Chaim,

AR 670-1 in the Army proscribes the length of the hair, and the minimum requirement is “not touching the ears” and non-faddish.  I don’t know if peyot even at halachic minimum length would be acceptable in the military.  BCT, unfortunately, brings you the general “no exceptions” cue-ball treatment, so while you might find allowance later in your military career, you might not for the period of eight weeks.  Surely there’s poskim somewhere that might be helpful.  I’m not sure what the deal is with Air Force basic, even though my ex-wife spent her time at Lackland.  It looked to me that her male counterparts were all well-shorn at her graduation.

No Longer Shy,
I’ve noted that even when Reform/Reconstructionist rabbis are unfamiliar with Orthodox observance, they still go out of their way to accommodate.  Some won’t backtrack on egalitarian participation in services, however, which can preclude a valid minyan for some. 

There are also just some aspects of Jewish life that they can’t minister to the Orthodox for reasons of movement-level credibility, even if they’re personally knowledgeable.  For instance, the 30-minute Seder we advertised the deal for on this site is listed as “rabbinically approved,” but truth in advertising means that we need note that it was approved by a Reconstructionist rabbi, which would preclude it from use for some households/service members.  Some of us are just married to our Maxwell House haggadot.

I ultimately agree that more Reform rabbis would be splendid.  Many of the Jews I run into in the service are either from that or a secular background, and are turned off/intimidated by strong levels of observance/literacy, or it’s just not what they’re looking for from their religious leader.  I’m not saying by any means that Reform rabbis are not literate; I’m just saying that by vocation and training they have an excellent position to relate to this demographic.

To tell you the truth, I’ll happily take any rabbinical chaplain regardless of what seminary, yeshiva, or movement they come from, just so long as they aren’t Messianic.