Early Momentum: Army Hits 30,000 Recruits, Half its Goal for the Year

The Army is already nearly halfway to meeting its ambitious goal of recruiting 61,000 active-duty soldiers during this fiscal year, according to internal data reviewed by Military.com.

The service has 30,000 new enlistments this year -- an increase of 6,000 compared to the same period last year, the data shows.

The milestone comes as the service continues to grapple with a historic recruitment crisis, the worst since the Vietnam War, underscoring the uphill battle to convince young Americans to don the uniform.

The promising year in recruiting also gives the incoming Trump administration enormous momentum as recruiting woes have been among the top issues at the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill.