Army Chief May Push Roles for Women

Army Secretary Togo West Jr. is considering opening a key field artillery job to women, as well as jobs piloting commandos behind enemy lines, Pentagon officials said Tuesday.

Allowing women to serve in units equipped with Multiple Launch Rocket Systems would overturn a recommendation from the Army’s top uniformed leadership, said one Pentagon official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Putting women in special operation helicopters could throw women into fights similar to the costly street battle in Somalia last October.

West has informally discussed the options with Defense Secretary William J. Perry. Any change is subject to Perry’s approval, and he has indicated he would like to report to Congress by July 1.

Should the changes take effect, it would be a victory for those in the Administration and the armed services who want to grant women a wider role on the battlefield. Opening such jobs to women is widely opposed by many senior generals in the Army, further reason why Perry will have the final word.

West has consulted extensively with uniformed and civilian specialists on combat and the growing role of women in the military, the Pentagon official said.

West is also considering opening slots for women in certain sectors of air-defense artillery and combat engineers, one source said.

West is not scheduled to make a decision until Army Chief of Staff Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan returns from an overseas trip Saturday, the official said.

Opening the field artillery job to women would affect only several dozen women immediately but could open up a whole field to women in the coming years.

The MLRS is a mobile system that carries a battery of rockets that can be launched at targets up to 20 miles away. The tank-like vehicle carries a crew of three and is designed to focus intense firepower on enemy air defenses, troops and other targets.

In the piloting job, women would ferry highly trained commandos behind enemy lines to conduct secret missions. Opponents to the placement of women in such jobs argue that they could be forced into hand-to-hand combat should a mission go awry.

West must make a decision because of steps taken in January by then-Secretary of Defense Les Aspin, who moved to open more ground combat jobs to women.

Meanwhile, Navy officials indicated that Navy Secretary John H. Dalton has suggested that women continue to be barred from submarines, but that a new class of submarine under study could carry accommodations for women.