Army infantry school is doing away with 'mean, nasty' shark attack methodology at basic training
Most likely a direct result of opening it up to women. Will it produce quality troops?
That second part of the bolded is extremely important.Infantry recruits will no longer have drill sergeants barking orders at them inches from their faces during basic training as the “shark attack” technique, which uses intimidation to establish authority and weed out the weak, is dropped in favor of a new approach.
The Army’s Infantry School at Fort Benning, Ga., said it’s switching from the “Full Metal Jacket,” in-your-face practice to one called “The First 100 Yards,” which seeks to develop mental and physical toughness, instill pride in the infantry, and build trust among recruits and their leaders.
The coronavirus may have hastened the switch, since the pandemic has ended up-close shouting by instructors at basic training. Trainers and recruits in all the services wear face masks and maintain social distancing during basic training, and even Navy special warfare instructors yell through megaphones these days.
But “The First 100 Yards” is also “a complete rewrite of what was commonly referred to as the ‘Shark Attack,’” Command Sgt. Maj. Robert K. Fortenberry, the infantry school’s senior enlisted leader, said in an online commentary earlier this month.
While the shark attack was intended “to establish dominance and authority using intimidation and fear, to weed out the weak of heart,” it helped to create “a chaotic environment that centered around applying physical exertion under stress,” Fortenberry said in a video made for a virtual warfighter conference.