Army to trim war tours to 9 months

August 06, 2011|Associated Press

WASHINGTON - Aided by the shrinking troop requirements for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Army is cutting the current yearlong deployment tours to nine months for most of its units beginning in January.

The change will not affect any of the Army troops deploying this year, and some high-demand units - such as aviation and military police - will continue to serve 12-month tours.

The move comes as the Iraq war continues to wind down and as the nation begins what is expected to be a slow, deliberate withdrawal from Afghanistan.

And it reflects a reduced demand on the military as the Pentagon looks to shrink the size of the Army and Marine Corps and slash budgets in line with the administration’s attempt to rein in spending.

As part of that effort, the Army is also planning to cut more than 8,700 civilian jobs over the next year, with about half coming from support staff at bases and installations around the world. Those could include maintenance, administrative, and security staff.

Troop deployments to war zones were lengthened from one year to 15 months in early 2007 as the Bush administration surged forces into Iraq to quell the escalating violence. Army leaders, however, acknowledged that the longer tours, many with just 12 months rest at home between them, seriously stretched the service.