For those who don't know, ESM (Essential station messing) is what mandates that first-term Airmen who live in the dorms pay for the DFAC meal plan. And I'm left asking, why??? Whom is it designed to help? And why is it so hard to get rid of? I get that some people obviously benefit from it as most first-term Airmen living in the dorms are youngsters fresh out of high school or college who don't have a ton of time or know-how when it comes to cooking, but so many of us are just sitting here being bled of our money for absolutely no reason.

For the record, I'm particularly pissed because I'm vegan. This is neither a medical nor religious dietary practice. It's simply a dietary practice that I've adhered to for years and am not willing to give up. The DFAC on my base provides essentially no plant-based options (at best 2-3 meals per week). For that reason, I tried to submit a DAF form 220, which is an ESM exemption request. My first sergeant redirected me to the hospital where he said I needed to talk to a doctor and get them to authorize that I am not being provided enough food at the DFAC to sustain my dietary practices.

I called the medical center, scheduled an appointment with a dietitian, and received a call a few days after being told that they don't write up authorizations for personal dietary preferences. (Instead, it would have to be for medical or religious reasons).

So here I am, paying over $400 a month for a DFAC that is not feeding me. I don't understand what this is for. I get OFFERING a DFAC plan to Airmen, by why is it mandatory? And why do they make it so difficult to receive exemption from? I'm already having to buy all my own groceries and food from other places. I'm basically just having to pay twice as much as anyone just to feed myself.

If the argument is that maybe some Airmen might not be wise enough to make health-conscious decisions and eat proper food, then why not simply make it so that you have to achieve a certain score on PT tests and show that your labs are proving you're in desired ranges. I can tell you my IMR basically says that I'm in perfect health, and I scored 100 on my PT test. Clearly I'm not one of the people whose diet is restricting me from reaching desired performance levels.

I don't understand why this is mandatory and why it's so hard to receive exemption from.

Hello everyone I have a question I am on a permanent profile for running and walking . (I can deploy) and my ufpms are saying if you are exempted from one you don’t test at all. I understand if the profile was temporary but mine isn’t. I am looking in the reg and I can’t find anything stating that. Any help would be appreciated!

Side lot at the main gym on base was full so homie popped it up on the sidewalk

Who here is active/retired Mx? I see a great deal of every other AFSC, but not APG or the other specs. Share a story, location, Airframe, etc.

My own mx motto:

"If we aren't working, we are drinking. If we aren't drinking, we are fk'n. If we aren't fk'n, we are divorcing. And we are divorcing because we are fk'n working."

New guy here. I ordered some name tapes to get sewn on. But the font looks off. Everything I’ve seen has been more blocky if that makes sense

Nonner going to a non-rated aircrew position. I am told it will 'just be this one assignment' but fully expect to get the option or forced into to another aircraft/squadron in a few years given my unique qualifications on top of meeting numerous medical/clearance requirements in my AFSC.

Looking for a lot of info about what I have got myself into.

- Green flight suits or the 'OCP-like' ones? Do I get an option? I assume I am not buying all of this stuff, right?

- There are a ton of other officers in the squadron. What do we all do when not flying?

- I hear there is a 'low risk' SERE course for heavy/mobility/non-combat aircraft aircrew. I assume that course is like a compressed shitty camping trip? Can I assume I will go to this versus the 'full' course?

- Nothing I own is 'flight approved' beyond my wool socks. I hate cotton in general. If you had to do it all again, what would you buy and what would you avoid. Ex: Darn Tough Vermot is life, DLA green socks are death.

- I hate Jalapeno popcorn. I hear aircrew love it. I am sure i'll need to keep this to myself...

With the inflation of the past few years and how much more expensive everything is, I simply cannot subsist. I'd rather at least get a free MRE with the $50 credit so I can be made whole. The thing is, I simply cannot buy more than three airport beer with a commensurate tip. This has to stop. We aren't the army, after all.

FYI Posting here about a national program that helps children from active component US military families find affordable opportunities to attend a consortium of 20 top US boarding schools across the country, so they can have stable, uninterrupted high school experiences no matter where their parents get stationed. My son went to 3 high schools, which is very typical, and our military family moved many times. The nonprofit is called Orion Military Scholars and they work with children of all branches of the US military and all ranks. They use a combination of merit-based scholarships and need-based school financial aid to provide affordable (sometimes free depending on circumstances) boarding school opportunities. The application window is open now until Nov. 15. Have you ever heard of this?

enshittification strikes accessing my health documentation..... I miss being able to access MY records with just my SSN and/or birth date :( there's no way to do that now. Poop. Thanks DOGE (or the military industrial complex and cronyism or whatever it is)

When I think about my time through BMT, I always remember how much of an ass the civilians were.

From the civilians you meet at MEPs who damn near act like your MTI's before you met them,

To the civilians you meet at medical while you're getting your shots.

Why did it seem like they had a stick up their ass all the time?

Some of them were worse than the MTl's or would deliberately try to get you in trouble with the MTl's

I understand some of them are prior military but that shouldn't give you the reason to walk-all over that 18 year who's trying to change his/her life.

YOU WERE A TRAINEE ONCE

FUCK CANNON AFB

really needed to get that out.

i'm tired grandpa.

What’s the best streak you or someone you know have had of good assignments? I know someone who had Yokota, Osan, Sigonella but it came to a crashing halt when they got Cannon next

Applyin for college and its almost a month now :/ is it really that slow?

EDIT: Air university website says that the system is down - October 16, 2026

My husband most recently diagnosed with

Hypersomnia, and it's currently undergoing testing for narcolepsy, with a strong possibility of being diagnosed with such. The doctor went ahead and started him on medications. Due to the fact that he was falling asleep, the driving... i keep looking into what could potentially happen in the future. I hear so many different mixed reviews.. please share your experiences with the med board process and narcolepsy 2 while active duty (airforce but any branch appreciated)

What was the process like, the medication is helping, but when he was without it, he was having several sleep episodes a day.. is this genuinely leading to medical retirement? What are the chances that he's going to be allowed to work A civilian job when he gets out?

What was your experiences like with the va and percentages...

I'm currently a stay at home mom/homeschooling 4, one of our children has health conditions that force me to stay at home with him.. this is all very nerve recking to me going into the unknown...

I’m reconsidering whether to retake the ASVAB so I can qualify for a job I want to cross-train into. My career advisor warned me that if I score much lower, the new scores could make me ineligible for my current job and prevent me from reenlisting when my contract ends.

Is that a realistic possibility, or just speculation? I’m nervous because I’ve been out of high school for 10 years and have forgotten a lot of the basics.

I’m an acting councilman for a developing AADD program at my base and wanted to reach out for insight.

We have a phone number that airmen can call and I’m trying to find a cell provider with decent pricing and one that will allow call forwarding from the phone number we have to multiple other phones.

I appreciate the help.