US Army Paratroopers to See Major Pay Change

Newsweek

a day ago

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The U.S. Army is restructuring its airborne forces, leading to pay changes for thousands of parachutist positions.
According to a report from the American military newspaper Stars and Stripes, an administrative message delivered to service members on July 30 announced that more than 22,000 paratroopers will no longer receive their monthly $150 "jump pay." This is due to reclassifications of paid parachutist positions which will take effect in the upcoming fiscal year.
The reduced number which will remain eligible for the payments will comprise those deemed more likely to deploy these capabilities in combat operations in the foreseeable future, Newsweek understands.
When approached for comment, U.S. Army Spokesman Major Travis Shaw told Newsweek: "The decision resulted from a 16-week study, which concluded that transformation was needed because the previous structure exceeded the operational requirements."
Why It Matters
The removal of jump pay for more than 22,000 parachutists—a significant portion of the roughly 50,000 the army keeps on its rolls—signals a major shift in its priorities, emphasizing the need for combat readiness and resource management over the maintenance of a large and permanent airborne force.
What To Know
Jump pay—also known as Parachute Duty Pay—is an extra monthly bonus awarded to soldiers who are parachute-qualified and actively serving in airborne roles. The upcoming change will allow soldiers to attain their parachuting qualifications but will not require them to keep these up to date or take part in jump operations.
Soldiers are generally required to jump once every three months to maintain jump status, a baseline considered inadequate among Army leadership for achieving proficiency.
This change was discussed earlier this year. Lieutenant General Gregory Anderson, head of the 18th Airborne Corps, told Army Times in April that dozens of branches had been discussing how to improve the readiness of airborne operations since September.
"We started to assume risk with the high-end forces that have to be ready to go tonight," Anderson told the outlet. "This is not about saving money; it's about getting readiness to where we need it."
Paratroopers of the 173rd Airborne Brigade of the US Army in Europe take part in the military exercise Swift Response 2025 at the military base in Rukla, Lithuania, on May 16, 2025.
Paratroopers of the 173rd Airborne Brigade of the US Army in Europe take part in the military exercise Swift Response 2025 at the military base in Rukla, Lithuania, on May 16, 2025.
AFP via Getty Images/Petras Malukas
Anderson added that limited aircraft had led to a broad "decline in collective airborne proficiency," and that devoting resources to over 50,000 airborne positions had reduced the readiness of assault forces.
"We're trying to prop up a very big structure of 56,000 with dwindling resources, we're spreading those resources out, and we're undermining our own readiness goals," Anderson said during a podcast appearance in April. He added that many of those currently receiving jump pay are not currently meeting their "proficiency requirements."
Major Shaw told Newsweek that removing 22,000 from paid active jump status "will refocus training and resources on critical forces to strengthen operational effectiveness."
Soldiers who remain eligible will see an increase in this extra monthly allowance, as announced by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in May, with jump pay is set to increase from $150 per month to $200 for paratroopers.
In addition, jumpmasters, who are responsible for training and leading airborne operations, "are going to receive an additional $150 a month in incentive pay," Hegseth told the audience of current and active members of the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
Major Shaw told Newsweek that this will mean jumpmasters will be paid an additional $350 per month for these duties, and that this pay bump is in recognition of "the essential role of jumpmasters in developing combat-ready forces."
What People Are Saying
Lieutenant General Gregory Anderson, during an episode of the From the Green Notebook podcast, said: "Here's the big change: we're going to reduce the number of paid parachuter positions by 22,000. So currently, as of today, we have 56,000 paid parachuter positions in the Army. For historical context, the 101st and the 82nd at Normandy dropped fewer than 13,000 into Normandy."
"It's not about the money per se, it's literally about—for the forces that will jump in the alpha echelon and fight off a potentially contested drop zone—we want them at the highest level of readiness," he added. "And three jumps … is not going to get us the readiness we need."
One Redditor on the r/army forum, a community for current and former recruits as well as enthusiasts, wrote: "Even as someone who was Airborne I think this makes sense. The Army was paying over 20,000 people to be on jump status who realistically weren't going to be used as such. By having them still be Airborne qualified though they can quickly recreate Airborne units by having them go through refresher training if they ever needed. Sounds like they aren't going to save all that money though because they are going to boost the pay for the remaining Airborne troops and jumpmasters."
What Happens Next?
The changes are set to take effect in the 2026 fiscal year which begins October 1.