US Air Force Voids 135 Promotions After Test Error, Rescoring 2,285 Candidates

3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jul 9

135 airmen and women were told their promotions to technical sergeant were canceled after the Air Force found they had received incorrect scores on a security forces specialty knowledge test.
An outdated scoring key and human error caused the mistake, prompting a rescore of all 2,285 candidates; 135 newly qualified airmen will replace those wrongly selected.
The total promotion quota stays at 586, and affected service members have already been notified and given access to a leadership hotline for questions.
The Air Force called the episode an isolated, highly unusual anomaly and said training and personnel commands have tightened internal processes to prevent a repeat.
The error lands amid wider scrutiny of military promotions under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, whose recent interventions in officer lists have drawn attention to how advancement decisions are handled.