The US Army is developing a new skills badge, the Expert Action Badge. Good or bad?

Read the article and post what you think. I'm not sure about it. There's already the Expert Infantryman's Badge (EIB) and the Expert Field Medical Badge (EFMB) to accompany the highly coveted Combat Infantryman's Badge (CIB) and the Combat Medical Badge (CMB). This new skills badge is to be awarded to those troops who train in the infantryman's skill while possessing a non 11 series (infantry) MOS.

The Army is developing a new Expert Action Badge for soldiers who aren't grunts

Make sure to read the comments!

 

Where is the badge for knitting and needlework? a disgrace these valuable and overlooked skills are not recognized.

 

It's about as dumb as screen doors on a submarine.

 

Yeah its a bit boy scouty...Who wants be known as an expert in battle anyway!? Everyone looking to you...Too much delineation for a group that's supposed to be the same.

 

Okay. I'll be the contrarian. While I'm not a cheerleader for the idea, I don't think it's a stupid idea. The following quotes from the article summarize why I don't think it's stupid or pointless:

“This is for the remainder of MOSs that don’t have a formal way of certifying competencies associated with their MOSs...”

For every soldier who’s not an infantryman or medic, they will be tested on warrior tasks and battle drills in a training event similar to what soldiers must complete for the infantry and medic badges...

Sergeant Major of the Army Dan Dailey told Army Times that offering testing and a badge is a good way to incentivize soldiers to train and remain proficient.
“I want to build individual skills,” he said. “The reason why we have an EIB and EFMB is so those two fields can maintain their skills during peacetime.”

Now, giving EVERYBODY berets, that was pointless and stupid.

 

Hey, I'm a traditionalist...I'm not even sure why they thought splitting a Navy Department off of the War Department was a good idea...

 

Now, you too can master the dreaded assault typewriter...

 

I think the guy who called it "another participation trophy" nailed it. It's just what I was thinking.

 

Speaking from my time in the Army, most regular units are poor at non-MOS related skill maintenance training. I will also wager once they get the badge they will no longer practice in order to maintain the skills they got the badge for. The only way to assure they maintain basic combat skills would be to require annual re-certification and strip the badge if they fail. In the Marine Corps on the other hand promotions are more competitive and your annual EST (Essential Skills Testing) is a significant part of your cutting score.
I think the bigger problem, and one which this badge will not correct is the lack of training in infantry skills for personnel that are assigned to a non-combat MOS. The only "combat" training a non-combat arms soldier gets is during their 10 week basic training. Then they report to their AIT for MOS training. Marine recruits receive a slightly greater amount of combat training during their twelve week boot camp, mainly relating to "the Crucible" event. However, all non-infantry (note I didn't say non-combat arms because tankers, artillerymen, etc. have to attend also) MOS Marines get an additional month of infantry skills training at MCT (Marine Combat Training) at either SOI (East) or SOI (West) before they move on to their MOS schools. Infantry soldiers get an additional four weeks combat training (the same amount of infantry training non-combat Marines get) moving directly from basic into their Advanced Infantry Training. In the Marine Corps Infantry MOS Marines go to Infantry Training School, SOI for an additional 8 1/2 weeks Infantry Training. So and Infantry Marine gets 47% more training in basic/advanced infantry skills than an infantry soldier, a non-combat MOS Marine gets four weeks of dedicated Infantry skills training where the Army provides non-combat MOS' none past basic. This provides benefits in areas not readily apparent, for instance an Army tanker goes directly from basic to tankers school. A Marine tanker goes from basic to MCT and then to the very same (run by the US Army) tankers school. The Marine has a greater appreciation for and understanding of the Infantry Marine, how they operate and how to support them.
Instead of a badge the Army needs to dedicate additional training time to provide non-combat arms soldiers with basic combat infantry skills. They won't though because of the infighting between their various branches.

 

Badge or no badge, that is a failure of leadership.

 

I agree.

 

This badge and the rationale behind it is just about as silly as the medal the Air Farce wanted to introduce for "combat drone pilots" a few years back.

 

I agree. Again.