The year ahead will be a momentous one for soldiers, who will see new faces in their leadership, wear newly designed uniforms and brace for potentially the biggest upheaval in military compensation in decades.
The Army will end 2015 with thousands fewer soldiers. Some will be forced out; some will take early retirements. Soldiers staying in will see how they fare with a new performance evaluation system.
They will wear a different color boot, chow down on MREs they haven't seen before, do PT with radically redesigned gear. They will see their new PT test taking shape.
Deployment orders will still say Afghanistan for some, and Iraq too. More soldiers will go to Europe, where the Army is planning to roll in more vehicles. Some will deploy to destinations in the Pacific.
A historic shift in the Army's presence in South Korea will mean thousands of soldiers begin to rotate in.
Senior NCOs will face a new mandatory course. Soldiers will begin to see the latest combatives course. Women will show up at Ranger school.
Soldiers will meet their new chief of staff -- whose identity is still to be announced -- and their new sergeant major of the Army, a combat veteran who is the youngest man ever to take on the role.
In 2015, soldiers will be the first ones in a generation to see what's next to replace the pistol they carry.
See the details of all this and more in Army Times' series on the year ahead.
DRAWDOWN CONTINUES
PERSONAL VEHICLES & PCS PROBLEMS
DEPLOYMENT HOT SPOTS
SCHOOL RATINGS
ARMY LEADERSHIP CHANGES
NEW SECDEF
NEW PT GEAR
