Beginning next year, Airmen who fail fitness tests at enlisted professional military education schools won’t be sent home—a temporary policy shift spurred by the Air Force’s transition to a new physical fitness regime.
The Thomas N. Barnes Center for Enlisted Education discussed the shift in a Dec. 12 internal message posted to the unofficial Air Force amn/nco/snco Facebook page. An Air Force spokesperson confirmed message’s authenticity.
Starting Jan. 1, “students that fail a physical readiness assessment will no longer be released from a course,” the memo states.
An Air Force official told Air & Space Forces Magazine that the move is a “temporary change” that coincides with larger changes to the service’s physical fitness test, announced in September. Among them, the Air Force is lengthening its run from 1.5 miles to 2, re-introducing a body composition component, and requiring the test every six months instead of once per year.
To prepare for the new test, the Air Force is pausing physical fitness testing from Jan. 1 to Feb. 28, then resuming “diagnostic” testing from March 1 to Aug. 31 to let Airmen adjust to the new test. Official, scored testing won’t begin until Sept. 1, 2026.
During that time, enlisted PME courses will continue, and those courses all require fitness assessments under a 2023 order. Such courses, including Airman Leadership School and Noncommissioned Officers Academy, are mandatory stepping stones for promotion and have expanded in recent years. Airmen who are dropped from a course would normally have to wait for a new school slot, which can take time.
The new message states that Airmen who fail to pass the course’s fitness assessment will be allowed to complete the course but will be ineligible awards such as distinguished honor graduate. The guidance will “remain in effect until further notice” and will be incorporated in the next EPME handbook update.
In a Dec. 12 statement, an Air Force spokesperson said, “service members selected for enlisted professional military education at the Barnes Center must arrive with a current and passing official Physical Fitness Assessment from their home unit.” Airmen attending EPME courses will be formally notified this requirement prior to their arrival, the spokesperson added.
While attending courses, Airmen are required to complete a “course-conducted, diagnostic physical assessment,” according to the spokesperson. Failure of this assessment renders the member ineligible for EPME course awards, and no opportunity for a retest will be granted. However, the member will stay enrolled in the course.”
Last year, the Air Force launched a program designed to improve enlisted education known as the Foundations courses. The effort was designed to fill the years in between traditional EPME courses such as the Airmen Leadership Course and the Noncommissioned Officer Academy.
The Barnes Center developed the curriculum for the three five-day Foundational courses. Each is designed to prepare Airmen for new levels of leadership responsibility. There is a 300-level junior enlisted Foundation course that builds a “warrior mindset” and what it means to be an Airman and a 500-level NCO foundation course that emphasizes critical thinking and team dynamics. The 700-level SNCO course focuses on sharpening organizational culture and aligning with broader strategic objectives.
The new courses are part of a larger effort called the Enlisted Airmanship Continuum, which is meant to guide the development of enlisted Airmen.
