IDF unit — Paratroopers Brigade / Tzanchanim (חטיבת הצנחנים, 35th Brigade): gibush, profile needed, training, jump course, olim quota

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paratroopers_Brigade; https://garinmahal.com/gibushim-tryouts (olim gibush); https://draftidf.co.il/units/ · 2026-09

What it is

The Paratroopers Brigade is the IDF’s volunteer airborne infantry brigade, formed in the mid-1950s from Unit 101 and the 890th Battalion under Ariel Sharon. It is the IDF’s most prestigious regular infantry brigade and the traditional feeder of senior commanders. The only operational combat jump was in 1956; today paratroopers fight as elite light infantry and reservists of the brigade famously took the Western Wall in 1967.

• Beret: red (maroon). Boots: reddish-brown, unlike the black boots of the rest of the army. Paratroopers also wear the tunic over the shirt.
• Battalions: 101st, 202nd, 890th, and the 5135th Reconnaissance Battalion (Gadsar Tzanchanim: Palsar, Palhan, Orev companies).
• Several special-forces units (Duvdevan, Maglan, Oketz, the Commando Brigade) do their basic training with the Paratroopers.

Requirements

• Medical profile: 82 minimum (97 preferred; most successful candidates are 97, but 82–91 candidates are accepted). Glasses do not disqualify.
• Gibush: yes — the only regular infantry brigade with a tryout. Gibush Tzanchanim lasts about 1.5–2 days and is held at each draft. Roughly five candidates compete per place. It tests running, crawling, sandbag/stretcher carries, teamwork and mental toughness.
• Hebrew: the regular gibush assumes you can follow instructions in Hebrew. For olim there is a separate Gibush Tzanchanim run during the Michve Alon Hebrew course, and the brigade reserves around 25 places per draft for olim.
• Gender: male-only combat battalions.

Path in and training

1. List Paratroopers first on the manila, or accept the invitation to the gibush.
2. Pass Gibush Tzanchanim → draft to the paratroopers’ training base in the south.
3. Training is the longest of the infantry brigades — about a year end to end, with a 25%+ drop-out rate: ~4 months basic, then advanced training, Krav Maga, weapons specialisation, urban and open-terrain warfare, and the parachuting course (several static-line jumps) at the Tel Nof jump school.
4. The beret march is around 80 km in full gear, ending at Ammunition Hill in Jerusalem where the red beret is awarded.
5. Operational service rotates between the northern border, Judea & Samaria and Gaza, with training cycles in between.

Soldiers who drop out of the gibush or maslul are placed in other infantry brigades, not sent home.

Service length

• 32 months for male combat soldiers. Command tracks (squad commander, officer) add time.
• Olim arriving at 22–27 who volunteer for combat: 24 months minimum, though the brigade prefers candidates who can complete the full year of training plus meaningful operational time.
• Reserve duty follows release; the paratroopers’ reserve brigades are among the most active.

For olim

• Because of the reserved places and the Michve Alon gibush, Paratroopers are the most realistic “elite” infantry option for an oleh whose Hebrew is not yet strong enough for Yom Sayerot.
• Requirements you control: arrive fit (long runs, hill repeats, carries) and injury-free — you get one attempt at the gibush.
• Popular with Garin Tzabar and lone soldiers; the brigade has lone-soldier coordinators and the usual rights (housing, higher pay, extra leave).
• If you were sent to Michve Alon, tell your commanders early that you want the Tzanchanim gibush so you are on the list.

Contacts

• Meitav: 1111 · Lone Soldier Hotline: *6563
• NBN Lone Soldiers Program: army@nbn.org.il (can submit a screening request)