Article 86 Sentences in the Air Force: Confinement and Discharges, 2016–2025
Of 98 Air Force convictions under Article 86 (AWOL) from 2016–2025, 92 included confinement. The median confinement was 3 months, compared with 4 months across all Air Force convictions. Only 13% of cases were contested, compared with 31% across the service.
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Short answer: Of 98 Air Force convictions under Article 86 (AWOL) from 2016–2025, 92 included confinement. The median confinement was 3 months, compared with 4 months across all Air Force convictions. Only 13% of cases were contested, compared with 31% across the service.
AWOL Was Rarely the Only Charge
Article 86 was the only charge in 9 of these 98 cases. Drug charges under Article 112a appeared in 60 cases, more than any other companion charge.
Article 92 (orders violation) appeared in 31 cases, Article 107 (false official statement) in 24, Article 134 (general article) in 17, and Article 90 (disobeying an officer) in 9. A sentence covers every charge in the case. These figures therefore describe absence cases that usually included other offenses too.
Short Sentences, but Few Without Confinement
Confinement was part of 92 of the 98 sentences (94%). Only 6 convictions (6%) included no confinement, compared with 15% across Air Force convictions.
The median confinement was 3 months, and a quarter of sentences were 6 months or longer. Sentences under 6 months made up 67% of the convictions here, compared with 48% across the service. Sentences of 6 months to 1 year made up 19%, compared with 15%.
Only 7 of 98 convictions (7%) included more than one year, compared with 23% across the Air Force. All 7 were more than 1 year but under 5 years. None was 5 years or more. These are adjudged sentences, before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.
| Adjudged confinement | Convictions | Share here | Share, all Air Force convictions in those years |
|---|---|---|---|
| No confinement | 6 | 6% | 15% |
| Under 6 months | 66 | 67% | 48% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 19 | 19% | 15% |
| More than 1 year, under 5 years | 7 | 7% | 16% |
| 5 years or more | 0 | 0% | 7% |
Most Were Special Courts-Martial
General courts-martial made up 20% of the cases (20 of 98), and special courts-martial made up the other 78. A general court-martial can impose any lawful sentence, including long confinement and a dishonorable discharge. A special court-martial is capped at one year of confinement.
All 20 general court-martial convictions included confinement (100%), with a median of 9 months. At the 78 special courts-martial, 92% did, with a median of 3 months. Since 2019, a special court-martial can also be tried by a military judge alone, with confinement capped at six months and no punitive discharge.
Most Recorded Pleas Were Guilty Pleas
Of the 52 records that list a plea, 45 were guilty pleas and 7 were not-guilty or mixed pleas. A contested case is one where the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge. The contested share was 13%, compared with 31% across Air Force convictions. Air Force records from 2016 to 2019 rarely list a guilty plea, so many records here have no plea listed.
A military judge alone decided guilt in 84 of 98 cases (86%). Members heard 14 cases: 12 officer panels and 2 enlisted panels. The accused usually chooses the forum, and most judge-alone cases are guilty pleas.
Punitive Discharges and Dismissals
Of 94 convicted enlisted members, 43 received a punitive discharge: 40 bad-conduct discharges and 3 dishonorable discharges. Across Air Force convictions in these years, 56% of convicted enlisted members received one.
All 4 convicted officers or warrant officers were dismissed. A dismissal is the officer equivalent of a punitive discharge. For enlisted members, a sentence without a punitive discharge does not rule out a later administrative separation.
Rank of the Accused
Junior enlisted members (E-1 to E-4) made up 79% of the accused, NCOs 17%, and officers 4%. Across all Air Force convictions, junior enlisted members made up 66%. This group is more junior than Air Force convictions overall.
Cases by Year and Installation
The cases were tried from May 2016 to September 2025: 10 in 2016, 10 in 2017, 10 in 2018, 11 in 2019, 15 in 2020, 7 in 2021, 7 in 2022, 14 in 2023, 6 in 2024, and 8 in 2025. The records list trial dates, not offense dates.
Dyess AFB, Texas, had the most cases, with 5. Travis AFB, California, Osan AB, South Korea, Cannon AFB, New Mexico, and JB Langley-Eustis, Virginia, had 4 each. Those 5 installations account for 21% of the cases. Larger installations try more cases of every kind.
Limits of the Records
Air Force records rarely list the charges in a full acquittal, so this page gives no acquittal rate for AWOL. Absences handled through nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action are not in the records. The records do not describe the evidence or plea terms.
The Military Justice Act of 2016 took effect on January 1, 2019. The newer sentencing parameters cover offenses after December 27, 2023. Both depend on offense dates, which these records do not give.
For what the offense covers and how it is defended, see Article 86 on the law firm's website. Dates and sources for the law changes: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Air Force courts-martial tried 2016–2025: ending in a conviction under Article 86 (AWOL) (98 cases), compared with all Air Force convictions in those years.
Source: public court-martial records (Article 140a, UCMJ) in Military Trial Results, data updated October 24, 2026. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: how this data was built. Errors: content@bodiesburied.com.
Related Analysis
- Article 86 (AWOL): Court-Martial Data and Trends (hub)
- Sentences (hub)
- Air Force Article 86 Cases by the Numbers, 2016–2025
- Pleading Guilty to Article 86 in the Air Force: What Sentences Followed?
- What Sentence Follows an Army AWOL Conviction? (another service)
- What Sentence Follows a Navy-Marine Corps AWOL Conviction? (another service)
- Article 118 Sentences in the Air Force: Confinement and Discharges, 2016–2025
- Article 86 explained on the law firm's website
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
About the author. Jocelyn C. Stewart is a retired Army JAG with more than 24 years of trying courts-martial and more than 200 jury trials. She hosts Where All The Bodies Are Buried and runs the Law Office of Jocelyn C. Stewart. This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.