Outdoor entertainment is fun and safe entertainment for the entire family. From the music to the amazing aerial skills on display, the military air shows have a lot to offer.

There may be an associated cost to shows that do not occur on military bases, so make sure to contact the event or location for specific information.

Thunderbirds 2021 Air Show Schedule

The Thunderbirds will perform 23 shows this season from April to November, with some cancellations or amendments. Due to COVID-19, only 6 shows were performed in 2020 and the 2019-2020 pilots have remained on the team for 2021.

2021 Schedule:

-April 17-18: Cocoa Beach, Fl

-May 1-2: St. Joseph, MO

-May 8-9: Barksdale AFB, LA

– May 26: USAF Academy, CO

– May 29-30: Wantagh, NY

-June 5-6: Smyrna, TN

-June 19-20: Ocean City, MD

-July 10-11: Dayton, OH

-July 17-18: Binghamton, NY

-July 24-25: Milwaukee, WI

-July 28: Warren AFB, WY

-July 31- August 1: McMinnville, OR

-August 18: Atlantic City, NJ

-September 4-6: Cleveland, OH

-September 11-12: Portsmouth, NH

-September 18-19: Reno, NV

-September 25-26: Mather, CA

-October 2-3: San Juan, Puerto Rico

-October 9-10: Houston, TX

-October 16-17: Sanford, FL

-October 23-24: Lancaster, CA

-October 30-31: Salinas, CA

-November 6-7: Davis- Monthan AFB in Arizona

For more information on the USAF Thunderbirds, show locations and dates, visit their website at www.afthunderbirds.com. It is recommended to check their website and the location of the show for the most up to date information on scheduling.

Blue Angels 2021 Air Show Schedule

The Blue Angels are entering the 75^th anniversary season this year, and is the inaugural season for the Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet. This will be the beginning of shows after 2020’s Operation America Strong. There are 25 shows scheduled for the Blue Angels from March to November ending at their home base of Pensacola, Florida. If you are local to one of their planned performances, make plans to be there to cheer them on!

2021 Schedule:

April 17-18: Lakeland, FL

May 1-2: NAS Corpus Christi, TX

May 8-9: Fort Lauderdale, FL

May 15-16: Melbourne, FL

May 26, 28: Annapolis, MD

May 29-30: Latrobe, PA

June 5-6: Lake Charles, LA

June 12-13: La Crosee, WI

June 19-20: Niagara Falls, NT

June 26-27: Duluth, MN

July 3-4: New Century, KS

July 10: Pensacola Beach, FL

July 25-25: Fargo, ND

July 31-August 1: Eielson AFB, AK

August 7-8: Seattle, WA

August 14-15: Owensboro, KY

Augsut 21-22: Chicago, IL

August 28-29: London, Ontario, Canada

September 18-19: NAS Oceana, VA

October 2-3: Huntington Beach, CA

October 9-10: San Francisco, CA

October 16-17: Loveland, CO

October 23-24: Ft. Worth, TX

October 30-31: Rome, GA

November 5-6: NAS Pensacola, FL

For updated information on the USNA Blue Angels, show locations and dates, visit their website at www.blueangels.navy.mil.

If there is an air show near you – be sure to make plans to check it out!

Four-footed, furry family members are family too, and take some planning to move with them. Being prepared for a PCS move with pets is critical. For moves within the continental United States (CONUS) and overseas (OCONUS), there are many things to consider and steps to take prior to executing a military move.

General

• Budget more than you think you will need. You never know when a hotel may be full, and you have to stay at a hotel with a pet fee, or if you will have to use a pet shipper for a flight because the dog plus kennel may be over the restriction for weight.
• Consider keeping your pet in a kennel in the hotel to prevent them from getting scared and hiding or running away.
• Invest in portable, collapsible water bowls. This will be helpful on road trip moves or in their kennel if traveling overseas.
• Before the move, check in with your local vet to keep up to date on evaluations and vaccinations. This way, you don’t have to find a vet shortly after your arrival.
• If your pet is a “banned breed,” like a pitbull, plan for stops in towns where they are not banned.
• If you have a female pet, consider having them spayed before travel, so they don’t go into heat the day you check her into a pet-friendly boarder.
• Make sure you have medications for your pet with as many refills as possible. Hence, you have sufficient medications for travel and can get medications when needed at the new destination.
• After you have exhausted all the options in bringing your pet with you if you cannot bring your pet with you, look into these organizations or friends or family for re-homing your pet.

CONUS

• Pet-friendly hotels: When booking travel for the move, look for pet-friendly hotels. These hotels have green space for walks and more room for pets within the hotel room. La Quinta hotels have historically been pet-friendly, and some Hilton properties are pet-friendly as well.
• Look into BringFido.com for dog-friendly places to stay and eat with your dog.

OCONUS

The rules and regulations may change for overseas orders, so make sure you are up to date on the regulations for the country you are entering. Here are some general tips for PCSing overseas.

• Look up your international assignment for country-specific regulations and requirements here: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/pet-travel/
• The first step is going to the on-base vet with orders. They will begin the paperwork, administer vaccines, and order blood work if required for entering the country you are PCSing to. Schedule this as soon as you have military orders in hand. Vaccines typically have to be done over 21 days from entry.
• Make sure your pet is on your orders so you can book a pet spot on an AMC (military) flight or ticket on a commercial flight.
• Do NOT, I repeat, do NOT assume you will be getting a pet spot on a AMC flight. Have a backup plan because pet spots are limited.
• Maintain bilingual paperwork or paperwork that is in English only.
• Check with the flight you are on to ensure you have the right kennel size and what the weight limit is. There may be a total weight of pet plus kennel.
• For the flight- tape a picture with your pet’s name on the outside of the kennel – the baggage handlers will likely call your pet by their name which is a kind gesture in a stressful situation. Tape a plastic bag with food pouches that may be used at layovers, and include your name/number. You just might get a text with photos of your pet on their adventure!
• If you have to use a pet-shipper, make sure you have a pet-specific power of attorney for the friend or family that is helping with drop off or pick up of the pet.
• Pets may need a quarantine when you get to the OCONUS location, make sure you are up to date on the regulations so you can appropriately plan and budget accordingly.

PCSing isn’t an easy process for humans, and for the pet who doesn’t quite understand the process either it can be a stressful event. Hopefully, these tips and steps help you navigate the PCS season with your pet.

Tipping or feeding movers is a hotly debated topic every year.  Families moving for the first time ask in moving support groups or local base pages if they should tip or feed the movers and the responses range from “heck no” to “we always go all out for our movers.” This year, the DOD has updated their guidance on tipping of feeding the movers. As of January 15, 2021, the updates are found in the printable PDF from USTRANSCOM about moving found here.

Prior to 2021, the Move.mil guidance on tipping or feeding the movers was at the discretion of the individual. This was vague and allowed for a wide variety of responses by military families.  The updated guidelines found within the “It’s Your Move” PDF from TRANSCOM now state “tipping and/or supplying meals, snacks, or other refreshments to moving company representatives is discouraged. Providing monetary tips and meals as a “cost of doing business” sets unrealistic demands on service members and civilian employees least capable of providing this “service.” Please report any TSP requesting or requiring a tip to your Joint Personal Property Shipping Office (JPPSO) for possible punitive actions.”

Per the FAQ on Move.mil, “supplying meals or refreshments is never required. Moreover, providing monetary tips is discouraged. If your TSP requests either, please let your local transportation office know.” This is in line with the new updates within the TRANSCOM packet and the update from the DOD.

Many military families feel that providing food and drink to movers is a sign of goodwill. And they hope that this gesture will mean that their belongings will be packed well, sustain less damage and help the move go quickly and smoothly. In fact, the moving guide from move.mil still says at the time of writing the following, “Packers are experienced professionals. They can make sure your breakable stuff has the best chance of arriving unbroken. Learn their names. While it is not required you might consider offering them lunch and make sure the fridge is stocked with water and other beverages.” One family expressed that they will continue to provide meals and drinks, stating “a little kindness goes a long way.”

Tipping many crews or large crews can be expensive. Often times the packing crew is different than the loading crew and unloading crew. If packing is completed on more than one day, there are often different packing crews each day. At a tip of $40 per person, that could mean a family is spending $400 for just the crew packing and loading. Then the unloading crew can be totally different, and depending on the size of the crew, a tip could cost $80 – $160. This is not a reimbursable cost. Add to this the already out-of-pocket expenses of a move to replace household items that are replaced every move (I’m looking at you trash cans, toilet plungers, and shower curtains). And the costs to replace broken or missing items as compensation from the moving company does not always match the full replacement cost. One military family shared that she tipped at the end of her first move and then overhead one of the movers on the phone talking emotionally to the person on the other end of the line, saying, “he was going right to Walmart with the tip money to finally buy his son the bike he wasn’t able to get him for his birthday” and after that, they have always tipped.

While the guidance was meant to clarify, the word “discouraged” is seen as vague to some. Families will continue to do what they have done, as many shared within a military PCS support group online, so much so there were over 200 comments on a post with the update.

The question is – will you feed your moving crew? How do you feel about tipping? What do you think about the new guidance?

COLA, or Cost Of Living Allowance, is typically associated with overseas moves. When a military family is living overseas, the cost of living is typically quite different than that of a family in the United States. COLA was developed and provided to offset those costs, so the burden wasn’t solely felt by military families. Did you know there was COLA provided for some CONUS locations?

In the 1995 National Defense Authorization Act, Congress approved the CONUS COLA to help cover the additional costs of high-cost locations. Pay for civilian jobs are location-based, whereas military pay scales are the same across the ranks despite which location the service member resides in. CONUS COLA is provided for areas that have been determined to be 108% of the national average for non-housing costs. While the 7^th Quadrennial Review of Military Compensation 9QRMC) recommended a threshold of 105%, Congress mandated that the threshold should not be lower than 108%. The threshold has remained at 108% since 1997.

In 2021, a new addition was added to the list of CONUS COLA locations – Washington D.C. As an area well-known for its high cost of living, it’s surprising it took until 2021 to provide a cost offset.

Which CONUS locations offer COLA?

Military Housing Areas that currently provide CONUS COLA:

• California: Oakland, San Francisco, Marin/Sonoma, Bridgeport
• Colorado: Boulder
• District of Columbia
• Massachusetts: Nantucket, Boston, Worcester, Fitchburg, Plymouth, Essex County, Hampden County, Martha’s Vineyard, Hanscomb AFB
• Minnesota: Duluth
• New York: Long Island, New York City, Westchester County, Staten Island
• Virginia: Warrenton

Non-Military Housing Areas that currently provide CONUS COLA:

• California: Inyo County
• Colorado: Broomfield County, Clear Creek County, Gilpin County, Lake County, Park County, Pitkin County, Summit County, Washington County, Yuma County
• Massachusetts: Franklin County
• Minnesota: Aitkin County, Cook County, Itasca County, Kanabec County, Koochiching County, Lake County, Pine County
• Virginia: Isle of Wight County, Southampton County, Surry County, Sussex County

What if we are in an area that rates CONUS COLA?

If the service member is assigned to an area that rates CONUS COLA, it should be automatically included in the pay beginning the first day of work. If you are new to an area, the first day of CONUS pay is the day of check-in to the new duty station. The CONUS COLA rates range from 1% – 7% depending on the area.

CONUS COLA is paid as a monthly entitlement based on a 30-day month, just like BAH.

What does the “threshold “mean?

With a threshold of 108%, it means that the service member is expected to cover at least 8% of the average expenses above the national average cost of living. If the service member is assigned to locations where the local costs are above 8% of the national average for non-housing costs, a CONUS COLA provision would be provided.

How are areas determined to require CONUS COLA?

Data is collected from several sources:

1. A survey of costs is conducted every 3 years and used to determine the utilization rate and savings that are available at the military commissaries and exchanges.
2. Local market price data is purchased from a private contractor – beginning in 2021, Decision Point is used for all cost of living data.
3. The military commissaries and exchanges provide information on their availability in a given area.
4. The military commissaries and exchanges provide information on their average savings.

The data is collected with numbers in regards to an average family of four. This data is used to review costs annually, as required by law.

While there are many areas in the continental United States that military families would say the cost of living is far and above the area they moved from, the way to impact what decisions are made on CONUS COLA is to answer any survey you receive about the costs of living.

Are you in an area that provides CONUS COLA?

Recently, a tv show host shared his personal beliefs on women in the military during his news show. Fox News host Tucker Carlson was discussing updates to military uniforms on his tv show when he called the military’s integration of women a “mockery,” noting that “we’ve got new hairstyles and maternity flight suits. Pregnant women are going to fight our wars.” He stated further that “our military needs to become, as Joe Biden says, more feminine.”

Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby responded to these comments in an off-camera press briefing, which is also found on the Department of Defense’s website defense.gov.  Kirby stated that “the diversity of our military is one of its greatest strengths. I’ve seen it for myself in long months at sea and in the combat waged by our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. I’ve seen it up on Capitol Hill just this past month. And I see it every day here right at the Pentagon.” Furthermore, he pointed out that women serve in several military service capacities, like the civilian counterparts who serve in various career fields and are not only operating in certain areas. “They’re flying fighter jets and commanding warships. They’re leading troops on the ground. They’re making a difference in everything we do because of what they bring to the effort.”

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin expressed similar sentiments. He stated that he and other top defense officials condemned Carlson’s comments and stated that America’s military force is better served when it represents all people.

While maybe unintentionally, Carlson’s comments have brought forward conversation about women in the military. Kirby said, “We still have a lot of work to do to make our military more inclusive, more respectful to everyone, especially women. We’re proud that two great leaders like Generals Van Ovost and Richardson have been nominated to combatant command, but we recognize the lack of female leadership across the senior ranks. We pledge to do better and we will.”

Different and surprising weather patterns of cold winter weather and storms like typhoons or hurricanes do not occur at every duty station a military family can live in, making it difficult to prepare for. The key with every move is to be aware of the weather patterns at the new duty station so you can prepare before arrival as much as possible. Move with as many of these items as you can so you can be prepared for power outages or emergencies as you travel. Keeping them in a tote or bin makes it easy to travel with and easily accessible in your home once you arrive. Moving during the summer limits concern for snow or ice storms – unless you are heading to Alaska – but hurricanes and thunderstorms can lead to power outages in the summer moving season.

What should you keep in a tote ready to for storm prep when at home or while actively PCSing?

1. Flashlight – Flashlights always needed for any power outages, and perfect for forts in the car, or in your new house.
2. Batteries – this is something to have on hand for flashlights, battery-operated radios
3. First Aid Kit – especially as you PCS, keeping a first aid kit in the car is important. Keeping a first aid kit that is stocked and ready for emergencies during winter weather and storms is key.
4. Candles – While not for use in the car, or in most hotels, traveling with small candles is smart so you are ready in your home if a power outage happens within the first couple of days of arriving at your new home. A power outage within four hours of moving into a new home has happened to this author. I’ll repeat – do not uses open flames inside your car or while staying in hotels.
5. Matches or a lighter – this is certainly something we don’t necessarily remember or travel with, but having a small lighter on hand for Irish pendants on uniforms is never a bad thing to have on hand if weather presents a need to use candles
6. Canned Soup – look for those cans that have a lid that does not require a can opener. Remember to get ones packed with beans or vegetables so you fill up with healthier options in canned items.
7. Chicken or Tuna packets – Especially those that have a spoon within them are perfect storm prep foods for power outages and for on the road travel. Bonus that it is protein and comes in a variety of flavors to please even the pickiest of palates.
8. Personal files in a container – birth certificates, passports, pertinent medical records, insurance policies, marriage certificates, home or property management records, etc. Keeping a condensed version of the necessary paperwork is important to have on hand while you move so nothing is lost in case something happens to your shipment. Keeping the files in a plastic bin also protects them from water or weather.

What do you PCS with to be prepared for weather or power outages while moving? What is in your emergency weather kit in your home? Let us know!

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recently vaccinated its 1 millionth Veteran with the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccination. They began vaccinations in December, 2020 and in just a month and a half administered 1 million does of the COVID-19 vaccine to Veterans and VA health care workers. The VA is currently using the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine with second doses given 21 days after the first shot and the Moderna vaccine with second doses given 28 days after the first shot.

“In addition to administering 1 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, VA has begun publishing the number of Veterans who have received Pfizer BioNTech or Moderna vaccines at each facility across its enterprise,” said Acting VA Secretary Dat Tran.  “The number of doses administered to Veterans at each facility will be updated daily on the VA COVID-19 National Summary website.” The summary publishes vaccine date daily as well as information on COVID-19 cases. As of February 25, 2021, the VA has vaccinated 1,471,228 individuals with their first dose and 785,255 have completed their course by receiving their second dose of the vaccine.

Out of these numbers, 264,167 employees received their first dose and 228,521 received their second dose. The VA is the nation’s largest health care system and employs more than 322,030 full time health care professionals and support staff. They are well on their way to ensuring their essential staff can receive the vaccine. Employees are working to vaccinate the VA’s health care personnel and Veterans most at risk as soon as possible. The VA makes the data about vaccine doses public as a step toward being as transparent as possible during the pandemic.

Currently there are more than 215 VA sites nationally providing vaccines. Currently the supply of vaccines is limited but once supply increases the number of sites will expand. The VA is following the current guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the VA COVID-19 Vaccination Distribution Plan. “VA guidance encourages local flexibility to maximize COVID-19 vaccine access and efficiency while limiting potential vaccine waste,” said Acting VA Under Secretary for Health Richard Stone, M.D. “In this limited supply phase, our COVID-19 vaccination strategy is balancing site-specific resources, facility needs, vaccine availability and status of the pandemic locally, as well as strict storage, handling and transportation parameters of available vaccines.”

VA is reaching out to Veterans who are eligible for vaccination. Veterans who would like additional information can visit the VA COVID-19 vaccines webpage, visit their local facility’s website or contact their care team. The goal is to offer the vaccine to all Veterans and employees who want it as supply increases.