Stop-Loss nears completion

By Staff Sgt. Michael Dorsey - Headquarters United States Air Force

WASHINGTON -- The last active duty member affected by Stop-Loss measures, implemented during Operation Allied Force, is slated to redeploy around Aug. 27, according to Air Force personnel officials. The intelligence officer, who was given the option of returning sooner, opted to see the job through.

His return will signal the end of the force structure program which began June 15 and suspended normal separations and retirements for airmen in career fields deemed critical to preserving mission capability.

Initially, slightly more than 6,000 active duty airmen who had requested and received permission to separate or retire from the Air Force between June and December were affected. Their career fields were identified by the Air Force as being critical to mission success.

Stop-Loss was implemented across the Total Force June 15 to preserve combat capability by assuring the Air Force had airmen in critical skills needed to carry out airstrike operations in Kosovo.

For those in critical skills but not deployed in direct support of Operation Allied Force, the program ended just seven days later on June 22. In the meantime, those deployed for the contingency were relieved of Stop-Loss obligations as they returned to their home bases.

The Air Force was the only service to implement Stop-loss during Operation Allied Force. Officials say this decision was based on the service's heavy involvement in the NATO air campaign.

Still, officials say the Stop-Loss decision was not made lightly. When Acting Secretary of the Air Force F. Whitten Peters and Chief of Staff Gen. Michael E. Ryan activated Stop-Loss, they did so with caution.

"The Stop-loss decision is the hardest I've had to make and it certainly was one I made with General Ryan very, very carefully," Mr. Peters said.

"One of the things we wanted to do was make sure people didn't think we were trying to use it simply to deal with a personnel shortage. We wanted to make sure people understood that we really needed to do it [Stop-Loss] for operational reasons."

To minimize the disruption to people's lives, the Air Force analyzed immediate and long-term requirements, then took a selective approach to implementing the program by career field.

"I've met two kinds of people in the Air Force since I made the decision," Mr. Peters said. "One which said, 'Well, I didn't want to get out anyway because my unit was going and I wanted to go, too,' and some whose lives I've really disrupted. Every time I met someone like that I made sure they knew about the waiver process."

In addition to selectively implementing the program, Air Force leaders went a step further by using a waiver process that allowed those who were affected by Stop-Loss because of their career field -- but who had unusual circumstances that outweighed their impact on Operation Allied Force -- to move on with their separation plans.

Ultimately, the Air Force approved 100 percent of the waivers requested. Prior to termination of the program, 192 waivers were approved. Thirty-two requests were returned without action when Stop-Loss ended.

Air Force officials say it's still too early to determine what negative impacts, if any, the recent Stop-Loss program will have on future recruiting and retention efforts.

However, one small, but positive impact has already been realized regarding retention. Most officers and airmen affected by Stop-Loss were given the opportunity to withdraw their separation or retirement papers. It is not possible to track how many separating enlisted members may have withdrawn their requests, but officials report 47 retirement and five separation packages were withdrawn by officers affected by Stop-Loss.

Mr. Peters and General Ryan again expressed their appreciation for the tremendous support and dedication Air Force men and women displayed during this challenging time.

"We want to thank you for your sacrifices and dedication to our great Air Force during the recent events in the Balkans. Your service was vital to the successful completion of our mission. We both thank you for your commitment during this critical period."

Related Links:

Air Force Personnel Center

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