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Pilots can get $25,000 extra a year to stay in
By Bruce Rolfsen - Staff writer
Posted : Saturday Feb 2, 2008 16:52:08 EST
If $25,000 bonuses and five-year limits were good enough to keep active-duty pilots in the Air Force during 2007, the service believes more of the same will be enough to keep fliers in uniform during 2008.
Four months into the fiscal year, the service has announced that aviator continuation pay will not change. It didnt change last year, either, meaning the 2008 rate is the same as was paid in 2006.
Details of the 2008 program were slated to come out Feb. 1.
Pilots reaching the end of their eight-year active-duty service commitments during fiscal 2008 can sign up to stay another five years in exchange for an annual $25,000 bonus, according to Lt. Col. Kip Turain, a mobility pilot and chief of the rated force policy branch at Air Force headquarters.
Air battle managers at the end of their six-year service commitments will receive $15,000 annually if they extend for five years.
And navigators still get nothing. Since 2006, the Air Force hasnt offered continuation pay to navigators a broad career field that includes weapons systems officers and electronic warfare officers, in addition to officers in the traditional navigator role. The bonuses stopped when the service decided it was overstocked with navigators.
DISCUSS: THE VARIANCE IN THE BONUS PACKAGES IN THE DIFFERENT SERVICES
The service was more generous in 2004. That year, pilots could sign up for annual bonus payments that continued until they could retire at their 20-year mark.
The Air Force uses aviator continuation pay to keep cockpits and staff positions filled with experienced fliers and to assure there is a predictable number of aviators.
This is not an entitlement, Turain said. It is an incentive program to retain pilots and air battle managers.
The service anticipates about 60 percent of the 870 eligible pilots and 110 eligible battle managers will take the bonus, Turain said.
Last year, 67 percent of eligible pilots took the bonus, as did 60 percent of eligible battle managers. The bonus announcement came nearly four months after the Oct. 1 start of the bonus qualification period. Turain said the rollout was delayed because the legislation giving the Air Force permission to offer bonuses, the National Defense Authorization Act, did not become law until Jan. 28.
The lack of the authorization act didnt stop the Army, Marine Corps and Navy from releasing their bonus program details as far back as September.
Pilots and air battle managers can apply now for their bonuses via the Air Force Personnel Centers Web site, Turain said. Airmen whose service commitment has expired since Oct. 1 wont lose any money because of the delay in announcing the program details.
Turain cautioned that the bonus is a one-time offer. A pilot who turns it down this year wont be eligible in 2009.
The Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve have their own aviator continuation pay programs.
For 2008, the Air National Guard offers full-time pilots and air battle managers a bonus program that can take them to the 20-year mark, said Air Guard spokeswoman Lt. Col. Ellen Krenke.
Pilots at the end of the initial service commitment can receive $25,000 annually if they extend for four or more years. Pilots who want to stay in for one to three years qualify for a $15,000 annual payment.
Guard air battle managers will receive $15,000 annually for extending four or more years or $10,000 annually for a one- to three-year extension.
Information about the Air Force Reserves aviator pay program wasnt available as of Jan. 31, a Reserve headquarters spokesman said.
The Defense Department allows the services to pay aviators bonuses of up to $25,000 annually, but leaves the qualification rules and payment plans up to each service. For example, the Marine Corps and Army offer pilot bonuses based on missions or model of aircraft flown, while the Air Force pays all pilots the same.
Navy pilots and naval flight officers the Navys version of an Air Force navigator are eligible for a bonus totaling $125,000 if they extend for five years at the end of their service commitment. Officers can choose to have 50 percent of the bonus paid in a lump sum the first year, while the rest is paid in four equal installments over the remaining four years.
The Navy also offers one- to three-year contracts worth $15,000 annually to officers in select squadron and major command positions.
The Air Force had offered short-term bonus agreements, but ended the program several years ago. At the time, officials said the shorter contracts made it more difficult to project how many pilots the service would have.
The Marine Corps has several different levels of bonuses based on the aircraft flown and the aviators years of service. The annual bonuses range from $20,000 for senior pilots flying the MV-22 Osprey, AV-8B Harrier and KC-130, to $6,000 a year for EA-6B Prowler and CH-46 pilots with less than 13 years of service.
The Marine Corps decided to set different bonus levels for different airframes to encourage pilots to transfer into growing fleets of newer aircraft, such as the Osprey.
The Air Force hasnt made similar offers to pilots heading off to fly its expanding numbers of unmanned aerial vehicles or the Air Force special operations version of the Osprey. Instead, the service ordered about 120 junior fighter and bomber pilots to switch to UAVs and special operations aircraft. The Air Force also is filling Osprey cockpits with pilots who had flown the soon-to-be-retired MH-53 Pave Low.
The Armys bonus program pays enlisted warrant officers who have satisfied a six-year service agreement from $12,000 to $25,000 annually, based on the type of missions they fly and the length of the pilots extension. A special operations helicopter pilot can pocket $25,000 annually by agreeing to a four-year commitment. Commissioned officers who fly do not receive bonuses.
Pilots can get $25,000 extra a year to stay in
By Bruce Rolfsen - Staff writer
Posted : Saturday Feb 2, 2008 16:52:08 EST
If $25,000 bonuses and five-year limits were good enough to keep active-duty pilots in the Air Force during 2007, the service believes more of the same will be enough to keep fliers in uniform during 2008.
Four months into the fiscal year, the service has announced that aviator continuation pay will not change. It didnt change last year, either, meaning the 2008 rate is the same as was paid in 2006.
Details of the 2008 program were slated to come out Feb. 1.
Pilots reaching the end of their eight-year active-duty service commitments during fiscal 2008 can sign up to stay another five years in exchange for an annual $25,000 bonus, according to Lt. Col. Kip Turain, a mobility pilot and chief of the rated force policy branch at Air Force headquarters.
Air battle managers at the end of their six-year service commitments will receive $15,000 annually if they extend for five years.
And navigators still get nothing. Since 2006, the Air Force hasnt offered continuation pay to navigators a broad career field that includes weapons systems officers and electronic warfare officers, in addition to officers in the traditional navigator role. The bonuses stopped when the service decided it was overstocked with navigators.
DISCUSS: THE VARIANCE IN THE BONUS PACKAGES IN THE DIFFERENT SERVICES
The service was more generous in 2004. That year, pilots could sign up for annual bonus payments that continued until they could retire at their 20-year mark.
The Air Force uses aviator continuation pay to keep cockpits and staff positions filled with experienced fliers and to assure there is a predictable number of aviators.
This is not an entitlement, Turain said. It is an incentive program to retain pilots and air battle managers.
The service anticipates about 60 percent of the 870 eligible pilots and 110 eligible battle managers will take the bonus, Turain said.
Last year, 67 percent of eligible pilots took the bonus, as did 60 percent of eligible battle managers. The bonus announcement came nearly four months after the Oct. 1 start of the bonus qualification period. Turain said the rollout was delayed because the legislation giving the Air Force permission to offer bonuses, the National Defense Authorization Act, did not become law until Jan. 28.
The lack of the authorization act didnt stop the Army, Marine Corps and Navy from releasing their bonus program details as far back as September.
Pilots and air battle managers can apply now for their bonuses via the Air Force Personnel Centers Web site, Turain said. Airmen whose service commitment has expired since Oct. 1 wont lose any money because of the delay in announcing the program details.
Turain cautioned that the bonus is a one-time offer. A pilot who turns it down this year wont be eligible in 2009.
The Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve have their own aviator continuation pay programs.
For 2008, the Air National Guard offers full-time pilots and air battle managers a bonus program that can take them to the 20-year mark, said Air Guard spokeswoman Lt. Col. Ellen Krenke.
Pilots at the end of the initial service commitment can receive $25,000 annually if they extend for four or more years. Pilots who want to stay in for one to three years qualify for a $15,000 annual payment.
Guard air battle managers will receive $15,000 annually for extending four or more years or $10,000 annually for a one- to three-year extension.
Information about the Air Force Reserves aviator pay program wasnt available as of Jan. 31, a Reserve headquarters spokesman said.
The Defense Department allows the services to pay aviators bonuses of up to $25,000 annually, but leaves the qualification rules and payment plans up to each service. For example, the Marine Corps and Army offer pilot bonuses based on missions or model of aircraft flown, while the Air Force pays all pilots the same.
Navy pilots and naval flight officers the Navys version of an Air Force navigator are eligible for a bonus totaling $125,000 if they extend for five years at the end of their service commitment. Officers can choose to have 50 percent of the bonus paid in a lump sum the first year, while the rest is paid in four equal installments over the remaining four years.
The Navy also offers one- to three-year contracts worth $15,000 annually to officers in select squadron and major command positions.
The Air Force had offered short-term bonus agreements, but ended the program several years ago. At the time, officials said the shorter contracts made it more difficult to project how many pilots the service would have.
The Marine Corps has several different levels of bonuses based on the aircraft flown and the aviators years of service. The annual bonuses range from $20,000 for senior pilots flying the MV-22 Osprey, AV-8B Harrier and KC-130, to $6,000 a year for EA-6B Prowler and CH-46 pilots with less than 13 years of service.
The Marine Corps decided to set different bonus levels for different airframes to encourage pilots to transfer into growing fleets of newer aircraft, such as the Osprey.
The Air Force hasnt made similar offers to pilots heading off to fly its expanding numbers of unmanned aerial vehicles or the Air Force special operations version of the Osprey. Instead, the service ordered about 120 junior fighter and bomber pilots to switch to UAVs and special operations aircraft. The Air Force also is filling Osprey cockpits with pilots who had flown the soon-to-be-retired MH-53 Pave Low.
The Armys bonus program pays enlisted warrant officers who have satisfied a six-year service agreement from $12,000 to $25,000 annually, based on the type of missions they fly and the length of the pilots extension. A special operations helicopter pilot can pocket $25,000 annually by agreeing to a four-year commitment. Commissioned officers who fly do not receive bonuses.
