Originally Posted by
VegasChris
Is the military requiring longer commitments from the guys that all of a sudden want to stay?
Typically, no. Most guys either bail at the completion of their service commitment (wings plus 8 for Navy) or ride the train to the end of the tracks (20+). It’s relatively rare for something to jump ship in the middle, save for maybe an SFTI who really wants to get out.
Short of being passed over for promotion twice, you can stick around for another set of orders and then bounce, if you’d like. Most people take the DH bonus (175k for 5 years) when they stick around, but I believe you get to keep a pro-rated share if you decide to bail early—IOW, you aren’t locked in like the initial service commitment.
Many of my buddies are simply not resigning, or are rescinding their resignation letters...and taking a set of follow-on orders...
...although the cynic in me is imagining the look of sheer delight on the faces of the guys at PERS as they distribute belt-fed tubesteak via message traffic...
But hey, at least IAs aren’t really a thing anymore.