Define duty day in active duty army?

2019-06-11T11:47:16-04:00

For the army I have currently for no regulation stating what the definition per regulation on what a duty day is defined as. Being such I am wanting to know what the definition and the official start to the duty day is. Please help with knowledgeable answer.

Response by SFC Casey O'Mally made Jun 11 at 2019 11:53 AM

2019-06-11T11:53:08-04:00

Duty day starts when the Commander tells a Soldier to be someplace. It ends when the Commander says the Soldier can go home. Sometimes this means 30 hour duty day. Sometimes a 30 minute duty day.

There is no "standard" duty day, however in a normal garrison environment, with no training exercises and no 24 hour duty, it will usually be somewhere around 6 Am to 5 PM, including PT.

But that is ALWAYS subject to change due to.mission requirements.

Response by TSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 11 at 2019 6:43 PM

2019-06-11T18:43:25-04:00

Reveille to retreat is the simple answer. That said, duty hours are assigned by the commander and failure to be at your appointed place of duty has severe consequences until you are released.

Response by CWO3 Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 11 at 2019 8:11 PM

2019-06-11T20:11:51-04:00

It's not an hourly job. The pay charts reflect your monthly basic pay. 24/7/365.

Response by LtCol Robert Quinter made Jun 11 at 2019 8:18 PM

2019-06-11T20:18:33-04:00

Your duty day starts whenever your NCOIC, OIC or CO says it has to start to accomplish whatever task has to be done that day by the time it has to be done. It ends when the work for the day is done or your NCOIC, OIC or CO says it's over. The same criteria goes for what days you work.
The only order, besides regulations concerning how much rest a pilot must have, I've ever seen that gives specific hours is the orders for the Duty Officer and those who work with him stand the duty. In that case it was normally a 24 hour period with specifics as to where you should be during that 24 hours.
Your NCOIC, OIC and CO are responsible for determining when you lose efficiency or become a danger to yourself or others and will adjust your hours accordingly.
The Armed forces are not union shops and any attempt to act as though they are is called mutiny.

Response by TSgt Chris Cc made Jun 12 at 2019 9:06 AM

2019-06-12T09:06:50-04:00

Air Traffic Controllers whether Army, Air Force, Navy, Marines, or Civilian, are required by law to follow guidance by FAA. Additional restrictions, maybe applied per branch, but not less restrictive. If FAA mandates crew rest then Army could be more restrictive and say only 6 hours of duty. The Army can not say controllers work 12 hours now. That would be illegal because Army Air Traffic Controllers receive FAA certifications to control air traffic. All airspace is managed by National Airspace System, just because airspace is designated for Army use does not preclude civil aviation from operating in it. All these things mean to be compliant with federal laws Army controllers have to follow FAA rules. Commanders can not override that.

Response by SFC Michael D. made Jun 12 at 2019 11:27 AM

2019-06-12T11:27:17-04:00

You're on duty 24 hours a day. You can't equate it to a civiliam job. Yes the people in the hospital basically do what civilian hospitals do and an MP basically does what a Police Officer does. You can be called up in the middle of the night and wait for hours at an air field, get on a plane and not know where you are going until the ramp goes down and heat hits you in the face and some says welcome to Iraq. It depends on the job you choose and the orders you receive. Remember the commerical "It's not a job, it's an adventure". Well that's what it is. If you're ever been surfing, no wave is the same. That's the military.

Response by CW4 Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 13 at 2019 1:57 PM

2019-06-13T13:57:11-04:00

Air Traffic Controllers in the army are put in an awkward position when it comes to this. I came across this issue when I was a platoon SGT and after referencing the 95-2 and FAA safety advisors we agreed that PT does count as part as the duty day since it it mandatory. Since Airspace Safety is of the most importance when is come to a controllers job we need to ensure our controllers are getting appropriate rest and conform to Federal law.

Response by SFC Dennis A. made Jun 14 at 2019 12:02 PM

2019-06-14T12:02:14-04:00

24/7, 365 days a year. Even on leave status you are subject to recall if the situation warrants it.

Response by MAJ Ronnie Reams made Feb 21 at 2024 10:23 AM

2024-02-21T10:23:45-05:00

As I recall the duty day started with morning work call and ended with Retreat.