The latest figure is 2.2 percentage points higher than last year’s selection rate, and 4.3 percentage points higher than the recent low of 18.2% in 2021. “It may be that we completely break the [Air Force Specialty Code] structure," said Lt. Gen. Caroline Miller, the service's personnel chief. Deadlifts replace the power clean-and-press motion that was used in strength testing at MEPS for decades. "We must continue to improve upon how we develop these airmen to sustain our competitive advantage." The active duty Air Force made it about 90% of the way to its goal of 26,877 enlisted recruits. “We are finally, after years and years and years of trying to do this, getting rid of the Scantrons." It’s a plea to stop the perfect from being the enemy of the good. Plummeting NCO promotion rates are a ripple effect of the Air Force’s effort to grow its early career enlisted workforce. Seventy career fields will be eligible for bonuses ranging from $75 to $450 a month; another 33 will receive half-pay for a year before they are cut. The policy aims to give troops more control over their careers and keep them in uniform longer. Load More