Abstract
For more than 50 years, the FALDGRU (Parachute Wings Course) course has been an
esteemed tradition at the Royal Danish Military Academy (RDMA) in Frederiksberg. The
tradition is an essential component of officers’ educational training, and it is a widespread
military perception that course completion is part of what it means to be an archetypal and
respected officer. The FALDGRU course is renowned for its tough physical demands. These
demands have changed over time, most recently this year, when the entry requirements for
Team Bennike were eased. Although course completion is not a requirement specified in
the educational curriculum, it is a culturally accepted means of completing the educational
training programme at RDMA. Changing the entry requirements for FALDGRU cannot be
considered an insignificant alteration to practice, but rather a crucial change to a long-lived
tradition, striking at the very foundation of what it means to bear the officer title.
My analysis and discussion are concentrated on how cadets perceive the changes made to
the FALDGRU course entry requirements, and further, how the changes have affected their
motivation.
The analysis is based upon both primary and secondary empiricism. The primary
empiricism consists of qualitative interviews with the commander and the physical trainer
of the Academy and further a qualitative questionnaire answered by 13 cadets from Team
Bennike. The secondary empiricism consists of articles, books and reports that provide a
theoretical body for the exploration and study of internal relevancies in terms of
documented military practices, rituals and symbols.
The project reveals that cadet perceptions have been affected as a result of the changes
in entry requirements, which, in turn, further influence perceptions of the merits of the
exemplary officer profile as well as the Danish Military Academy. Findings further
demonstrate that the changes have also affected the motivation of cadets to complete the
FALDGRU course.
A conclusive insight reveals that when planning for changes to culturally valued practices
(i.e. those related to traditions similar to the FALDGRU course), careful consideration must
be given to how these may affect the perceptions and motivation related to the specific
tradition, since these also impact the alleged value of the Danish Military Academy and the
officer title.