The U.S. Air Force may push back its set date for airmen to resume physical fitness tests as pandemic conditions continue.
Spokeswoman Capt. Carrie Volpe told Military.com Thursday officials are currently reviewing “a few different options for the way-ahead on PT testing.”
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“One of those options is to suspend fitness testing past the current expiration and extend it past June,” she said in an email. “We will announce a policy decision on fitness testing in the coming days. As always, airmen should continue to work on their fitness and overall health.”
The news first surfaced on the popular but unofficial Air Force Facebook page Amn/Nco/Snco that more information “will be forthcoming” on how airmen will go about PT tests in coming weeks.
In March, the service suspended its physical fitness testing until at least May 30; The restructure meant that members who were slated to take the PT test between March and May got a six-month reprieve. Those scheduled to test in March were rescheduled to test in September; those scheduled for April were then scheduled for October; and airmen scheduled to test in May would have until November to complete the test.
The Air Force made its initial changes soon after other services began announcing their own suspensions and waiver policies.
The U.S. Navy first said that sailors who were due to take a physical fitness assessment in the first half of 2020 would have that requirement waived.
The Army announced in March that it was suspending the much-anticipated rollout of its new Army Combat Fitness Test amid gym closures that left soldiers without equipment to train on.
And earlier this month, the Marine Corps temporarily halted body composition measurements including the hated tape test due to new exemptions put in place during the global pandemic. The decision followed an earlier announcement that this year’s physical fitness test requirements would also be waived.
For the time being, “no new BCP assignments will be made until otherwise directed,” the Marine Corps said.
— Gina Harkins contributed to this report.
— Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @oriana0214.
Related: Air Force Suspends Physical Fitness Tests Through End of May
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