An Indigenous airman, who had to cut his braids when first joining the Air Force two years ago, is now one of the first in the service to receive a religious waiver allowing him to grow longer hair in accordance with his heritage.
Darshan Shah, an Airman in the US Air Force posted at the FE Warren Air Force Base, has been granted a religious waiver to wear a Tilak Chandlo while in uniform.
Senior Airman Darshan Shah, an aerospace medical technician assigned to the 90th Operational Medical Readiness Squadron, first applied for the waiver during basic training in June 2020.