An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Air Force Reserve takes on recruiting challenges

  • Published
WASHINGTON --  EDITOR’S NOTE: The following commentary is from testimony by Lt. Gen. John A. Bradley, chief of Air Force Reserve and commander of Air Force Reserve Command, before the U.S. House of Representative Committee on Armed Services July 19.

Recruiting quality service members is a top priority for the Air Force Reserve. Competition for these members among other services, as well as within the civilian community, has reached an all-time high.

For the last five consecutive years, Air Force Reserve Command exceeded its recruiting goal. The command achieved this remarkable feat through the outstanding efforts of our recruiters and with the superb assistance of our reservists who help tell our story of public service to the American people.

AFRC came very close to reaching its fiscal 2004 congressional end-strength mark. It fell short by .6 percent, reaching 99.3 percent or merely 578 assigned short of congressionally funded requirements.

Recruiting continues to face significant challenges. The pool of active-duty separatees continues to shrink due to force reductions over the last decade. Competition for these members has become even keener. The active force is intensifying its retention efforts, and the Air National Guard is competing for these people as well.

Additionally, the current high operations and personnel tempos, coupled with a perceived likelihood of activation and deployment, are being routinely cited as significant reasons why separating members are declining to choose continuing military service in the Reserve. These issues further contribute to the civilian sector’s ability to attract these members away from military service.

One consequence of the reduced success in attracting separating members from the active force is the need to make up this difference through attracting non-prior service members.

Historically, our recruiters access close to 25 percent of eligible separating active-duty Air Force members, which accounts for a significant portion of annual accessions.

Finally, with overall end strength of the Air Force Reserve dipping below 100 percent, some career-fields are undermanned. To avoid possible readiness concerns, recruiters will continue to meet the challenge of guiding applicants to critical job specialties.

We began the “Split Training Option” in October 2003 for recruits who have not served in a military component. This program provides a flexible tool for recruiters to use in scheduling basic military training classes and technical school classes at non-consecutive times.

The Reserve is taking advantage of an active-duty Force Shaping initiative begun last year. The Air Force is offering active-duty members the opportunity to use the Palace Chase program to change components until the end of this September. We are using this opportunity to access prior-service members with critical career skills.

Last year 1,200 active-duty members used Palace Chase to join the air reserve components, with more than half selecting the Air Force Reserve. This number may grow this fiscal year.