LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. — The Air Force selected 136 Luke staff sergeants for promotion to technical sergeant.
The Luke selection rate was 21.69 percent, with an average selectee overall score of 380. This is the first technical sergeant promotion release since the implementation of the new Enlisted Evaluation System.
“We began this process several months ago with a crawl, walk, run method, and we are continuing to gain momentum with our understanding of the process and confidence with the system,” said Chief Master Sgt. Randall Kwiatkowski, 56th Fighter Wing command chief. “Every Airman in the chain of command’s involvement is pivotal to getting our promotion system right; beginning with our front-line supervisors’ expectations to our Airmen’s performance, bracketed by open and honest feedback throughout the rating period, to the commander’s promotion recommendation at the end. When we get this right, we end up with the right Airmen earning their promotion which is exactly what we have.”
Air Force selectees’ average time-in-grade was 4.6 years and time-in-service was 9.51 years. The overall score was based on point averages of 219.73 for enlisted performance reports, 5.57 for decorations, 69.24 for the promotion fitness examination and 67.39 for the specialty knowledge test.
Within the promotion recommendation groups, 97.5 percent of eligible Airmen with a promote now recommendation were selected, 63.5 percent of those in the must promote recommendation group were selected and 11.6 percent in the promote recommendation group. This matches the intent of those with a promote now receiving a “significant advantage over their peers,” those with a must promote receiving an “advantage over their peers” and those with a promote rating given a rating “relative to their peers.”
These percentages show that the system is highlighting top performers while still affording opportunities to high performing Airmen with a promote recommendation.
“When I realized I was selected my first time with a promote recommendation, I felt elation that my hard work and studying payed off in the end,” said Staff Sgt. Deborah Rutledge, Air Combat Command Training Support Squadron, Detachment 9 courseware developer. “My wish is that all Airmen who test with the new promotion system will feel it’s possible to be selected even without the top two promotion recommendations.”
Looking ahead, the selectees will be challenged with new roles and expectations.
“These phenomenal Airmen have earned their right to lead at the next level, and Thunderbolt Nation is excited to see the impact these men and women are going to have on the future of our Air Force,” Kwiatkowski said. “This promotion marks a great transformation from a leadership and expectations perspective, and none of our Airmen should endure this transformation alone. Selectees should learn from those who came before, and use their experience and lessons to help navigate through the storms of leadership.”
Selectees will be promoted in order of promotion sequence number beginning with 0-700 in August.