEAL fighting units to women, provided they can pass the notoriously difficult training course, Defense News reported Tuesday.
The move comes as the military announced that on Friday (Aug 21), two American women will become the first female soldiers to graduate from the elite Ranger School combat leadership course.
“Why shouldn’t anybody who can meet these (standards) be accepted? And the answer is, there is no reason,” said Admiral Jon Greenert.
“We’re on a track to say, ‘Hey look, anybody who can meet the gender non-specific standards, then you can become a SEAL.’”
The Navy SEALs (an acronym for SEa, Air, Land teams, reflecting the special force’s capabilities) have carried out some of America’s most dangerous and storied raids, including the May 2011 killing of Osama bin Laden – the late Al-Qaeda leader – in Pakistan.
Aspiring SEALs must undergo the so-called Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training – known as BUD/S.
The six-month course includes eight weeks of basic conditioning peaking with “Hell Week,” during which two thirds or more of would-be SEALs quit.
“Sheer fatigue and sleep deprivation will cause every candidate to question his core values, motivations, limits and everything he’s made of and stands for,” according to the website NavySeals.com.
Those who wish to become SEALs should start preparing themselves for the grueling training ahead even before enlisting.
Here are the three key things every aspiring SEAL should have.
1. Fitness
It may take a SEAL hopeful years of training to prepare himself for the Physical Screening Test (PST). Those who fail to meet the above standards will not be allowed to graduate from BUD/S.
Military.com highly recommends that an applicant pushes himself to do more than what's required instead of aiming for a pass.
2. The necessary qualifications
Besides being fit, aspiring SEALs also need to ensure that they have the necessary paper qualifications before they enlist in the military.
An applicant should possess, minimally, a high school (the US equivalent of secondary school) diploma.
3. Lots of discipline
Needless to say, applicants should make sure that they have the right mindset and attitude. Military.com stresses that in order to become a SEAL, one has to be resilient and willing to work hard.
Those who go into the programme with a competitive attitude are more likely to emerge as SEALs than the ones who try to survive it.
Source: AFP, Military.com
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