All 2.5 million men and women in the armed services, including recruits, will have their blood tested for exposure to the AIDS virus, military spokesmen said yesterday.

The costly program will be one of the largest infectious disease screening projects ever undertaken, as well as one of the most controversial.

Military officials say they are carrying out the tests to combat a serious health problem -- the spread of AIDS, the deadly acquired immune deficiency syndrome that destroys the body's ability to fight disease.