Ranger School adds bayonet assault course

The US Army Ranger School is introducing a bayonet assault course to build “grit” and prepare soldiers for close combat if advanced technology fails.

The US Army’s Ranger School is taking a hard look at what happens when the future of warfare stops working.

At Fort Benning. Georgia. the notorious Ranger School is adding a bayonet assault course designed to prepare students for the brutality of close-quarters combat and to help them “hold their own” even when high-tech advantages break down.. Army officials say the goal is to train soldiers for scenarios where advanced systems. communications. or other tools may not be reliable when it matters most.

Officials described the training as a way to rapidly instill “grit” and what they call “violence of action” in Ranger students. while also stress-testing physical endurance and tactical judgment.. The bayonet segment is embedded within the school’s already punishing obstacle course.. Students must move through trenches. tunnels. walls. and smoke effects. and now they will also complete an assault against silicone. human-like targets using bayonets.

The bayonets themselves are fixed to the end of a rifle barrel. and the course uses them in a direct. close-range style of engagement.. While bayonets are not commonly used by US troops today, some units still keep them on hand.. In the broader history of modern armies. bayonets were used widely through much of the 20th century. including by some US forces in the Korean and Vietnam wars. and they are more often associated—at least in popular memory—with World War I and earlier conflicts.

That sense of history is precisely what makes the training notable now: the course is built around an “archaic” tool at a time when warfare is increasingly shaped by missiles. electronic warfare. and drones.. Army officials nonetheless argue that the bayonet can still serve a purpose in modern militaries. especially when battlefield conditions turn chaotic.

Historian John Stone. writing in a 2012 article on the role of the bayonet in the armed forces. argued that the weapon can contribute to soldiers’ moral fortitude during battlefield crisis.. He pointed to the bayonet’s function in pushing scared. frequently isolated soldiers to keep fighting when instinct would otherwise pull them away.. In this framing. the training is not only about a physical technique. but also about how soldiers behave under extreme pressure.

The report also notes that bayonet use has not disappeared from modern conflicts, even if it remains uncommon.. Some Marines fixed bayonets during the Second Battle of Fallujah in 2004. and British soldiers did so in Al Amara in the same year in Iraq.. Even when bayonet blades are not fielded. Marines and recruits still practice bayonet-style fighting using substitutes such as pugil sticks during hand-to-hand training.

Ranger School is structured as one of the military’s most demanding tests of fortitude.. The school is designed to push students through prolonged sleep deprivation. physical exhaustion. and stress. forcing them to make decisions and carry out missions while they are under strain.. The new bayonet assault course fits that model by adding another layer of difficulty—particularly a task that demands coordination and decisiveness at close distance.

Army leaders say the bayonet training reflects a broader effort to prepare soldiers for contested and chaotic future battlefields where advanced technology and communications may not always function as expected.. Command Sgt.. Maj.. Patrick Hartung of the Airborne and Ranger Training Brigade said that if technology fails, Ranger students must retain the fundamentals.. He tied the training directly to mission execution with the people on either side of them. emphasizing the ability to navigate terrain and close with and destroy the enemy with a bayonet.

For business-minded readers. the move is a reminder that militaries are still planning around system failure as much as system superiority.. Even when investments flow into advanced sensors. drones. and electronic warfare. the day-to-day reality for troops often includes degraded communications. contested terrain. and unpredictable enemy contact—conditions in which basic combat skills can become decisive.

This training also highlights how doctrine and procurement priorities can coexist with older capabilities.. Bayonets may be rare in contemporary US service. but the decision to build a modern course around them suggests planners believe the underlying competencies—moving under stress. using a weapon effectively at close range. and acting decisively when isolated—remain relevant.

Ultimately. the Ranger School’s bayonet assault course is less about reviving a historical weapon and more about reinforcing soldier readiness for the worst-case scenario.. If high-tech warfighting tools go dark. the Army is betting that disciplined fundamentals. practiced repeatedly under extreme conditions. can still carry the mission forward—through fear. confusion. and physical collapse.

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