Former soldiers approaching pensionable age are to be recalled in a desperate bid to prepare Britain for possible war against Russia.
Veterans as old as 65 will return to the parade square as the UK faces the threat of direct conflict with the Kremlin, perhaps within months in Ukraine.
Facing an urgent need to find tens of thousands of extra troops, the Ministry of Defence yesterday raised the recall cap from the age of 55 from next year.
The surprise move is intended to increase Britain’s preparedness for battle at the time of a security crisis.
They will join the country’s Strategic Reserve of ex-service personnel who can be mobilised rapidly in the event of a major or prolonged conflict.
Soldiers in their late 50s and early 60s with dodgy knees and wobbly hips will not be expected to charge across the battlefield alongside troops a fraction of their age.
Rather, they will be deployed in areas where their skills and knowledge can be utilised and passed on to younger generations.
Pushing up the age ceiling to heights unprecedented in modern times is part of a package of initiatives to boost UK security.
Former soldiers will be brought back to boost Britain’s Strategic Reserve… like Dad’s Army
On Thursday, the Army’s Lieutenant General Paul Griffiths said: ‘As the threat to our nation grows, we must ensure our armed forces can draw on the numbers and skills required to meet it.
‘I fully support these measures, which will give us the widest possible pool of experienced personnel to call upon in times of crisis.’
‘Our Strategic Reserve represents a wealth of expertise built over years of military and civilian experience. – from cyber and intelligence to medicine and communications.
‘These reforms will allow us to mobilise that talent rapidly when it matters most and strengthening our readiness.’
The package will also allow reservists to be recalled for ‘warlike preparations’, exercises, to prepare for national danger, a great emergency on an attack on the UK.
An estimated 95.000 veterans could be brought together. The size of Britain’s reserve force is currently 32,000.
Britain is playing catch-up with its European allies, particularly those closer to Russia, who can call upon larger reserve forces. Germany has 60,000, Poland 350,000 and Finland 870,000.
On Thursday, the Ministry of Defence said the changes to rules on recalling reserves reflected the example of Ukraine where older generations have made a huge contribution to defence following the Russian invasion of 2022.
While at the other end of the age scale, the MOD has also unveiled a scheme for school leavers to fill military gap year placements.
In recent years, UK reservists have played key roles in training tens of thousands Ukrainian soldiers in Britain.
Britain’s regular armed forces are at their smallest since the Napoleonic war. The Army has just over 70,000 full-time personnel.
The Ministry of Defence is also struggling to manage a shortfall of tens of billions of pounds in funding in the years ahead.
Former military chiefs have also demanded an immediate increase in defence spending. The UK is currently the 12th biggest spender in NATO based on a percentage of GDP.