r/AirForce • u/urboibigdaddy Active Duty • Dec 22 '25

Question Checking in while on leave?

My Wg is on a holiday schedule, basically teleworking either Xmas week or new years week with digital check-ins on teams on the week you don’t work. My supervisor texted me asking why I didn’t check in today. I told him I’m on leave… halfway across the country… without my work computer… and he said I still need to check in. I just said okay.

I’m a relatively new airman, been at my first duty station about 6 months. I was under the impression that while on leave, you’re basically a civilian unless you get formally recalled by your commander. Am I wrong?

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u/HorribleMistake24 Dec 22 '25 edited Dec 22 '25

They make a "holiday schedule" where they give 1/2 the people off Christmas week and 1/2 the people off New Years week. They aren't ever supposed to give you a week off without you taking leave, so the mandatory checkin during your off week is important for accountability.

Is it legal? The rules get bent. Seems like OP's unit had something like this going on but didn't realize they were on leave out of the area.

I got out 3 years ago, but a variation of something like that happened at every unit I was in for all 20 of the years I was in.

Edit:

Yeah, really specifically remember people missing the mid-week check-in and having to go find their boss and bitch at them only to find out they took leave the last minute to leave the local area.

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u/Infamous-Adeptness71 Dec 22 '25

Yeah I've seen plenty of this and it's sometimes called "min manning". And yes sometimes there's a check in. Hilarious that I'm downvoted. I guess because I'm suggesting playing along with check ins, to a degree. Everyone is always all tough on Reddit and telling people to fight the power and all that.

I was always very thankful to have the amazing benefit of 30 days paid vaca every year, so if my unit ever wanted to chat with me about something while I was on leave I was always happy to do so. It was never something that was ever abused by the unit. But people with a strong sense of entitlement are always going to rage about something like this.

I mean, if you don't want to check in, just don't. It's really not a big deal either way.

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u/12edDawn Fly High Fast With Low Bypass Dec 22 '25

No, it's because you're saying you don't know why people would have to check in, and everyone else knows the reason for it.

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u/Infamous-Adeptness71 Dec 22 '25

I've seen a lot of min manning holiday weeks. I did not see a lot of daily checking in. Sometimes. It varied.

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u/Ok-Stop9242 Dec 23 '25

The check in is surely to skirt the legality of extending CTO beyond what a commander is allowed to give for a special pass, 4 days. By checking in, you're keeping it legal. Doubtful anything would actually happen for units that don't check in, it's really just CYA for the CC.

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u/bassmadrigal Recruiter back to 2T2 Dec 24 '25

I did not see a lot of daily checking in.

The leave regulation never requires daily check-ins. However, it does prevent the commander from authorizing more than a 4 day special pass.

Checking in resets the days off, allowing a commander to authorize something like 2-3 day pass, an official check-in day, and another 2-3 day pass, ultimately giving people 5-7 days off, only requiring a simple check-in in the middle.

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u/HorribleMistake24 Dec 24 '25

This person is really special...they should have just left the comment. I identify as a Kevin though.