In 2011, a commission headed by Lester L. Lyles, a retired Air Force general, recommended eliminating the policy, calling it a hindrance to promotion.
Due to a shortage of troops, women were temporarily attached to direct combat units slipping in through a bureaucratic loophole.
[10] The lifting of the ban was announced at a Pentagon press conference by Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta, and the joint chiefs chairmen, Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey.
Panetta said that the ban was lifted because "If members of our military can meet the qualifications for a job, then they should have the right to serve, regardless of creed, color, gender or sexual orientation".
[11] The various service branches were given until January 2016 to implement changes and submit requests to exclude specific Military Occupational Specialties from the ban being lifted.