More of the Air Force’s toughest enlisted jobs qualify for bonus pay

The Air Force is bumping up the number of challenging jobs for which airmen and guardians can earn bonus pay in the coming year.

Enlisted airmen in 78 job specialties will be eligible for special duty assignment pay in fiscal year 2025, which starts Oct. 1, the Air Force said in a release. That’s an increase from last year, when the Air Force approved bonuses for 70 critical fields, ranging from an extra $75 to $450 a month.

Space Force guardians working in 22 fields will also be eligible for the bonuses, up from 14 last year.

The service estimated in its fiscal year 2025 budget request, released in March, that around 30,000 troops would receive special duty pay totaling $91.3 million.

In the past, airmen ranging from recruiters and boot camp instructors to pararescuemen, flying crew chiefs and more have reaped special duty pay. Not all troops in a given field may qualify for a bonus, depending on where they work and whether they perform duties that others in their role do not. The Air Force declined to provide Air Force Times with the current list of jobs that qualify for the bonuses in FY25.

Of the 78 Air Force specialties approved to receive the bonuses, 10 are new and 61 were approved at their current rate. Another four will see higher bonuses than in the past, while extra pay for three will decline. One specialty was removed and 18 requests to join the list were denied, the service said.

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For the Space Force, nine of last year’s 14 specialties that earned special duty pay will remain unchanged, plus eight new ones.

All specialties approved for the upcoming cycle can expect to receive bonuses through Sept. 30, 2028, with no changes; those coming off the list will be phased out by receiving half of their original bonus through Sept. 30, 2025. Specialties that didn’t make the list for FY25 can reapply for bonuses after two years.

The Air Force and Space Force routinely offer bonuses in some of their most demanding jobs to bolster retention.

In a shift, the Air Force said it would no longer convene an annual board to consider SDAP changes, and instead will do so every four years. The service said the change would bring predictability to airmen and guardians’ personal budgets, as well as its own. It will, however, consider allowing annual reviews as necessary, like when new jobs are added to the workforce.

This year’s board focused on “identifying personnel in extremely demanding positions with unusually challenging responsibilities,” the Air Force said in a news release.

Airmen and guardians can check MyFSS to view the full list of approved specialties for FY25.