UK Armed Forces - Basic Training Start Date Estimator
Select your Military Service and your planned application date to see an indicative Basic Training start window.
Planning Assumptions & Sources
- Estimates shown are indicative. Individual timelines vary depending on role availability, medical and administrative checks, security clearances, and training capacity.- Indicative start windows are informed by recent median wait times (2024 - 2025) reported by the UK Government (“Time of Flight”), and personal lived experience of UK Armed Forces Regular and Reserve recruitment pipelines.- These figures describe historical median wait times and do not represent guaranteed outcomes for individual applicants.- Royal Navy and Royal Air Force Reserve Forces: Comparable publicly reported median recruitment timelines are not currently available for these pathways. Based on structural similarities within the UK Armed Forces Reserve recruitment system, timelines can reasonably be expected to be broadly comparable to those of the British Army (Reserve).- Armed Forces Foundation Scheme ('Gap Year' 2026):
While a Spring 2026 start has been announced, initial intakes for such small or bespoke programmes typically involve longer lead times.
Illustrative lived experience:
Royal Navy (Regular): ~8 months (from passing selection processes to start of basic training).
British Army (Reserve): ~14 months (from initial application to start of training).
Public reporting & sources: