The new Air Force Chief of Staff, General Norton Schwartz, may not have yet heard everything his enlisted corps wants, but he does have evidence that creating a warrant officer corps is high on the list.

The last serious proposal concerning Air Force warrant officers was made in 1955 by Brigadier General William S. Stone, Deputy Director of Personnel Plans.  After an in-depth study of Air Force warrant officer requirements, Stone recommended increasing the warrant officer corps by 15,500, bringing it to 20,000.  The Air Staff's reaction to Stone's report was chilly enough to freeze an Emperor Penguin.
I'm not sure who the last person to receive an Air Force warrant was, but I do know the last to leave active duty was CWO-4 James H. Long, who retired in 1980.  CWO-4 Bob Barrow, who retired in 1992, was the last Air Force Reserve Warrant Officer on the rolls.

The good news is the Air Force was looking at the possibility of reactivating the warrant officer program just last month.  Still more good news is the fact that the Air Force never relinquished authority to appoint warrant officers.  They just haven't exercised that authority in 50 years—a golden anniversary most enlisted members will not celebrate.  

Secretary of the Air Force Michael B. Donley (Acting) could appoint several hundred Air Force NCOs to Warrant Officer (WO-1) tomorrow if he so desired.  However, appointments above WO-1, (CWO-2 thru CWO-5) must be made by the President of the United States because they are no longer just warrant officers, they become commissioned chief warrant Officers—which is a whole different breed of cat.

Confirmed by Wikipedia, "Warrant officers command detachments, units, activities, vessels, aircraft, armored vehicles as well as lead, coach, train, and counsel subordinates.  However, the Warrant Officer's primary task as a leader is to serve as a technical expert, providing valuable skills, guidance, and expertise to commanders and organizations in their particular specialty."

There are almost 18,000 warrant officers on active duty, about 8 percent of the total officer corps.  The Army has, by far, the lion's share of warrant officers with 14,305, about 17 percent of its officer corps—many, if not most, are in aviation positions.

There are positive and negative reasons for reactivating the warrant officer program.  As usual, the positive or negative aspect depends on whether you're the dog or the hydrant.

Here are some reasons supporting a reactivation of the Air Force Warrant Officer Program:

• To provide Air Force NCOs career development opportunities equal to their counterparts in the Army, Navy, Marines and Coast Guard
• Better pay and retirement compensation for the enlisted corps.  A CWO-5, with 26 years' service, will make 20 percent more in base pay than a Chief Master Sergeant (E-9) and the retirement check could be 25 percent higher
• Provide continuity of expertise in chronic critical skills where the Air Force is now paying as much as $90,000 to retain E-5s and E-6s.  The increased retention of critical human resources will ultimately cost less than enlisted retention incentives
• A warrant officer program could help relieve the top heavy enlisted grade structure and allow for accelerated promotions below the grade of E-8
• Warrants can replace inexperienced company grade officers by bringing fully trained, knowledgeable, technical expertise with known leadership ability to the positions
• Last, but certainly not least, commissioned officers, without prior enlisted service, will never fully understand the military bond between enlisted members and warrant officers.  Warrants and the enlisted corps have a natural trust, loyalty and respect that can only come from "being there"

And here are some reasons against reactivating the Air Force Warrant Officer Program :

• Warrant officers add an unnecessary layer of supervision/review between senior NCOs and senior officers and further complicate the chain-of-command
• Depending on the number of warrant officers authorized, the cost, over time, could prove more expensive than beneficial.  They also limit career development opportunities for junior officers
• Highly skilled warrant officers in chronic critical skills would also have to be paid a retention bonus—one that could be considerably higher than those paid to enlisted members
• Small numbers of warrant officers will result in grade stagnation and diminished career opportunities
• E-8s and E-9s have performed admirably over the past 50 years in higher level positions that E-7s were ever allowed to hold; off-setting the need for a warrant officer corps
• The technical expertise and leadership qualities of Air Force's top 3 enlisted grades are sufficient to provide the guidance, leadership and training required by the Air Force
• Then, there is the diminished prestige and potential morale impacts of taking jobs away from senior NCOs and junior officers and giving them to warrants

The decision the Air Force must make is, "Are we truly better off without warrant officers?"

Most people believe the enlisted corps is entitled to a clearly stated decision, with supporting rationale to bring this issue to closure. 

If I had a vote, it would be cast for Mister and Madam Warrant Officer to return to active duty in the United States Air Force.