The Air Force is delaying the start of the promotion testing cycle for technical sergeants two weeks, citing the need to purge study materials of content on diversity, equity, and inclusion to follow executive orders from President Donald Trump.
The service announced the move Feb. 12, just days before the testing window was set to open Feb. 15 and run through April 15. Now it will open March 3 and last until May 1.
Yet despite the delay, the Weighted Airman Promotion System (WAPS) promotion fitness examination will still have questions related to DEI, the service said in a statement. Trying to revise the test would cause a four-month delay in testing and disrupt the advancement of more than 6,000 Airmen awaiting promotion, the Air Force claimed.
“Until questions can be removed, testers will still see DEI questions and are expected to answer all questions to the best of their ability,” the statement noted. “However, any DEI questions will not be scored.”
Air Force Handbook 1 and multiple career development course (CDCs) study guides were pulled from circulation Jan. 29 as part of a review process to comply with orders from the president and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to eliminate all DEI content from courses and training.
Airmen hoping to make staff sergeant or technical sergeant use those materials to prepare for the WAPS test, and Air Force regulations say Airmen must have access to study reference materials at least 60 days before their test date.
An Air Force official previously told Air & Space Forces Magazine that said study reference information laying out which parts of the handbook Airmen should review before their promotion fitness examination was released Dec. 1, 2024. That meant 60 days had elapsed by the time the handbook was rescinded on Jan. 29, so the temporary removal complied with regulations.
The official also said at the time that any alternative study materials made would not include new information for Airmen to study, as the only changes would focus solely on removing content inconsistent with the executive orders that mandate the removal of DEI-related material from official Air Force documents.
Now, however, officials say they expect updated versions of the study materials are expected to be released by “no later than Feb. 18.” The service’s statement did not explain why the decision to delay testing was not made earlier.
The 2024 version of the Air Force handbook included several mentions of diversity as an organizational value.
“Managing workforce diversity can result in higher productivity, improved performance, more creativity, more innovativeness, and reduced stress,” the handbook read. “Giving emphasis to diversity without threatening our unity is the proper way to strengthen the ties that bind a team together.”
Within the service, the social media pages and websites of programs related to diversity and inclusion disappeared as the service began to implement the executive orders.