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DOD Aviator Positions: Training Requirements and Incentive Pay Could Be Reduced

NSIAD-97-60 Published: Feb 19, 1997. Publicly Released: Feb 19, 1997.
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Highlights

GAO reviewed certain Department of Defense (DOD) nonflying positions, focusing on: (1) the number of aviators (pilots and navigators) that are assigned to nonflying positions in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force; (2) the amount of aviation career incentive pay (ACIP) and aviation continuation pay (ACP) paid to aviators in nonflying positions; (3) whether the services implement ACIP and ACP uniformly; and (4) whether the nonflying positions affect the number of aviators the services plan to train to meet future requirements.

Recommendations

Recommendations for Executive Action

Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Defense The Secretary of Defense should direct the Secretaries of the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force to develop criteria and review the duties of each nonflying position to identify those that could be filled by nonaviators. This could allow the services to reduce total aviator training requirements.
Closed – Not Implemented
In commenting on the draft of this report, DOD agreed that the services should review the criteria and duties of nonflying aviator positions. DOD did not agree that nonflying positions should be filled with nonaviators or that doing so would appreciably reduce aviator training requirements.
Department of Defense In view of the recent articles and studies that raise questions about the need to incentivize aviators to remain in the service, the abundance of aviators as compared to requirements for flying positions, and the value of ACP as a retention tool, the Secretary of Defense should direct the service Secretaries to reevaluate the need for ACP. If the reevaluation points out the need to continue ACP, the Secretary of Defense should determine whether the services should apply a consistent definition in deciding what groups of aviators can receive ACP.
Closed – Implemented
In commenting on the draft of this report, DOD agreed that the services need to continually review and reevaluate the need for ACP, but in DOD's opinion, the services are already doing this. GAO's position is that the need for ACP should be reevaluated in light of the studies which show that the airlines are becoming less dependent on military-trained pilots as a primary source for new hires.

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Topics

Aircraft pilotsDefense contingency planningDefense economic analysisFlight trainingMilitary aviationMilitary cost controlMilitary payMilitary personnelPersonnel managementVariable incentive pay