05/08/07
Stars and Stripes/Scott Schonauer
Air Force to Airmen: Don’t Worry About Pay
Official says service has other means for making up millions shifted to Army for war
KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany — The Air Force is trying to allay fears that it might dip into airmen’s pay as a result of millions of dollars being shifted to the Army to help fight wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“We would never do that and that’s not what we’re going to do,” said Maj. Morshe Araujo, an Air Force spokeswoman at the Pentagon.
The Air Force is looking at such things as delaying personnel hiring, limiting training exercises and holding off on maintenance projects, but withholding airmen’s pay is not something being considered, she said.
The Pentagon has requested to move $1.6 billion in funds from the Navy and Air Force to the Army to pay operating costs. The Air Force is hoping that Congress will restore the money.
“We’re going to take care of our people,” Araujo said. “No matter what, we’re going to take care of our people. Mil pay is not going to be affected.”
But a statement released by the Air Force in an e-mail sent to Stars and Stripes by Araujo on Monday hinted that much of what the service can or will do hinges on Congress’ supplemental bill. The Air Force has requested the $800 million shifted from its budget to the Army be replaced.
“The Air Force remains optimistic that funding previously provided to the Army will be quickly restored,” the statement said. “We are confident Congress will quickly provide the supplemental funding to fight the war on terrorism, pay our military and civilian Airmen, and sustain the readiness levels of our combat forces.”
When asked whether payroll would be impacted if the money were not returned, Araujo said it would not.
“We would never dip into mil pay,” she said. “Our first and primary concern is going to be our personnel.”
When the Pentagon requested to divert the funds from the Navy and Air Force, many airmen thought the worst.
“It scared a lot of people,” she said. But, she added, “Our position is that we will not impact military payroll.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So this may not impact military payroll. It's still going to impact ops tempo and the general quality of life for our community.
Comments