Originally Posted by
JacksonFlyer
Hmm....maybe things have changed since I left the military. Most of my travel went through the Defense Travel Management Office (DTMO). Perhaps they have farmed this out or perhaps different government agencies use different resources. I never had any hassle with reservations or the travel itself, but then again I had a position that allowed for some perks.
The process certainly beats how it was in the 70's when you had to go in person to the travel office to get a voucher or re-imbursement for commercial flight. That was when my disdain for SOME civil servants (not the fine folks on FT
) began.
Travel still goes through DTMO if you're in the military, but it's a little convoluted these days. TDYs are set up through an online system where you select flights, hotels, and rental cars. This information is funneled through a commercial travel agency that the base has contracted with to actually make these reservations (I'm stationed at Los Angeles AFB and we go through Wingate Travel, not sure what other bases use). I personally haven't noticed a 3-day out wait for completing reservations, but maybe other bases/offices have different requirements? The automated system does make it quite easy to get reimbursed for travel expenses though - despite how horrible the interface is...