88 Soldiers to be tabbed as Rangers

FORT BENNING, Ga., (Oct. 14, 2015) -- A graduation ceremony will be held Oct. 16 on Victory Pond for 87 men and one woman who met the standards of the Swamp Phase and earned their Ranger Tab.

The course is the Army's premier combat leadership course, teaching Ranger students how to overcome fatigue, hunger and stress to lead Soldiers during small unit combat operations. Male and female Ranger students have proven their determination, physical stamina, and mental toughness to succeed, and have earned the right to wear the Ranger Tab.

The course is 62-days of leadership and small unit tactics that pushes Ranger students to their mental and physical limits by forcing them to operate on minimal food and sleep. During the course, students learn how to operate in three different environments: woodlands in Fort Benning, mountainous terrain in Dahlonega, Georgia, and coastal swamp in Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.

Highlights of the course include a physical fitness test consisting of 49 push-ups, 59 sit-ups, a five mile run in 40 minutes, and six chin-ups; a swim test; a land navigation test; a 12-mile foot march in three hours; several obstacle courses; four days of military mountaineering; three parachute jumps; four air assaults on helicopters; multiple rubber boat movements; and 27 days of mock combat patrols.

One female and 92 male Ranger students began the Swamp Phase on Sept. 26.

The Swamp Phase of Ranger School is 17 days of extended platoon level operations executed in the coastal swamp environment near Valparaiso, Florida.

The phase consists of two jumps for airborne qualified personnel, four days of waterborne operations training to include small boat movements and stream crossings, a 10-day field training exercise with student led patrols, and two administrative days where the students are counseled on their performance.

The last of the nineteen original women who started the Ranger Course Assessment on April 20, met the standards of the course by proficiently leading combat patrols at the squad and platoon levels in multiple terrain environments, and will earn the Ranger Tab along with her Ranger Class 10-15 classmates on Oct. 16. At graduation, she will have spent 180 days in the course.

More information regarding the Ranger Course can be found at https://www.benning.army.mil.