Acting Secretary of the Air Force Eric Fanning said “just a few” fighter pilots have taken the $225,000 bonus offered by the Air Force to get their long term commitment. The reason?  Boredom.

pilots are not taking the service up on the offer because of reduced flying hours caused by budget cuts, acting Secretary of the Air Force Eric Fanning said.

“If you’re not flying your F-22 because it’s grounded, you might as well go fly something else,” Fanning said.

A few weeks ago, Chief of Staff General Mark Welsh told the Senate

pilots had told him they were “bored” because their squadrons were not flying.

“That doesn’t mean they’re planning to leave the Air Force, but it certainly means they are keeping their options open, at a minimum,” he said.

General Welsh’s comments indicate there may be slightly more to the story.  The $225K bonus came with a 9-year commitment to the Air Force.  Given the current state of world affairs, and the fact these pilots are in the prime “family” phase of life, many may have chosen to decline the long-term bonus and take their career one year at a time.  So it doesn’t necessarily mean fighter pilots are exiting in droves — they may just be hedging their bets.

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