DistantNews
Support us
🇺🇸 United States /Culture & Society

Army unit offers four-day Grand Theft Auto pass as reenlistment incentive

From CBS News · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • An Army unit is using a four-day pass to play Grand Theft Auto VI as a reenlistment incentive.
  • Twenty soldiers in Georgia have already chosen this unique incentive, which requires reenlisting for two to six years.
  • The program aims to connect with soldiers' interests and encourage them to reenlist.

An Army unit in Georgia is offering active-duty soldiers a unique incentive to reenlist: a four-day pass to play Grand Theft Auto VI upon its release. Twenty soldiers in the 9th Brigade Engineering Battalion at Fort Stewart have already selected this option.

The idea was to have a unique incentives program that connects to what Soldiers are interested in.

— Lieutenant Colonel Angel TomkoA spokesperson for the 3rd Infantry Division explaining the rationale behind the gaming incentive.

Lieutenant Colonel Angel Tomko, a spokesperson for the 3rd Infantry Division, stated the program was designed as a "unique incentives program that connects to what Soldiers are interested in." The command team and career counselor aimed to "get soldiers excited to reenlist."

Soldiers eligible for the incentive must reenlist for a minimum of two years and up to six years. The memo circulating online specifies the four-day pass will coincide with the "highly anticipated release of the video game Grand Theft Auto VI (GTA 6)." A total of 130 soldiers are eligible for this particular incentive.

The command team, in conjunction with the career counselor, wanted to get soldiers excited to reenlist.

— Lieutenant Colonel Angel TomkoExplaining the goal of the unique reenlistment program.

While the military commonly offers reenlistment bonuses like college benefits, choice of duty station, retraining programs, or substantial financial bonuses, this gaming-related incentive stands out as particularly novel. Military.com first authenticated the U.S. Army letter detailing the program.

the highly anticipated release of the video game Grand Theft Auto VI (GTA 6).

— Army memoDescribing the timing for the special four-day pass offered as a reenlistment incentive.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by CBS News in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog