The Air Force will likely have to resort to involuntary separation efforts to cut manning to authorized end strength levels in Fiscal 2015, Air Force manpower chief Lt. Gen. Samuel Cox told Senate legislators Wednesday. “The Air Force would prefer to reduce the force [over the next five years] through voluntary measures alone,” Cox told the Senate Armed Services Committee’s personnel panel on April 9. Given high retention rates, the Air Force plans to “accelerate” voluntary force management programs in Fiscal 14, he said. In FY ’15, however, the “military end strength reductions will require a more aggressive approach,” stressed Cox noting that the Air Force will add involuntary force shaping, reduction, review, and quality of force boards, on top of the FY ’14 voluntary measures. (Cox prepared testimony.)
Pentagon Releases Cost of Living, BAH Rates for 2026
Dec. 30, 2025
The Pentagon will pay cost of living allowances to 127,000 service members in the continental U.S. in 2026, an increase of 66,000 members in 2025. Airmen and Guardians across the U.S. will also receive an average increase of 4.2 percent for their Basic Housing Allowance, compared to the 5.4 percent…
