[spacefreak]

Pentagon to Pay Troops' Travel Expenses

By PAULINE JELINEK, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - In an effort to bolster military morale, the Pentagon ( news -web sites ) soon will begin paying travel expenses for troops to get all the way home on leave from Iraq ( news -web sites ) and Afghanistan ( news -web sites ).

The cost of that extra leg for tens of thousands of soldiers: $55 million.

Until now, the largest R&R program since the Vietnam War has flown soldiers only to three cities in the United States and two in Germany, leaving them to pay airfare for connecting flights if they want to go farther
Some airlines offered discount fares to help, and a congressman started a program in which Americans donated millions of their frequent flyer miles for service members to use to get home.

But officials said Tuesday they were working up a plan for the Defense Department to begin reimbursing troops for the connecting flights with the $55 million authorized recently by Congress for the coming year.

"If it comes to pass as envisioned by members of Congress, this would be the most generous gesture on behalf of the American people," said Maj. Pete Mitchell of U.S. Central Command.

Such full payment of travel expenses for home leave is unprecedented, he said.

To give troops some relief, the Pentagon in late September started giving two-week leaves in the largest rest and recuperation program since the Vietnam War. So far more than 27,000 troops have taken the leaves, Mitchell said.

The arrangement differs from the program in place during Vietnam, when soldiers received leaves to Hong Kong, Singapore or other Asian cities.

The Army said Tuesday it had set no firm date for the start of the reimbursement program, which requires changes in federal travel regulations. Officials were working on details such as how much would be paid to each soldier, and whether it would be retroactive to cover those who have already taken leave, they said.

"The devil is in the details," Mitchell said.

But the intent is to pay the full cost of commercial airfare that troops need to get home from three drop-off points in the states — Baltimore, Dallas and Atlanta — and two in Germany.

Officials estimated that troops have been paying an average of $300 to $500 out of their own pockets to get the rest of the way home.

Several soldiers and their families complained publicly about having to pay for the trips. Pentagon and congressional officials said they wanted to begin the reimbursement program amid worries about morale among troops who are working hard in the global war on terrorism and in the Iraq campaign, which is in its ninth month.

Work on the reimbursement plan was first reported Tuesday by the Army Times publication.

The military has ordered yearlong deployments in Iraq because it is stretched thin around the world and didn't get as many international troops to help as had been hoped.

Morale has been a concern, since troops and families in the summer began complaining about extended tours of duty and repeated deployments.

There are more than 130,000 U.S. forces in Iraq and neighboring countries and more than 10,000 deployed for the Afghan effort, where violence continues two years after the fall of the Taliban.

[eklipse]

Riveting stuff....

[Lerkfish]

interesting...so now we're finally admitting morale is a problem?

[davesimondotcom]

My sister-in-law is being deployed next week. She is a Captain in the US Army.

She is shipping out a few months earlier than expected. But at least we'll have her back earlier than expected.

When she is there, I'll try to email her and get her perspective of how morale is. Not that many of you would believe it if she says it is good...

[SimeyTheLimey]

Originally posted by Lerkfish:
interesting...so now we're finally admitting morale is a problem?

Lerk, don't take this the wrong way, but if you had served in the military, you'd know that morale is always a problem. Even in peacetime. Even when people aren't deployed thousands of miles from home. Heck, my morale was in the toilet just because I was posted to Fort Polk (and if you have ever spent time there, you'd know why).

It's good that the chain of command are identifying morale issues that they can fix. That's what they are supposed to do. But I don't think that this is evidence that the Army is about to collapse like Tsar Nicholas'. That's what a morale problem looks like.

[thunderous_funker]

Is it only for the troops deployed to Iraq/Afghanistan or is this a rule change for all military deployments?

From my memories of my own family's expereince, there have always been some oddities to the travel cost compensation associated with deployments. When my dad was assigned to Germany, we were generally responsible for travel to/from NYC and we had to cover the rest from there. That made for some epic cross-country drives in our '71 Chevy van with the vinyl seats and no air conditioning.

I may have this wrong, but I seem to remember some considerable travel costs that had to be covered out of pocket each time we were stationed overseas or returning home. Simey? Does this sound right?

At any rate, this should certainly be a bit of financial boost to the troops coming back or leaving for Iraq/Afghanistan. Every little bit counts for many of those families.

[SimeyTheLimey]

Originally posted by thunderous_funker:
Is it only for the troops deployed to Iraq/Afghanistan or is this a rule change for all military deployments?

From my memories of my own family's expereince, there have always been some oddities to the travel cost compensation associated with deployments. When my dad was assigned to Germany, we were generally responsible for travel to/from NYC and we had to cover the rest from there. That made for some epic cross-country drives in our '71 Chevy van with the vinyl seats and no air conditioning.

I may have this wrong, but I seem to remember some considering travel costs that had to be covered out of pocket each time we were stationed overseas or returning home. Simey? Does this sound right?

At any rate, this should certainly be a bit of financial boost to the troops coming back or leaving for Iraq/Afghanistan. Every little bit counts for many of those families.

My experience is probably a little different from yours. My father retired when I was quite small so I don't know any of the details of family travel orders. I was an unaccompanied soldier when I was on active duty and I only spent 3 years deployed OCONUS.

As far as I recall, PCS travel orders would generally be door-to-door, and wouldn't cost you anything. But those orders are always at the lowest expense to the government. So if you want to take any kind of side trip, it's out of pocket.

Generally, troops who are deployed overseas don't get any tickets to return to the US on leave. They can travel free on military flights (space A), but they are a very low priority. You can get bumped very easily. Presumbably the issue here is that troops on leave were trying to catch military hops and were getting bumped.

When I was in Germany, most people wouldn't go back to the states on leave at all. Those who did, flew commercial at their expense. There are exceptions, such as the wonderful one of the Army soldier who was offered a spare seat in a returning two seater F-16. That never happened to me.

Another exception is when people reenlist and volunteer for another overseas tour. They often got return orders for leave between tours.

I will say this. The military is very concerned with morale and where they can, they will bend over backwards. A personal example: My mother died when I was on PCS leave between Fort Polk and Germany. The Army Warrant Officer at Dulles Airport made it his project to get me to England for the funeral at no expense. He got orders cut to give me tickets to England and then on to Germany on the theory that England was on the way to Germany. That was above and beyond.