{"id":29954,"date":"2017-09-07T22:27:03","date_gmt":"2017-09-07T22:27:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2017\/09\/07\/the-army-is-bringing-back-pilot-retention-bonuses\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T02:42:24","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T02:42:24","slug":"the-army-is-bringing-back-pilot-retention-bonuses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/your-army\/2017\/09\/07\/the-army-is-bringing-back-pilot-retention-bonuses\/","title":{"rendered":"The Army is bringing back pilot retention bonuses"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By the numbers, the Army has 110 percent of the certified aviators it needs. The issue is keeping the right experience levels in each formation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To get at the problem, the service is eyeing a new set of retention bonuses to encourage seasoned pilots to stay in the Army.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A revival of the bonus program is due later this month, the director of aviation in the Army G-3\/5\/7 said Thursday at an Association of the United States Army aviation forum outside Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn terms of attracting aviators, that\u2019s not a problem,\u201d said Brig. Gen. Frank Tate. \u201cEverybody wants to be an aviator. Just about.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But not everyone wants to stay an aviator.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Army particularly needs to retain pilots at the seven-year mark \u2014 when they finish their initial service obligations \u2014 and the 17- to 22-year mark, when many are weighing the benefits of retirement, Tate said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He did not provide any additional details about when the bonuses will be available, how much they might be worth, or how someone might qualify for the payments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sequestration made a dent in the number of new pilots earning their wings at Fort Rucker, Alabama, so the Army recently sent more helicopters down to flight school. As a result, the service has been able to increase training throughput by 30 percent over what it was during sequestration, officials said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That has cut down on the shortage of warrant officers. And officials hope the retention bonuses will help even more.<\/p>\n\n\n

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With so many aviators leaving after hitting their seven-year mark, the Army needs to keep more experienced pilots.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n

But Army aviation faces other challenges because of lower funding levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Losing overmatch<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Army is going to lose its air warfare superiority if it can\u2019t get more funding and do a better job of modernizing on a tight timeline, two generals said at the forum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With 88 percent of the Army\u2019s aircraft on deployment at any given time, operating on a budget that\u2019s almost half of what it was five years ago, the service risks pushing modernization completely by the wayside to maintain what is rapidly becoming an obsolete aviation force, said the head of the Army Aviation Center of Excellence and the director of force development with the Army G-8.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInnovation is not the Army\u2019s problem,\u201d said Maj. Gen. John George of the Army G-8. \u201cMoney is the Army\u2019s problem.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The winding down of combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan has not freed up the Army\u2019s aviation branch to spend time updating its tactics, techniques and procedures, or to begin earnestly developing the next generation of helicopters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead, Army aviators remain in high demand overseas \u2014 not just in the war zones but also in places such as Europe and Asia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, George said, the Army has been making only incremental upgrades to existing systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\t