An Expert Infantryman Badge candidate transports a casualty during a nine-line medical evacuation training lane. (Photo courtesy 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division
By Staff Sgt. Chris Perkey
1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs Office, 4th Infantry Division
Infantrymen with the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, put their knowledge and skills to the test Sept. 25-29, 2017, with hopes of earning the coveted Expert Infantryman Badge (EIB).
Out of 453 candidates, 95 “Raider” Brigade Soldiers successfully completed the EIB testing, including 29 “true blue” candidates who finished all tasks with a “first time go” in all lanes of testing.
According to the U.S. Army Maneuver Center of Excellence, only 18 percent of Soldiers tested actually earned the EIB in 2016.
The testing process measures the mastery of individual skills through different evaluations over a five-day period.
On day one of testing, every candidate was required to pass an Army Physical Fitness Test with a minimum score of 80 percent in each event, and that was followed by a day and night land navigation course.
Infantrymen with the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, stand in formation as they await the presentation of the Expert Infantryman Badge Sept. 29, 2017. Ninety-five of the 453 candidates earned the badge over five days of rigorous training. (Photo courtesy 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division
Soldiers spent the next three days rotating through numerous consecutive stations that tested them on 37 tasks over the medical, weapons and patrol lanes.
Participants are strictly graded and are required to complete each task according to infantry manuals to pass. Failing to correctly complete three stations, or the same station twice in a row, removed a Soldier from the evaluations.
The final task was a 12-mile foot march candidates had to complete in under three hours while wearing a 35-pound ruck sack. Some participants just wanted to prove to themselves that they could earn the badge, while others felt like they needed to earn it for advancement to the next rank. No matter the reason, the Soldiers were focused and determined for every task placed in front of them.
Although each candidate had his own challenges and obstacles to overcome throughout testing, most agreed that the coaching and mentorship provided by their NCO support channel was a determining factor in their success.
The EIB was introduced in 1944 as a way to recognize an infantryman’s proficiency in the skill sets required for the rigors of combat.
Participants trek through the fog Sept. 29, 2017, in the final objective standing between them and the Expert Infantryman Badge, a 12-mile foot march while carrying a 35-pound ruck sack that they must complete in less than three hours. (Photo courtesy 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division