Doesn the government pay for deployed troops to fly home?
A. Yes and no, but we’re talking about two different things here. Allow me to explain. A soldier on their two weeks of “R&R” leave from Iraq or Afghanistan, gets his or her airfare paid for by the government. But if the same soldier wishes to visit home before or after his deployment, they have to pay for that shemselves. The same goes for any military member who is not on R&R from combat. Thus the Airman stationed at Hanscom AFB, the Sailor onboard the USS Peleliu in San Diego, the Marine aboard the USS Essex in Okinawa, or the Soldier stationed at Spangdahlem, Germany — all are forced to pay their own airfare home. It’s these people we’re trying to help.
