Who Flies First

Who Flies First

Priorities for flying Space-A follow several categories of travel, set by the Department of Defense Regulation 4515.13- R, "Air Transport Eligibility." Army personnel should check with the nearest terminal for more information.

The following is a partial listing of travel categories and selection priorities for eligible passengers. This list is available from TRANSCOM on the Web at: https://josac.transcom.mil/directive/chap6.pdf

Category I – Emergency Leave Unfunded Travel

Emergency round-trip travel in connection with serious illness, death or impending death of a member of the immediate family of the following:

-U.S. citizen civilian employees of the Defense Department stationed overseas;

-Full-time, paid personnel of the American Red Cross serving with U.S. military overseas;

-Military family members whose sponsors are stationed within the continental United States and the emergency exists overseas;

-Family members of U.S. civilian employees of the DoD when both sponsor and dependents are stationed overseas at the same location;

-Military family members when accompanied by their sponsor may travel within the ConUS if the emergency exists in the ConUS.

Category II – Sponsors in an Environmental Morale Leave (EML) Status

-Sponsors on environmental and morale leave and accompanied family members. Military personnel also must be on ordinary leave;

-DoD Dependent School teachers and accompanied family members in EML status during school-year holiday, vacation periods or employer-approved training during recess periods.

Category III – Ordinary Leave, House Hunting Permissive TDY, Medal of Honor Holders, Foreign Military, and Others

-Service members in an ordinary or re-enlistment leave status and military patients on convalescent leave;

-Military personnel traveling on permissive temporary duty orders for house hunting;

-If permissive TDY is for permanent change of station house hunting, the member may travel in the ConUS and overseas, and be accompanied by one family member;

-Family members (with a valid identification card) of a service member when accompanied by their sponsor who is in an ordinary leave status;

-Foreign exchange service members on permanent duty with the DoD, when in a leave status.

Category IV – Unaccompanied Dependents on EML and DoDDS Teachers on EML During Summer

-Unaccompanied family members (18 years or older) traveling on EML orders. Family members under 18 must be accompanied by an adult family member who is traveling EML;

-DoDDS teachers or family members in an EML status year round.

Category V – Permissive TDY (Non-House Hunting), Students, Command Sponsored Dependents

-Students whose sponsor is stationed in Alaska or Hawaii;

-Military personnel traveling on permissive TDY orders for other than house hunting;

-Command-sponsored dependents (18 years of age) of service members who are stationed overseas may travel unaccompanied from the sponsors PCS duty location to the ConUS and return. Travel cannot be between two overseas theaters. Dependents must have command sponsored documentation signed by the commander verifying command sponsorship

Category VI – Retired, Dependents, Reserve, ROTC, NUPOC, and CEC

-National Guard/reserve components/members of the Ready Reserve and members of the Standby Reserve who are on the active-status list;

-Retired military members who are issued DD Form 2 and eligible to receive retired or retainer pay;

-Family members (with valid ID card) of retired members when accompanied by a sponsor.

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