Command Chief highlights recent dress and appearance guidelines Published March 26, 2012 By Public Affairs 315th Airlift Wing JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. -- There are several changes to Air Force dress and appearance guidelines documented in Air Force Instruction 36-2903. "If you have not yet reviewed AFI 36-2903, I recommend you do so, but here are a few important highlights you should be aware of," Chief Master Sgt. GiGi Manning, 315th AW Command Chief Master Sergeant. Here are a few new requirements and frequently violated dress and appearance requirements. "Dress and personal appearance standards that are not listed as authorized in the publication are unauthorized," States AFI 36-2903, Page 1, last sentence. Backpacks With blues and PT uniform, solid-color black backpacks only. With ABUs, solid-color black, ABU-patterned, olive drab or Air Force sage green only. Backpacks should only be carried in your left hand or worn on the left or both shoulders. You should never wear a backpack on your right shoulder. Contact lenses Contact lenses must be clear and cannot change the natural color of the wearer's eye. Watches Watches must be conservative. Prohibited examples include: diamond covered, neon or bright colors, bands exceeding 1 inch in width and novelty watches (i.e. cartoons characters, sports teams) Ear Rings Earings must be spherical, white diamond, gold, white pearl or silver. Maximum diameter is 4mm. Bracelets Bracelets must be conservative and no more than ½ inch in width, be gold or silver in color. Support-a-cause, a person, a philosophy or group bracelets are not authorized. Exceptions to this include medical alert/ID bracelets are authorized. Traditional metal POW/MIA/KIA bracelets which are silver, bronze or gold are also authorized. Sunglasses Plastic sunglass frames should be black or brown. Medal frames should be gold or silver. Conservative ornamentation is OK. Mirror lenses are not authorized. Logos are allowed if they are small and the same color as the frame or lens. Never wear sunglasses on the top or back of your head , around your neck or hanging from a uniform pocket. Hair Male's hair must be tapered on the sides and back. Sideburns should not extend below the lowest ear opening. Female's hair should not extend 3 inches in bulk and not extend below the rear edge of the collar. Hair color must complement the members complexion and skin tone. Pockets At no times are members of the Air Force allowed to have their hand in their pockets - this includes while walking, standing and in cold weather. This rule applies to all uniforms, including PT uniform. ABUs Sleeve cuffs must remain visible at all times. All pockets will be secured and items stowed in pockets will not be visible except pens stowed in the pen pocket. ABU caps may not be pushed, rolled, folded or tucked in (e.g. ranger fold). Cell phones Previous: 98th Uniform Board message dated 12 June 2009 allowed use of personal cell phones while walking in uniform. Current: AFI 36-2903 dated 18 July 2011 superseded this message. Now it is not allowed. Exception: Use of a personal cell phone for official notifications is allowed. Specialty Badges Basic: Upon graduation of technical school officers and enlisted are authorized the basic specialty badge. Senior: When an enlisted member is awarded their 7 level they may wear the senior badge. Officers may wear the senior badge after 7 years in their specialty. Master: Enlisted 5 years after award of 7th level skill level and master sergeant or above. Officers may wear this badge after 15 years in the specialty. Phased out items 33S legacy badges (Oct. 2011) Battle Dress Uniform - BDU (Nov. 2011) Desert camouflage uniform (Nov. 2011) Black t-shirts and black combat boots (Nov. 2011) Tan boots with ABUs outside theater of operations (Nov. 2011)