The Rip-stop Airman Battle Uniform will be available at select stateside bases and through the Army and Air Force Exchange Service online beginning in June, announced Air Force officials May 22. The lighter, cooler RABU has material made of a nylon-cotton blend and is treated with a wrinkle-resistant finish, said SMSgt. Kecia Uyeno, Air Force uniform programs and policies superintendent. It’s the same material as used with the old summer-weight Battle Dress Uniform, she added. “All industrial resources are now producing only the lightweight ABUs with no plans to go back and produce the heavyweight ABUs,” said Uyeno. The Air Force has given in-store priority to stateside bases in warmer climates, such as in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and South Carolina, said service officials. (Washington, D.C., report by TSgt. Jess Harvey)
Air Force Retention Soars Amid COVID-19 Uncertainty
Dec. 1, 2020
More people are opting to stay in the Air Force than at nearly any other time in the past 20 years, choosing to stay put amid pandemic-era economic uncertainty. In the past two decades, the only time retention outpaced the current rate was after the 9/11 terror attacks, according to…