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Like you, I am in my forties, and tried very hard several years ago, to get into the ARNG as an over-forty, NPS soldier. I worked on the issue for several years, including aid from two congressman in my home state of IL, but age cutoffs are set by federal statute as well as by the policy of the specific branch in question. Title32.org "Let Them Serve," a group seeking to raise the age cutoff for USAR/NG service, worked this issue very hard prior to the 2006 Defense Authorization Bill, which raised the cutoff to the 42nd birthday, from 39 and prior to that, 35. We contended that under Title 32 of the US Code, able-bodied applicants could enlist up until age 45, because the language of the law specifically provided for a draft of persons up to age 45 into the militia.
Under NG policy, in other words, you could be drafted til age 45, but not enlist volunitarily after 42. Our case was thrown out by a federal judge at the request of the government and its legal team. End of story for our quest.
Many recruiters have stated that they'd like to help me, would like to sign me up, but they cannot due to the federal codes governing this issue.
During the WWII era, age waivers were granted in special cases, most often when the individual in question had access to senior officers or political leaders. Example: The late Senator Paul Douglas of IL gained entrance into the USMC in his late forties, and served With distinction in combat on Okinawa as an officer. He knew Frank Knox, then the SecNav under FDR, and was thus able to get the necessary waivers issued. President Bush also - on at least one occasion - issued an age waiver to the father of a young soldier or marine killed in combat, when the father made a request for it after meeting President Bush.
These sorts of episodes are rare, of course.
The bottom line is that if you believe you possess what it takes, work to raise awareness of the age cutoffs, and to get them changed, or authorize discretionary waivers by the individual services on an as-needed basis.
This makes a certain degree of sense, because the services already have bent themselves into a bit of pretzel of political-correctness anyway, by allowing amputees to remain in the service, and even allowing the blind to stay in uniform (the army has three blind people serving, including one who is a Green Beret).
Also, a fifty-year old man already in the army has to pass a tougher PFT than a 20-year old woman -- a tacit admission that middle-aged men are tougher than their younger female counterparts.
The only other route into the services is via DC for the professions, i.e. chaplains, medical, legal personnel. The services need med people very badly, and have waived people as high as their late sixties for service (in the case of one MD). The USNR commission a small number of supply, intel, and other officers under this process, typically well-qualified already-serving enlisted people, but occasionally civilians also. DC officers in the technical specialties cannot command troops outside their fields(are not officers of the line), do not attend basic/AIT or equivalent training, and train minimally in the use of weapons, and then only for self-defense or defense of their patients). In other words, they exist somewhat outside the mainstream military. That's the info I've gotten from people I know in the military.
