‘I think failure for my age group is anything above 30:00.’
failure for what...? who fails them...?
Physical fitness of Marines is measured bi-annually in a physical fitness test (PFT) and in a (less rigorous) Combat Fitness Tests. These tests are conducted by the unit commanders. The scores are one element of the evaluation criteria that’s used for enlisted promotion.
But, if the Marine fails the PFT, counseling and eventual disciplinary steps are taken. Remedial physical training programs are initiated and if, over a fixed period of time, the service member cannot pass the test, they’re administratively separated ....
...in theory. In practical reality - particularly since retention became a significant problem during endless Iraq and Afghanistan deployments, no one is separated unless they simply refuse to train (which happens more than you might think because for people who want out, that’s their out). They’re lenient on male Marines, but they’re significantly more lenient with WMs.
Since I left active service, they’ve adopted even friendlier PFT standards allowing Marines to retake the PFT in order to improve their score, which as I said, helps for promotion. Now, if you get a bad PFT, you don’t have to wait 12-mos, as you did before.
What’s worse is back in the day, poor PFT score from an officer simply was not tolerated, at all. Now...it’s tolerated, particularly for female officers.
Have you ever been in the military? Fitness test twice a year. It is generally someone’s collateral duty at your command to administer the test. B