Fort Campbell officials say their soldiers are re-enlisting in record numbers. This is in spite of the news that most of the soldiers will see a decrease in their re-enlistment bonuses. That’s because most of the 101st are either in infantry or aviation units, which weren’t included in the latest round of raises.
Sergeant Major Steven Sabinash runs the re-enlistment office at Fort Campbell. He says two things are significant about the re-enlistment figures. First, the 5,700 who re-upped did so while they were deployed in Iraq. Second, out of those who re-enlisted, 62% chose to stay at Fort Campbell.
“The next highest division wasn’t even at 40-percent. And that was the 4th Infantry Division; the 10th Mountain Division that were deployed with us. So I’m comparing our numbers to those divisions that were doing the same thing we were doing shoulder to shoulder. So I really think that shows the commitment that these soldiers have, not only to the army, but to the unit that they’re serving with.”
Sgt. Major Sabinash says he thinks the history of division and its leadership are why so many soldiers chose to stay at the post rather than look for a transfer. He also says most of those who re-enlist are soldiers who’ve been in the army less than 10 years.
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