WAPS - Airmen put to the test - at home or deployed

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Brandy Dupper-Macy
  • 355th Wing Public Affairs
DAVIS-MONTHAN AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. (ACCNS) --  The time has come again when Airmen start studying and testing for their Weighted Airman’s Promotions System tests.

With high operations and people frequently deploying or returning from deployment, it may be hard to figure out when one is eligible to test.

According to Air Force Instruction 36-2605, A9.10.2, anyone who is present for any portion of the test cycle, must test prior to a temporary duty or permanent change of station departure. If unavailable during the entire cycle due to TDY or PCS, one must be ready to test prior to departure — even if that means testing up to 10 days before the cycle begins. Early testing does not require the Airman’s concurrence … and declining to test early renders the Airman ineligible for the entire cycle.

“If deploying, they can test up to 10 days before the cycle begins or if (more than) 90 days (contingency) TDY, they’ll have 60 days once they set foot on U.S. soil,” said Randy Glauser, 355th Mission Support Squadron test control officer. “If less than 90 days, they can receive up to 30 days if the commander requests it, otherwise as soon as possible upon return.”

The time given to Airmen who return after a CTDY is needed to ensure they have the best odds of making it.

“They may not have the luxury to test on their assigned test date due to a deployment,” Mr. Glauser said. “Those who deploy may also be working 12-hour shifts seven days a week and only have 60 days study time, versus those staying behind maximizing and pacing their study time.”

To give Airmen who are deploying or are deployed the benefit of doubt, the Air Force Instruction allows for some exceptions.

According to AFI 36-2605, if an Airman is TDY for the entire test cycle and testing facilities or requirements permit testing, he or she can be tested at the site. Also, the Airman’s commander can request an exception, subject to the mission support squadron commander’s approval if:

- Testing prior to departure will degrade the mission; 

- Scheduling prior to departure won’t allow 60 days access to study materials provided or 

- The TDY notification was 10 calendar days or less before departure and an Airman had no advance notice of the tasking or its probability.

According to AFI 36-2605, if the Airman is deployed less than 90 days on CTDY, they must test immediately upon return. However, the Airman’s commander may request a delay of no more than 30 days based on deployment duration or conditions.

Reasons such as oversleeping, marking the wrong date or time on the calendar, reporting to the wrong building or room, forgetting the test date, failure to bring a military identification card, or simply being late are not valid reasons for missing a test. Rescheduling will not be authorized.

Airmen are limited in rescheduling their WAPS test dates.

According to AFI 36-2605, if a person has an upcoming TDY or PCS, documented medical or family emergency or sick leave, or has not received study materials within 60 days of the test date, Airmen may request to reschedule. If the reason for rescheduling does not meet the above requirements, the request must be submitted by the Airman’s commander to the MSS commander.