U.S. Air Force Honor Guard Drill Team performs at the 50th commemoration of the Vietnam War in Washington, D.C. (Gianna Gronowski/Stars and Stripes)
More than 30 Air Force jobs no longer qualify for special pay based on their level of difficulty, according to an annual service review.
An Air Force board that reviews pay for special-duty assignments looked at more than 100 career fields and determined there are 70 specialties that will still receive the monthly bonus in fiscal 2024, which begins Oct. 1. That’s down from 103 in the previous year.
Bonus pay for these jobs ranges from $75 to $450 monthly and varies based on skill level, assignment location and training levels, the Air Force said.
The jobs losing the bonus pay include cryptologic language analyst, flight attendant, diagnostic medical sonography, defense courier, dog handler, airborne mission system operator and some weather support jobs, according to a list of changes confirmed by the Air Force.
The service said last month that these decisions were made separate from budget considerations, though its proposed 2024 budget included a reduction of about 3,700 airmen receiving the special bonus pay at a savings of more than $4 million.
These cuts were made to “maintain parity with specialties of similar duties, responsibilities and training,” the service said in a statement about the bonus changes.
The Air Force also added four new jobs to the list, increased pay for 11 positions and decreased pay for seven.
The new jobs receiving special-duty pay are material management, bomber airborne maintenance support, enlisted faculty instructor at the Air Force Academy, and special missions support.
This review did not include pilot incentives and bonuses, which are handled separately.
The Space Force conducted the same board review for the first time since the military branch was created three years ago. The service inherited its bonus pay structure from jobs that it acquired from the Air Force, and last month announced it will remove three of the 14 jobs receiving special pay and add two new ones.
Airmen and guardians can expect the changes to take effect Oct. 1. For those in a job that will be removed from the list, they will continue to receive half the amount that they collected in 2023 through the next fiscal year.
The Air Force announced similar cuts to special-duty pay last year, but Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall reversed the decision weeks before the changes would have gone into effect.
Jobs added
Material Management
Bomber Airborne Maintenance Support
U.S. Air Force Academy Enlisted Faculty Instructor
Special Missions Support
Jobs discontinued
President's Emergency Operations Center
Cryptologic Language Analyst
Electronic Security Systems
Aircraft Battle Damage Repair Exp Depot Mx
Defense Threat Reduction Agency
361st Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance Group
Defense Couriers
31 Communication Squadron and 39 Communication Squadron NC3
Army Support Weather Operations
Flight Attendants
52nd Munitions Maintenance Group NC3
Airborne Mission System Operators
Flight Engineers
Loadmasters
Sensor Operators
Special Mission Aviators
Contracting
RPA Cyber Technicians
International Enlisted Engagements Managers
RPA Ops - Weather Support
Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System
Super High Frequency Operators
Advanced Intelligence Instructors
Ski Mission - Flight Eng and Loadmasters
Airborne MSS - Host Nation Riders
55th Operations Group Management Operator
336 Training Squadron and 98th DRA Aircrew Flight Equipment
Diagnostic Med Sonogram
Honor Guard
ANG RPA Cyber Operations
Radar, Airfield, & Weather Systems
Casualty Cell
Military Working Dog Handlers
Jobs with pay reduced
Military Human Intelligence
724th Special Tactics Group Operations Support
Subsurface Analyst
Parachuting Instructor
33rd Cyberspace Operations Squadron, Operating Location Alpha
Mission Field Chef
Special Operations Surgical Team
Jobs with pay increased
Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape Specialists, SERE
Cyber Warfare Operations
Flying Crew Chiefs
Special Reconnaissance
Air Force Office of Special Investigations
First Sergeant
CCM
844th Communication Squadron
Independent Duty Medical Technician
Respiratory Care
Fire Protection
Source: U.S. Air Force