Returning to US Army after being out for five years?

I can't speak to how the Army does things, but can give you some insights on how the Air Force might handle such a matter. I'll wrap with what I think might be the course the Army would take.

Once an officer is commissioned he or she will remain a commissioned officer for the rest of his or her life unless the commission is resigned. If the officer held a regular commission the normal procedure is to resign the regular commission and accept a reserve commission in its stead. The reserve commission can be held whether on or off active duty.

In the Air Force an officer can't just decide to return to active duty. There must be a need for the specialty. Medical officers, engineers, or flying officers might be in that category. If the officer is accepted on active duty there would not be a need to retake precommissioning training. There might be a need for refresher technical training, however.

I suspect the Army operates more or less the same way. There has to be an opening, and the officer has to have left active duty under honorable conditions.

Since officers in both services who are reserve officers hold both a temporary and a permanent rank, their status as reserve officer remains unchanged. The temporary grade status may be subject to some negotiation.

In the Air Force it is extremely rare for an officer to return to active duty once released. Usually this is limited to critical specialties. The best course is to go into a reserve unit and stay updated on specialties. Again, the same philosophy would probably apply to the Army.

The Army, being a larger service, has more of a retention challenge than the Air Force so it is possible it could be easier to return to active duty as an Army officer. In all cases it is the needs of the service that determine what actions could be taken.

I would say if the officer is a combat officer and is still qualified there is a good chance reinstatement could be approved without additional training. I would not expect to return to the active duty year group. The Army would likely do as the Air Force does and consider this on a case-by-case basis.

Returning as an enlisted member is usually an option, unless there were circumstances in the separation that would discourage enlistment. This could include disciplary actions, unfavorable information, or other situations. Again, needs of the service are usually the top consideration. The services are not enthusiastic about bringing former officers back as enlisted members as this can mess up enlisted promotion quotas for other enlisted personnel.