Legal Basis and Purpose Statements
- Republic Act No. 1231, as amended by Republic Act No. 1915, authorizes the President to appoint not to exceed sixty reserve officer pilots into the Regular Force in grades higher than second lieutenant under specified education and qualification conditions.
- Republic Act No. 1231, as amended by Republic Act No. 1915, also authorizes appointment of non-pilot reserve officers on active duty who possess technical qualifications necessary for the operation and maintenance of aircraft.
- Executive Order No. 341 directs that appointments and commissions under the authority of Republic Act No. 1231, as amended by Republic Act No. 1915, be made on a fair and equitable basis.
- Executive Order No. 341 requires due regard for demonstrated fitness of reserve officers and for reasonable security for officers already in the Regular Force.
Eligibility for Appointment and Commission
- A reserve officer must qualify under Section 1 to be eligible for appointment and commission in the Regular Force.
- To be eligible, a reserve officer must be a pilot who is a graduate of a Philippine Air Force Flying School or a United States Air Force Flying School, or a non-pilot who possesses technical qualifications necessary for the operation and maintenance of aircraft.
- A qualified reserve officer must be a natural-born citizen of the Philippines, of good moral character, and physically fit for general military service.
- A qualified reserve officer must have rendered at least two years of active commissioned service prior to June 22, 1957.
- A qualified reserve officer must have been on active commissioned status since June 22, 1957.
Promotion List Placement and Seniority Rules
- All officers appointed in the Regular Force pursuant to Republic Act No. 1231, as amended by Republic Act No. 1915, and Executive Order No. 341 must be placed in the PAF promotion list for regular officers under Section 2.
- Total active commissioned service in the AFP controls seniority: among all regular officers already in the promotion list and those to be appointed under the Order, the officer with the longer period of active commissioned service is senior (Section 2(a)).
- The seniority comparison incorporates specific controlling rules (Section 2(a)(1) to (4)), including the following:
- The difference in total active commissioned service between two officers must be treated in a way that preserves priority for the officer with longer active commissioned service in the PAF under the stated provided condition (Section 2(a)(1)).
- Active commissioned service in the PAF is reckoned from the date of assignment for duty in any unit of the PAF (Section 2(a)(2)).
- Credit is denied for any period of active commissioned service prior to appointment as Aviation Cadet, and for any period of active commissioned service in any guerrilla unit (Section 2(a)(3)).
- Reserve officers appointed under the Order must have at least one more year of total active commissioned service in the AFP than a graduate of the Philippine Military Academy above whom they are inserted in the promotion list (Section 2(a)).
Rules for Pilot Officers’ Ordering
- Pilot officers must be placed in the PAF regular promotion list under Section 2(a) and are subject to additional rules in Section 2(b).
- Among pilot officers who were student officers in the Philippine Air Force Flying School or a United States Air Force Flying School and who graduated together, their relative seniority during the flying training period is maintained (Section 2(b)(1)).
- Pilot officers who were aviation cadets in the same Flying School and graduated together must be inserted as a group, arranged according to class standing upon graduation, in the PAF promotion list in effect at the time of appointment (Section 2(b)(2)).
- The group placement rule requires that the most senior in the group be positioned immediately below the least senior member of their class already in the promotion list (Section 2(b)(2)).
- The grouping and placement rule includes multiple constraints and adjustments:
- The group must not be placed below any member of their class already in the PAF promotion list who, prior to appointment under Republic Act No. 291, had been considered but not finally recommended for such appointment (Section 2(b)(2)).
- Any officer in the group who was not immediately commissioned in the Reserve Force upon graduation or who has not been on continuous active commissioned service since graduation must be inserted immediately above the group appointed under the Order whose length of active commissioned service is closest to but does not exceed the officer’s length of active commissioned service (Section 2(b)(2)).
- No officer appointed under the paragraph may be inserted above any officer already in the PAF promotion list who graduated ahead of them from the Flying School unless that officer was deferred for promotion by a selection board under the provisions of Republic Act No. 291 (Section 2(b)(2)).
- A grade cap applies to reserve pilot officers: no reserve pilot officer appointed under the Order may be appointed in a grade higher than that of any other regular pilot officer in the existing PAF promotion list who has more active commissioned service than the former (Section 2(b)(3)).
Rules for Non-Pilot Officers’ Ordering
- Non-pilot officers must be placed in the PAF regular promotion list under Section 2(a) and are subject to additional rules in Section 2(c).
- A grade cap applies to reserve non-pilot officers: no non-pilot reserve officer appointed under the Order may be appointed in a grade higher than that of any non-pilot regular officer in the existing PAF promotion list who has more active commissioned service than the former (Section 2(c)(1)).
- Placement restriction applies: no non-pilot reserve officer appointed under the Order may be placed above any non-pilot regular officer in the existing PAF promotion list who has more active commissioned service than the former (Section 2(c)(2)).
Appointment Grade and Required Non-Pilot Proportion
- A reserve officer appointed in the Regular Force pursuant to the Order must be appointed in the grade equal to that of the officer above whom the officer is placed in the PAF regular promotion list (Section 3).
- At least 25% of those commissioned under Republic Act No. 1231, as amended by Republic Act No. 1915, and Executive Order No. 341, must be non-pilots (Section 4).
Effectivity and Duration
- Executive Order No. 341 takes effect immediately (Section 5).
- The Order continues in operation until the expiration of the two-year period provided for in Republic Act No. 1915 (Section 5).