December Recruiting Successes Wrap Up Banner 2009

Jan. 13, 2010
By Donna Miles

WASHINGTON (American Forces Press Service) – The Defense Department rang out 2009 as a successful recruiting year with solid recruiting successes in all four active components in December, Pentagon officials announced today.

The Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps all met or exceeded their active-duty accession goals for December, with five of the six reserve components meeting or exceeding their monthly goals.

The Air Force recruited the most active-duty members, achieving its 2,834-airman goal. The Navy also met its goal, with 2,384 accessions. The Marine Corps signed on 2,221 Marines, 102 percent of its goal.

The Army, with 487 accessions, topped its December goal by 21 percent.

Among the reserve components, the Army National Guard signed up the most new members, recruiting 4,175 new soldiers for 97 percent of its goal. The Army Reserve reported 2,253 new members, 110 percent of its goal. The Air National Guard, with 692 accessions, topped its December goal by 54 percent.

The Navy Reserve and Air Force Reserve both met their December goals, recruiting 496 and 917 new members, respectively.

Attrition throughout the reserve components remained at acceptable numbers, officials reported. Meanwhile, all four services reported strong active-duty retention during the first three months of fiscal 2010.