OFFICIALlast verified 2026-10-18Grenadiere — Ausbildungszentrum Spezialkräfte (AZ SK), Isone
Grenadier aptitude test (Eignungsprüfung, EP) — sports test
Grenadiers are the militia special forces of the Swiss Armed Forces Special Forces Command (KSK), trained in a 23-week recruit school at the Special Forces Training Centre (AZ SK) in Isone. Before recruit school, candidates take a 2-day aptitude test (Eignungsprüfung) in Isone: a 5 km march with a 20 kg pack, pull-ups, push-ups in 60 s, a lateral and a dorsal core test. Each event is graded from 1.0 to 5.0, and the test is passed when the average is at least 3.60 ("genügend").
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minimumtargetyouPay · free · federal pay from 1 Jan 2027; Sold and EO as of 1 Jun 2026
What a Grenadier recruit receives in recruit school (militia: Sold + EO) — Isone
- Daily soldier's pay of a recruit, tax-free (Gradsold Rekrut, Art. 31 VVA)CHF 6 per day
- Daily EO for recruits, the same whether or not you worked before (68.75 by law, rounded up; taxable, AHV/IV/EO contributions deducted) provisionalCHF 69 per day
- Total for the whole recruit school as a recruit: 23 weeks = 161 days × (6 + 69) provisionalCHF 12,075 one-off
Grenadiers do their recruit school as militia conscripts, not as employees: they receive the daily soldier's pay (Sold, tax-free) plus the flat loss-of-earnings allowance for recruits (EO, taxable). Shown is a monthly equivalent of the daily rates (× 365/12) — our calculation; a yearly figure is not meaningful, because the recruit school lasts 23 weeks (about CHF 12,075 in total). Promotion during the RS raises only the Sold; the EO stays at the recruit rate. Food, lodging, uniform and travel are provided by the army; if your employer keeps paying your salary, the EO goes to the employer.
provisional = official source with a provisional legal status, a secondary source or our own calculation; see the sources.
- Erwerbsersatzgesetz (EOG, SR 834.1), Stand 1. Juni 2026 — Art. 9, 16a (Oct 18, 2026)
- Merkblatt 6.01 — Leistungen der Erwerbsersatzordnung (Informationsstelle AHV/IV) (Oct 18, 2026) provisional
- Verordnung über die Verwaltung der Armee (VVA, SR 510.301), Stand 1. Juni 2026 — Art. 31 Sold (Oct 18, 2026)
- Bundesgesetz über die direkte Bundessteuer (DBG, SR 642.11) — Art. 24 lit. f (Oct 18, 2026)
- Schweizer Armee — Ausbildungszentrum Spezialkräfte (AZ SK), Isone (Oct 18, 2026)
The test, event by event
| Event | Minimum — grade 3.6 "genügend" in each event | Very good — grade 4.5 "sehr gut" |
|---|---|---|
| 5 km march, combat boots and uniform, 20 kg pack (Marsch 5 km, 40 min limit) | 40:00 | 32:30 |
| Pull-ups, overhand, chin to the bar, no break (Klimmzüge) | 6 | 8 |
| Push-ups in 60 s from prone, hands touching at the top (Liegestützen) | 21 | 30 |
| Lateral core test, hip raises in rhythm, max 120 s (Rumpfkraft seitlich) | 46 s | 95 s |
| Dorsal core test on a box, lowering to 40° in rhythm, max 150 s (dorsale Rumpfkette) | 72 s | 125 s |
Also required
- Path: recruitment (Rekrutierung) with the Army Fitness Test (FTA) → 2-day aptitude test in Isone, a few months before recruit school (a failed test can be retaken after six months at the earliest, all events again) → selection during the first weeks of recruit school → "Herkules" exercise in RS week 16 → promotion to Grenadier in RS week 22. The recruit school in Isone lasts 23 weeks.
- Selection in recruit school — example minimums from the army's "physical basic requirements profile": standing long jump 2.10 m, core test 70 s, 2 kg medicine-ball push (seated, against a wall) 5.5 m, one-leg stand 35 s, progressive endurance run 12:20 on a 400 m track or 9:30 as a 20 m shuttle, 6.5 km run with a 15 kg pack in 37 min, 200 m swim without stopping in 6 min. Those who fail stay at the school as command-staff, security or supply soldiers, or are transferred.
- Minimum — grade 3.6 "genügend" in each event — Kdo Op – KSK, Notentabelle Eignungsprüfung EP_AZ SK; Sporttest an der Eignungsprüfung für Grenadiere (vtg.admin.ch) (2026-10-18)
- Very good — grade 4.5 "sehr gut" — Kdo Op – KSK, Notentabelle Eignungsprüfung EP_AZ SK (vtg.admin.ch) (2026-10-18)
Questions
How exactly is the aptitude test passed?
Each event gets a grade from the official table (5.0 to 3.6, below that 1.0), and the test is passed when the average of all sports events is at least "genügend", i.e. 3.60. The calculator uses the 3.6 value of every event as its minimum and the 4.5 "sehr gut" value as the higher target. Pull-ups have only a few grades: 10 = 5.0, 9 = 4.7, 8 = 4.5, 7 = 3.9, 6 = 3.6.
What score do I need in the Army Fitness Test (FTA) at recruitment?
The army brochure "Werde Grenadier oder Fallschirmaufklärer" (March 2017, still linked from the AZ SK page) asks for a good recruitment result of at least 90 points out of 125. No newer official table of points per function has been published, so treat 90 as a guide value. The FTA has five events: standing long jump, medicine-ball push, one-leg stand, core test and progressive endurance run.
Where do the numbers come from?
From the grading table "Notentabelle EP_AZ SK" and the description "Sporttest an der Eignungsprüfung für Grenadiere" published by the Special Forces Command on vtg.admin.ch, plus the document "Ablauf der Selektion" for the recruit-school minimums (all read 18 October 2026). The FTA guide value comes from brochure 82.104 (March 2017).
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