Incentive Pay for Military Members Removed From Flying Status

A decision was requested with regard to the legality of the payment of incentive pay to certain enlisted aircrew members under a new Air Force policy and of a proposed amendment to an applicable Executive Order to authorize other payments of incentive pay. Although the Air Force policy which in unusual cases retained enlisted members on flight status by distributing flight duty among more members than necessary in order to prevent termination of flight status and incentive pay without 120 days' notice was a questionable administrative practice, it could not be determined that, as a matter of law, the members in such cases were not entitled to incentive pay. A proposed amendment to Executive Order 11157 which would authorize incentive pay for up to 120 days to enlisted members involuntarily removed from flight status without notice was reasonably restricted to effecting the primary purpose of the statute authorizing such pay and, therefore, would be valid.