The Air Force has selected 472 airmen for promotion to chief master sergeant, the Air Force Personnel Center said Tuesday.
There were 2,142 senior master sergeants up for promotion this year, which amounts to a 22.04 percent selection rate. That’s down from the 23.82 percent selection rate from last year ― which itself was a three-decade high ― but higher than the preceding three years. Selection rates from 2013 to 2015 ranged from 18.97 percent to 20.83 percent.
The Air Force will release the list of airmen selected for promotion on Dec. 7. Chief master sergeant promotions will begin Jan. 1 and continue in order of their promotion sequence number.
Commanders will find out which of their airmen have been selected beginning Thursday, a week before the official release. In most cases, commanders will tell airmen about their promotion the day before the official release. But in special circumstances ― such as when someone is deploying or hospitalized ― commanders can use their discretion to tell them earlier.
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The Air Force resumed giving commanders a few days’ advance notice about promotions last year, to give them a chance to tell airmen about their promotion in person. And in August, the Air Force lengthened that advance notice period to a full week so commanders can make preparations to celebrate and recognize their airmen for their accomplishments.
Fewer airmen were eligible and selected for promotion this year. Last year, for example, 531 E-8s were chosen for promotion, 525 were selected in 2015, and 479 were selected the year before. But the number of selectees this year is higher than the 400 chosen in 2013.
The drawdown of 2014 was a major factor in the depressed selection rates of those years. But as the Air Force has worked to beef up its end strength, promotion opportunities and selection rates have recovered.
Stephen Losey is the air warfare reporter for Defense News. He previously covered leadership and personnel issues at Air Force Times, and the Pentagon, special operations and air warfare at Military.com. He has traveled to the Middle East to cover U.S. Air Force operations.
