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Tuesday, May 31, 2016

Enlisted Assignment Notification/Assignment Waiver

So it is now the month of October 2015.  My BOT application is going great!  My form 56 was competed and signed by commander.  My BOT profile looked great, and ALL my required memos from my commander and AFPC (PIF review) was signed.  It was all tucked away in my binder and the only thing I was waiting on was my letter of recommendation.  You may recall that this was a two and a half month ordeal my LOR wasn't signed until mid-January 2016!

Anyway, I was on cruise control!  Everything in my control was completed and my deputy commander had everything under control regarding the LOR (ha ha).  Then I got hit with a blindside Air Force Right Hook!  An assignment notification...

So here is some background information on me.  As you probably figured out I am an Airman Leadership School instructor.  We are on assignment for four years with weekend and holidays off!  It is an awesome schedule especially coming from the Defender career field.  Anyway, I qualified for a base of preference (BOP) and I had full intention of using it to get to McChord AFB.  I wanted McChord because I am from Hawaii and I wanted to be back on the west coast so that I could fly home (via space-a) whenever I wanted to.  Well my wife thought it was a good idea to not apply for BOP because it is only for a continental united states (CONUS) move.  She wanted to go overseas...so I updated my "dream sheet" with all overseas bases hoping to get a hit.  Some of you all might be thinking [you idiot] by now....yes I know, but I didn't know then.  Anyway I popped up as a mandatory mover and since I had no preference I got an enlisted assignment to where the Air Force Needed me.  I won't tell you where (why not?)...

Mind you this is still October so I had a few more months to get everything together, but dang!  I immediately opened my BOT guide and started reading up on the waiver process.  The guide states having an assignment is an automatic dq, but it is waiverable.  Questionnaire two has attachments that outline the waiver requirements.  It stated that CONUS assignments required a 30-45 day buffer after the estimated close out date (45-60 for OCONUS).  My report date to my assignment was 17 May 2016 and the estimated board release date was 15 April.  This left me eligible, but it was way too close for comfort because board release dates were always delayed in the past...

So I was now in a tough position.  I knew this whole board process was way too easy.  Think about it; I had to still meet the application deadline, study for master sergeant, await board results, and out process for my PCS in case I did not get selected for OTS!  It was stressful, but I couldn't sit around and whine about it cause nothing happens if we just whine and complain.  I decided my best option was to apply for a report no later than date (RNLD) extension.

The RNLD extension process is done over mypers.  It only requires both the gaining and losing commanders approval, best needs of the Air Force validation, and approval from AFPC...yea just that!  Anyway, it is never smart to just submit this request through mypers.  Commanders NEVER like to be blindsided by anything from anywhere.  So I figured the best thing to do was to set up another meeting with my commander to explain what I was about to do and what she was going to see in her inbox.

My meeting was schedule the next duty day.  I told my commander my plan of action which was to extend my RNLD by 30 days to keep me eligible in case the board release was delayed.  She then asked me for my reason and how the Air Force deems this as an Air Force benefit.  I explained to her that the extension requires approval by both commanders meaning that an approval implies no manning issues would occur.  The Air Force also has a need to fill officer vacancies thru OTS.  I figured the Air Force would see this as a benefit to the Air Force and not JUST a personal benefit.  She liked where my mind was at and said that she would approve the extension request only after she hears from the gaining commander.  She then asked if I would like her to call my gaining commander...this would be highly convenient, but....I am applying to be a commissioned officer so I should be able to do this type of stuff.  I told her no and asked if she had any issues with me contacting the gaining commander directly.  She said no and good luck.  Reflecting while typing this made me wonder if this was a test of my (leadership mindset/potential) hmmm.

I looked up the gaining commanders number via the GAL and Facebook (ha ha).  Why Facebook?  Honestly, Facebook updates are more current than the GAL.  Sometimes the GAL would list one person, but that person already pcs'd!  The commander on Facebook was the same listed on the GAL so I figured it was win win.

I called him and the commander (not the secretary) answered.  I introduced myself as an inbound and asked if this was a good time....he immediately asked if I worked anything through my chain of command.  I assured him that I did and that I was given the blessing to call him directly.  After a slight pause he asked me to hold....a few minutes later he came back on the line with "whats up"?
I explained my whole situation, went through an interrogation (Defenders ha ha), talked about where I have been and why I went PME, and a few off-topic conversations.  He then said that he appreciates the phone call ahead of my application on mypers as he would have probably called my commander with a bunch of questions anyway and would be less inclined to approve it.  His manning was good and a 30 day extension wouldn't do any harm nor would my selection to OTS.  He then told me to submit my application asap and so that he could approve it today and wished me good luck!

I immediately went to mypers, opened the RNLD extension link and applied.  I attached the specific attachment that outline the waiver protocol and a brief summary of my circumstance.  My RNLD was approved by both commanders that same duty day and AFPC approved the overall extension a few duty days later.  My new RNLD was now 17 June.  This gave me a better buffer in case the board release date was extended AND to out process/pack in case I was not selected.

Why did I get a assignment?!?  Well remember the post I did about memos?  Well one of those memos was to initiate a code 05; a specific code that disables your assignment selection process.  AFPC would see this as an assignment restriction and would not give you an assignment; however, I did not have this code on my records because the BOT guide specifically states NOT to submit this to the MPS until you're within 30 days of the application deadline.  Yes, I have heard of people disobeying this rule and submitting it early, but I have integrity.

So now that my extension was approved I had to get back cracking at my application package.  There are a few things that need to identify that I have an assignment.  The two biggest things that I can think of is the questionnaire two and the waiver memo.  The questionnaire was simple.  All I did was update the assignment section and check the box that said waiver required.  I then rerouted this to my commander for signature...not a problem because she was already aware of the situation.  The next major object was the waiver memo.

So I dug into a few regs here to get clarity on the waiver memo process.  This required a lot of reading in AFIs and decoding all the charts the AFI has on the assignment process.  I also dug into the OTS AFI and the BOT guide references.  As you can see, I did a lot of research and here is what I found:  The assignment waiver process is a big deal and requires AFPC approval.  This makes sense because they are the ones that WOULD issue, change, or terminate anything regarding assignments.  If they are the approving authority then my waiver memo would need to be signed by them right?!!....well other regs specifically the guide stated that my commander would need to sign the memo indicating that he/she approves the application regardless of the reason for a waiver.  This seemed a little contradicting.  I then found other regs that said the commander signs on a few occasions....I then looked the OTS Foundation portal for answers, but only got people who "felt, thought, thinks, or knows a guy" regarding assignment waivers...nothing solid.

After research and no solid validation on who signs the memo....I decided to list my commanders signature block on the memo.  I did this because thats what my research told me to do (mostly).  I simply copied the template (eye balled) from the BOT guide with a brief explanation and had her sign.  Of course she questioned me with why she needed to sign it.  I explained and backed it up with regulations...she smiled, signed the form, and stated we need more people like you!

So, some of you readers may be thinking why do all that research?  Couldn't you just call those OTS people or AFPC and ask them the question?  For me this is both yes and no.  Honestly, I feel that we need to go back to a culture where we start holding ourselves accountable and STOP relying
on other people!  I don't know about you readers, but my subordinates know that they better do all they can to figuring something out for themselves before they ask me for assistance.  Why do I do this?  Because they develop into better Airmen because of it!  This is because they get more out of hard work than they do with me micromanaging or spoon feeding them things.  Please understand that I am an approachable NCO and my subordinates know it.  They just understand my standards and expectations because I am very very clear...they know that if shit is about to hit the fan or if there is a risk in safety they better come to me and not dig their nose in a reg.  Anyway, this is again in my opinion...rant over!

Another reason I didn't pick up the phone and call the OTS people for clarification is because of that dang (awesome) movie Admissions.  Did you ever watch it?  I seriously felt that Rose and company had a list of people that called them with questions (both stupid and legit).  I also felt that they were looking for applicants who could figure shit out and get it done.  I truly believe that is the reason why the eliminated the education center from the application process.  I seriously know some past selects that didn't lift a finger because their education office applied for them!

Anyway, sorry for the long post.  The waiver memo and questionnaire 2 was now signed by the commander and my assignment was extended.  Just waiting on the LOR...but also to enjoy the Holidays...

See you on my next post, good luck and GO Air Force!




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