WAPS: Warren members miss out on promotions Published June 23, 2008 By 2nd Lt. Brooke Brzozowske 90th Space Wing Public Affairs F.E. Warren AFB, Wyo. -- Warren leadership is concerned with the Weighted Airman Promotion System testing. Airmen are not showing up for their respective WAPS test. WAPS is a United States Air Force program that determines the promotions of enlisted members E-5 and up. The Skills Knowledge Test is a 100 multiple choice, job-specific test that is factored into the WAPS total score. The Performance Fitness Exam is the second 100 multiple choice test covering Air Force knowledge. In the recent 2008 E-5 testing cycle, which took place May 1 through Sunday, 28 people did not show for testing, said Ms. Jan Parker, 90th Force Support Squadron military test control officer. Wing leadership recognizes that this is more than a simple no-show problem, said Chief Master Sgt. Tammy Elliott, 90th Space Wing command chief. "I'm more interested in why this happened and finding what we can do to mitigate the issues," she said. The increase of uncompleted WAPS tests seems to only be a problem at Warren. Warren's testing numbers of 28 absentees compare to other space wings that have less than six, Ms. Parker said. "Promotion testing is something that we should desire to do," Chief Elliott said. Missing a test that a service member signed up for overshadows all three of our core values - integrity, service before self and excellence in all we do. Depending on the reason for their absence, the airman may or may not be given a new date to test. "Promotion testing is black and white, there is no longer any wiggle room," Ms. Parker said. Retaking a promotion test is a privilege according to Chief Elliott. If it is not important for the service member to show up, then it's not important for the Air Force to promote them, she said. "It is critical to find where and why we've lost the value of this opportunity to excel," the chief said. "We need to recapture the importance and pride in testing."