Officers scheduled to meet the 2006 Force Shaping Board have until March 1 to decide if they will leave voluntarily or meet the board.

Officers planning to take advantage of the volunteer program must apply through their military personnel flights before the deadline.

Through the voluntary Force Shaping Program some career fields have already reached their sustainment quota; lieutenants in those Air Force specialties will not meet the board. Those career fields in the 2002 year group are scientist and weather. The 2003 exempted specialties are: intelligence, logistics readiness, civil engineering, acquisitions, contracting, finance, OSI, and communication and information.

The 2006 Force Shaping Board is scheduled to convene at the personnel center April 10 and the board results will be released by June 1. Those not retained will have an automatic date of separation of Sept. 29 unless they apply for an earlier date.

The board will make its determination based on the information in the central selection record. The record contains performance reports, training reports, decorations and the Retention Recommendation Form.

The form, completed by the first 0-6 or equivalent in the chain of command, includes a retention recommendation and a statement from the senior rater ranking the eligible officer against others in the same career field and year group.

The selection record will also contain a letter to the board if the officer chooses to submit one. Letters to the board must be received at the personnel center here by 11:59 p.m. Central Standard Time April 9. Instructions for submitting a letter can be found on the Force Shaping Web site.

Force shaping eligibles are encouraged to take advantage of the transition resources available through their family support center whether they decide to voluntarily separate or not.

The latest information on force shaping is at www.afpc.randolph.af.mil/retsep/forceshaping/shape.htm.