Air Force Global Strike Command is launching a new study of cancer risks among Airmen and Guardians who worked near intercontinental ballistic missiles and is developing new resources for current and former service members and their families. David covers the Air Force, Space Force and anything Star Wars-related. At first, it appeared Sopchak was the first Heathen to get a beard waiver. Published Feb 12, 2020 2:11 PM EST. While supporters of current Air Force policy may have anecdotal evidence of one to five people who they see fail the fit test, he said, that cant be extrapolated to hundreds of thousands of airmen.. The Army granted a similar waiver last year, and beard exemptions have been granted for a growing number of Sikhs and Muslims . addresses the Air Force grooming standard for beards: "[b]eards are not authorizedunless for medical reasons, when authorized by a commander on the advice of a medical official." An Airmen who requests an accommodation waiver to grow a beard for religious reasons must follow The updated policy requires religious apparel to be neat and conservative and not impede an individuals ability to perform assigned military duties or wear protective equipment. Airman becomes the first Muslim to be granted service's beard waiver for observing religion By Jon Simkins Nov 20, 2018 Air Force Staff Sgt. The Air Force plans to update its Air Force Instruction regulations governing dress and personal appearance and medical care management to reflect this change. If youre willing to learn, we are willing to teach.. Any links to regs would be appricated. But a little more than two years ago, Sopchak was seized by an overwhelming feeling that he needed to look further into these legends and the religion surrounding them. (U.S. Air Force) Airmen will be allowed to wear up to. But on July 18, the amn/nco/snco page posted a March 1 memo granting another Heathen airman, Staff Sgt. The U.S. Air Force issued new guidelines on Friday giving members who wear religious apparel a way to serve the country without compromising their faith. Those calls accelerated earlier this year, when the Air Force changed its regulations to allow for women to wear braids, ponytails and bangs in order to prevent irreversible hair loss and migraines stemming from the old hair regulations. We are working to take away the stigma attached to airmen who have a medical need or a religious accommodation for facial hair. In December, The Air Force released a sweeping review which found that Black service members are disproportionately punished and promoted more slowly when compared to their White peers. I have an approved religious accommodation and have gotten pretty knowledgeable on the process. One civilian study from 2018 showed that 98% of study participants with an eighth-inch of beard passed the fit test with respirators that are similar to the M-50 gas masks used in the military in terms of material and fit. A sample memo also said that an airman wearing a turban could be ordered to remove it if he goes within 25 feet of an operating aircraft. Thanks for attaching this, it seems like a simple enough process to get the accommodation. The conventional view of facial hair is that it looks unprofessional in uniform. (Staff Sgt. 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Big news today for the many airmen out there who want to grow out their beards: not only is there little evidence showing that beards interfere with a gas mask seal, but the Air Forces ban on beards may also be contributing to racial discrimination and hurting promotion opportunities within the service. DAF COVID-19 Statistics - January 2022. Last year, Capt. Previously, the only exceptions for active-duty personnel were medical waivers. HbMc#!6d~\@sQfe_Mp X_T1ew,`CC _O3b eTBo~&aM(AL?z[vEIYf~;LI>*H~BL 3v3!2/)mC*f3d]UL!'7*^LtPNl2"8}Vo=N@&.&|Ye. You will have a meeting with the Chaplain where they ask you questions to determine if you have a sincerely held belief that you shouldn't shave. endobj First Air Force JAG officer to wear hijab featured in short NBC documentary, Women in the military: Moving beyond firsts, Veterans Affairs drops mask requirement for all agency medical offices, Officials OK some hand and neck tattoos for airmen, Guardians, Perennial pilot shortage puts Air Force in precarious position, Healthy eating on a budget for busy military spouses, Tax scams How to report them Money Minute, Capitol Hill weighs action on two controversial topics: medical marijuana and abortion, Lockheed wins hypersonics contract | Defense Dollars, Go inside a secret nuclear fallout bunker sealed for decades, Another Air Force fleet grounded over fears plane tails may fall off, Pentagon orders engine vibration fix for entire F-35 fleet worldwide, Minot firings due to failed nuclear safety inspection, Air Force advisers study use of satellites for tracking moving targets. 8[/6&ip1~E5\h|#_W7AO2#+S_*wQ2I1jg!zx 6FTUqepk9v i*z]D@s;3c~52YJSR04P_dZgLA-Xh YWX,&"qp6bY ?HD]SL%d9n4%;uwR"d"4X Any recommendations made by the board would then have to be approved by Air Force senior leadership, a service spokesperson told Coffee or Die at the time. Paragraph 1.5.2.3 should be renumbered as 1.5.2.4. I was willfully ignorant about the impact it was having on young Black men, he said. Asking questions is fine, but how is that even legal? Theres a lot of comparables where Hey if females and women in the military just got their hair changed, how about beards? said Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force JoAnne Bass in April. David covers the Air Force, Space Force and anything Star Wars-related. Airman raises his head as flight surgeon chief of medical staff inspects his neck and face during a shaving waiver course at Beale Air Force Base, Calif., March 15, 2018. | For ANG This new study looked at a much larger share of data and involved 9,339 valid responses. It took Sopchak about 11 months to get his beard approved. The facial hair cannot exceed one-quarter of an inch, must be grown out naturally and cannot be shaped or styled. Comer wore a beard with a religious accommodation waiver, but beards in the Air Force may become far more common after a uniform board considers facial hair in November. is at the same time the history o f the interpretation of the Scriptures.'18 The Sunna embodied an ossified tradition. Rachel Cohen joined Air Force Times as senior reporter in March 2021. 0. Theres a lot of things that we learn from the past and our ancestry, and its just carrying on the line, really.. The new findings build off a preliminary study published in December which said that shaving waivers had negatively affected the careers of many airmen, especially those of color. Published Jul 14, 2021 8:57 AM EDT. 173rd Fighter Wing Airmen may begin taking advantage of new uniform regulations allowing religious exemptions such as beards, hijabs, and turbans while in uniform. Garrett Sopchak mythology, a collection of interesting stories but little more. The Army granted a similar waiver last year, and beard exemptions have been granted for a growing number of Sikhs and Muslims though not atheists. And in June, a Sikh airman received approval to wear a beard and turban. safety) or when precluded by a compelling (i.e., especially important) governmental and/or Air Force interest. As described in sample memos included in the regulation, safety concerns might include wearing a gas mask or going within 25 feet of an operating aircraft. The wing chaplain or equivalent will then assign a chaplain to interview the requesting airman about what is motivating him or her to ask for it. The female hair changes were not a want, it was very much a need based on health first when I talk with our men in uniform: Is this a need or is this a want?. The Air Force's updated dress and personal appearance policy clarifies the gr ooming and uniform standards for members who wear turbans, hijabs and beards for religious reasons. Last August, he went to his units chaplain an evangelical Christian who Sopchak said was very supportive and curious about his Heathen religion who helped him put together the paperwork for his religious accommodation request. This condition, which the American Osteopathic College of Dermatology says affects up to 60 percent of Black men, occurs when curved facial hairs grow back into the skin. He previously covered leadership and personnel issues at Air Force Times, and the Pentagon, special operations and air warfare at Military.com. He also hopes to grow the Heathen community in the area around Hill. He joined Task & Purpose in 2019, after covering local news in Maine and FDA policy in Washington D.C. David loves hearing the stories of individual airmen and their families and sharing the human side of Americas most tech-heavy military branch. There are conflicting published reports from the civilian sector with regard to the impact of facial hair on P2/N95 [face masks] fit testing, and none that we are aware of evaluating facial hair impact on military gas mask fit. the authors wrote. The real challenge is how do you change the culture, not just in the Air Force but in the services period.. Below are current coronavirus disease 2019 statistics for Department of Air Force personnel: *These numbers include all of the cases that were reported since our last update on Jan. 18. The Air Force Times reports that applications for waivers can now be made by airmen who wish to wear religious apparel or are requesting exemptions from rules prohibiting beards and long hair. Editors note: This story has been updated with new comments from Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force JoAnne Bass. Requests should normally be recommended for approval unless approval would have an adverse impact on military readiness, unit cohesion, standards or discipline, the regulation said. Airmen in need of a waiver could try laser hair removal or chemical treatment, but many airmen are reluctant to undertake them because it could permanently alter their ability to grow facial hair, the study authors wrote. Airmen can use styling products on their beards, but petroleum-based products are not allowed while wearing a protective mask. It must also include a photo or description of the head covering, religious-affiliated item, grooming standard or personal appearance that is being requested.