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Here are the actual requirements:

http://ec.militarytimes.com/static/pdfs/73173524-Standards-table-2015.pdf

I’m looking closely at what I know - Tank Crewman (1812 MOS):

- Lift 3 tank batteries...these are car batteries. If you can’t lift this, you have no business being in the military. And btw, it takes 6, so why only test ability to lift 3?

- Open and secure tank hatch...well good grief, I hope this one isn’t controversial. Yes, possessing enough strength to open the hatch seems important. But it doesn’t take too much strength - I never knew anyone who had trouble with it.

- Tank casualty evacuation. Again, I hope this isn’t controversial. Actually takes a lot of strength - most women could not do this.

- Towbar lift. Ahhh...again if you can’t do that, steer clear of the military. Or stand on the side of the road and hike your skirt up your leg to flag another crew down.

- Load 120mm round. As a cadet, I witnessed women attempt this with a 105mm round. Most could eventually do it, but it is a timed event. Now this this gets into an existential discussion of being a tanker. I don’t remember what the time limit was...probably around 7 seconds...but I would never have put up with a loader who took that long. Very few women could do it as rapidly as a man - and survival depends on this.

Anyway, with the exception of pulling an injured crewmember out of the tank, most of these are easy (to the point of being absurd). If the marines are being put in a position where they have to point out that being able to open the hatch should be a requirement, we are in trouble.

My old tank unit was forced to leave its tanks in the motor pool at Fort Riley, and become dismounted infantry crawling up and down the mountains of Afghanistan. I wonder if a partially female unit would have been able to be that flexible.