U.S. Air Force
DAFMAN 36-2905 — Fitness Program · Verified 2026-08-19
How the screen works
The Air Force adopted the Waist-to-Height Ratio (WHtR) screen in its revised fitness program (January 2026). The Body Composition Assessment (BCA) is a pass/fail component scored against the official body-fat standard (Table 3.2).
| Initial screen | Threshold | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Waist-to-Height Ratio (WHtR) | must be < 0.55 | Below passes with no tape test; at or above → secondary body-fat evaluation |
Maximum allowable body-fat % (age / sex)
| Age group | Men (max %) | Women (max %) |
|---|---|---|
| All ages | 26% | 36% |
Fill in your own measurements — the worksheet prints with the official thresholds above.
Your worksheet (Air Force)
| Your metric | Value | Air Force gate | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waist-to-Height Ratio | 0.486 | < 0.55 | PASS |
| Est. body-fat % (Navy method) | 17.5% | ≤ 26% | PASS |
Source & verification
- Primary: DAFMAN 36-2905, Table 3.2 (e-Publishing)
- Retrieved and verified: 2026-08-19. Standards change — confirm with the official regulation or your command.
Reading this Air Force scorecard
The sheet above is designed to be printed and carried, so it holds only what you need at the assessment: the screen, the thresholds, and the table you are measured against. This section adds the context that does not belong on a one-page printout.
This service applies a single body-fat ceiling rather than an age-normed table, so the figure on the sheet is the same for every age group. That makes the printed number easy to work against but also unforgiving of the normal change in body composition with age.
The screen on the sheet is a ratio rather than a weight, so a scale is not the tool you need for it. Bring a tape and know your height in the same unit. The gate of 0.55 translates to a waist below 38.5 inches at 70 inches tall, so measuring at home beforehand tells you whether a tape test is likely rather than leaving it to the day.
Source and verification: DAFMAN 36-2905, Table 3.2 (e-Publishing), retrieved 2026-08-19. Standards change — treat this as a planning aid and confirm the implementation your unit or agency actually applies.