37 U.S.C. § 334 — Special aviation incentive pay and bonus authorities for officers

(a) Aviation Incentive Pay^*
(1) The Secretary concerned^* may pay aviation incentive pay to a uniformed-service officer who (A) gets basic pay under section 204 or compensation under section 206; (B) holds, or is training toward, a flying rating^* that qualifies them for operational or proficiency flying duty; (C) actually performs, or is training toward, regular operational or proficiency flying duty; (D) stays in aviation service for a set period; and (E) meets any other criteria the Secretary sets.
(2) The Secretary may still pay this incentive to an otherwise-qualified officer who isn't currently flying, if the Secretary decides under section 374 regulations that paying them serves the service's interests.
(b) Aviation Bonus — The Secretary may pay an aviation bonus to an officer who (1) already gets aviation incentive pay under (a); (2) has finished, or is within a year of finishing, their active-duty service commitment from undergraduate aviator training; (3) signs a written agreement to stay on active duty^*, or in an active reserve status (or, for Space Force officers, in aviation service), for at least one year; and (4) meets any other criteria the Secretary sets.
(c) Maximum Amount and Method of Payment
(1) The Secretary sets the amounts, except aviation incentive pay under (a) can't exceed $1,500 a month, and an aviation bonus under (b) can't exceed $50,000 per 12-month period of obligated service.
(2) Each year, the Secretary must set the bonus amount using a business-case analysis of what's needed to fill expected manning shortfalls, broken down by aircraft type. The budget documents sent to Congress each year must show, by service and aircraft type: (i) how much bonus money is requested; (ii) the business case behind that number; (iii) whether the requested amount would allow paying the full authorized bonus; and (iv) if the request addresses a shortfall, what non-monetary steps the Secretary also plans.
(3) The bonus may be paid as a lump sum or in installments, as the Secretary decides.
(4) Once the Secretary accepts the officer's written agreement, the total bonus is fixed.
(d) Written Agreement for Bonus — To get an aviation bonus, the officer must sign a written agreement stating (1) the bonus amount; (2) how it will be paid; (3) the period of service owed; and (4) the type or conditions of that service.
(e) Officers Performing Inactive Duty Training — An officer who gets compensation under section 206 and also qualifies for aviation incentive pay may receive incentive pay scaled to match that section 206 compensation for inactive-duty training^*.
(f) Relationship to Other Pay and Allowances
(1) Aviation incentive pay comes on top of an officer's other pay, except an officer can't collect it together with a payment under section 351(a)(2) or 353(a) for the same skill and period.
(2) An aviation bonus likewise comes on top of other pay, except an officer can't collect it together with a bonus under section 332 or 353(b) for the same skill and period.
(g) Repayment — An officer who takes incentive pay or a bonus but doesn't meet the eligibility rules, or doesn't complete the agreed service period, must repay the money under section 373.
(h) Definitions — In this section: (1) "aviation service" means service performed while holding, or training toward, an aeronautical rating; (2) "operational flying duty" means flying under orders where basic flying skills are normally kept up as part of the job, as the Secretary determines, plus flying done while training toward a rating; (3) "proficiency flying duty" means flying under orders in assignments where those skills wouldn't normally be kept up otherwise; and (4) "officer" includes an enlisted person designated as an aviation cadet under section 8411 of title 10.
(i) Termination of Authority — No new agreement may be signed under this section after December 31, 2026.