Military leave: Refreshes Airmen, improves mission

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Patrick Hyde
  • 39th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey --  Taking a break away from the duty station for some rest and relaxation is good for you physically, mentally and emotionally and is good for the mission. Military life can be stressful on the member and the family, so some time away helps everyone recharge their batteries.

In the military, leave is permission to be away from one's unit. Coordinating military leave in advance is important so that the unit can plan for the absence.

Effective planning means checking with the supervisor to make sure the projected leave dates do not impact the mission and are ultimately approved.

"You must submit leave requests no sooner than two weeks in advance of your departure date," said Airman First Class Demond Darden, 39th Mission Support Squadron military personnel flight customer service technician. "You can either go to the Air Force Portal to submit leave or you can click the link on the Incirlik homepage to take you to the Leaveweb page."

Advance leave is required if the member is taking more days than they have accrued in their earned leave balance. An individual can take up to 30 days of advance leave pending their commander's approval.

"I tend to look at four things when approving advanced leave requests," said Lt. Col. Douglas Wall, 39th Mission Support Squadron commander. "I look at the reason for the request, impact to the unit, impact to the member and is the member taking the leave wisely."

Another option for leave is getting Environmental Morale Leave requests approved for themselves or other family members. EML is a set of orders that is written for an individual for rest and relaxation in another area away from their duty location.

EML can be taken twice for unaccompanied members: Once to the states and one time to Germany. Accompanied members can take two trips back to the states and two trips to Germany using EML. EML also puts the member in a higher priority than ordinary leave when traveling space-available on military aircraft. This will not guarantee a seat but should increase the chances of obtaining a flight out on the rotator.

For people traveling via rotator, the passenger terminal has scheduling information for the rotator and other Air Mobility Command flights. This will enable planning for the next month or so and can be used to estimate when to take leave and how many days should be taken.

During space-available travel, members are reminded to be at the passenger terminal for roll call, which is when seat assignments are made. Hand carry all pertinent required travel items the day of the flight. These items include: leave form, ID card, command sponsor letter, passport and red stamped North Atlantic Treaty Organization orders and EML orders if applicable.

"Be travel ready and call us for updates, not the Traffic Management Office," said Staff Sgt. David Albanese, 728th Air Mobility Squadron passenger service supervisor. Double check your travel list and make sure all travel items are accounted for to make sure the start of your leave is restful and not hurried."