Travel restrictions eased for Wright-Patt’s military members

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, all Airmen must still have leave approved by a unit commander. (Contributed photo)

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, all Airmen must still have leave approved by a unit commander. (Contributed photo)

Military members on Wright-Patterson Air Force Base are now able to travel when taking leave, but due to COVID-19 restrictions, all Airmen must still have that leave approved by a unit commander.

Previously, Wright-Patt military members could only travel up to 250 miles away when on leave, per military and the state restrictions. Now, to approve travel outside the local area, members must take a risk assessment by answering questions, such as the amount of COVID-19 positive cases in the area they plan to travel to, high-COVID risk activities, safety practices and travel itinerary. Unit commanders are ultimately responsible for unit readiness; so if they deem the risk too great, leave can be denied.

After the member returns from leave, their unit commander will decide if they need

to undergo a 14-day restriction of movement. This decision is on top of not allowing military leave exempted from the Stop Movement order signed by Secretary of Defense Mark T. Esper June 29, which halted all travel for any government-funded travel that ranged from permanent changes of station moves temporary duty travel.

Travel restrictions under the Stop Movement order are also slowly being lifted to keep in accordance with the Opening Up America Again guidelines. For an installation to be considered “green” for service member travel, it must meet the following guidelines:

• Meet state/country Opening Up America gating criteria (14-day declining trend in symptoms and cases with no stay-at-home order);

• Meet installation criteria (no travel restrictions, HP-CON below Charlie, essential services available, quality assurance in place for movers);

• Chief management officer, the secretary of a military department, or a combatant commander approve lifting travel restrictions for an installation.

Service members who are on an installation that is deemed “green can travel with government funding to other installations deemed “green.” Restrictions are still in place if either gaining or losing installation is still in “red/restricted” category. Exceptions or waivers can be made for personnel movement and travel on a case-by-case basis.

For information on what installations are currently "green," visit www.defense.gov.

Wright-Patterson Air Force Base has not met all the conditions listed above, so it is still in a restricted travel state as of July 7.

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