The US Department of Defense (DoD) has approved 22 female officer candidates for infantry and armour combat units.
Nine female officers will be inducted as infantry officers, with 13 added to the armour branch.
The officers will graduate as second lieutenants from the US Military Academy, the Reserve Officer Training Corps programmes and the Army’s Officer Candidate School.
They will undergo several months of training at Fort Benning, Georgia before assuming combat unit leadership roles.
The move comes in the wake of the landmark decision to open all US military combat positions for women.
The decision will open up nearly 220,000 positions for women in infantry, reconnaissance, and special operations units.
The implementation group’s review of the services was governed by seven guiding principles, including transparent standards, population size, physical demands and physiological differences, conduct and culture, talent management, operating abroad, and assessment and adjustment.
The integration does not guarantee the promotion of women at any set rate or period. The DoD will continue to operate the military based on a merit system.
