Hmm, so what is the age limit for enlistement in the Marines? I know the army raised it to 42 temporarily. What about the Corps? Age waiver limits?
As far as I know the Corps has not changed its age limit. It has nothing to do with skill or fitness; rather it is the ability to recover. For instance, at the age of 45 the Corps decided that all would take the new hand to hand combat training. So I took it and passed. However, two months later I realized that the pain in my shoulder would not go away, so I went to medical. When all was said and done, they ended up cutting and reattaching a bicep tendon, cut some bone off and sewed up some tears. The doctors at medical told me that the percentages of senior personnel that require medical treatment after the new hand to hand training are extremely high (which was validated within my own circle of friends). Luckily, I healed well enough in six months that I was able to pull a tour in Iraq. When I retired, last year, my fitness test scores were about the same as a decade ago (20 pull-ups, 100 cruches in two minutes and 24 minute three mile), but I wasn't ready to hit the bars later (as I would have 10 years earlier).