A U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress aircraft refuels from a KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft during Operation Epic Fury on March 26, 2026. (U.S. Air Force)
The Pentagon is considering doubling the rates troops are paid while serving in certain dangerous areas, officials said this week.
The proposal would raise the current monthly caps on imminent danger or hostile fire pay troops can receive from $225 to $450, according to officials and military budget documents. A Pentagon official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said no decision about the potential pay boost has been made.
“The Department continuously evaluates its policies to ensure that they are advancing its mission,” the official said in a statement to Stars and Stripes. “At this time, no decision has been made to increase the current rates for hostile fire event or imminent danger pay.”
Any increase in those pay rates would have to be approved by Congress.
Hostile fire pay applies to troops serving in an area where commanders have certified a hostile incident — such as an attack or explosion — has occurred or a service member has been killed or injured by enemy action. Troops are paid the full $225 per month when a commander authorizes hostile fire pay for that time frame.
Imminent danger pay is paid to troops serving in countries or regions where the Pentagon has determined they likely face the “threat of physical harm or imminent danger based on civil insurrection, civil war, terrorism or wartime conditions.” Imminent danger pay is paid at $7.50 per day for each day a service member is located in a designated location, up to $225 per month.
There are currently more than 50 locations where troops are authorized imminent danger pay, including more than a dozen locations that have been added since the American military campaign against Iran, Operation Epic Fury, was launched in February. Those locations include Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Cyprus and Diego Garcia.
Troops cannot receive both hostile fire pay and imminent danger pay in the same month.
Under the new proposal, hostile fire pay would be increased to $450, and imminent danger pay would increase to $15 per day, according to budget documents and officials.
The proposed pay boost for the two types of special combat pay was noted in documents outlining the fiscal 2027 budget requests for the Army and Air Force sent to Congress last month. The Navy and Marine Corps budgets make no mention of the potential combat pay boost.
Air Force Maj. Gen. Frank Verdugo, the deputy assistant secretary for the Air Force budget, briefly mentioned the proposal during an April 21 overview briefing on the Air Force and Space Force 2027 budget proposal.
“This action ensures we properly recognize the unique expertise and the immense sacrifices of those serving downrange and in our most demanding career fields,” the general said of the proposed combat pay increases.
According to Air Force budget documents, the hostile fire and imminent danger pay boosts are “aimed at recruiting and retaining warfighters.”
Air Force officials declined further comment on the proposal.
The U.S. military has paid some form of combat pay to troops dating to World War II, according to a history of combat pay published by the Pentagon in 2011.
If approved, the new rate would be the first increase in the special combat pay categories since 2003, when the rates were updated from $110 per month maximum to $225.
Service members would also see other pay boosts in fiscal 2027, if approved by Congress. Troops in the ranks of E-5 and below are expected to receive a 7% pay increase; those ranked E-6 through O-3 would see a 6% pay boost, and troops ranked O-4 and higher would get a 5% pay boost.
The Pentagon also proposed a 3.9% boost to Basic Allowance for Housing rates and a 3.4% increase in Basic Allowance for Subsistence, according to its budget proposal.
