Airmen in certain Air Force specialty codes, such as financial management or health services management, have until Sept. 17 to volunteer for retraining in a new career field. After that, the Air Force will choose for them. Under the 2011 Noncommissioned Officer Retraining Program, USAF officials identified 1,061 opportunities for airmen to retrain. As of Sept. 8, the service had reached 55 percent of its volunteer goals under phase I of this initiative. Phase II begins the period, during which airmen will be processed for separation, if they do not qualify for an available career field, according to officials from the Air Force Personnel Center at Randolph AFB, Tex. They cautioned that NCOs should not wait until the final days to apply for a specific AFSC, since it may no longer have any slots available by then. (Randolph release by Jon Hanson)
Lawmakers are growing impatient for an overdue fighter recapitalization study from the Air Force, and members say they'll demand more detailed justifications for future aircraft retirements.