their authority. it happened last summer at the air force base in montana. 17 officers cheated on their monthly recertification tests. the remaining complicit and knew about it. >> this is absolutely unacceptable behavior. >> reporter: the air force's top two officials revealed the scandal wednesday afternoon. >> it is completely contrary to our core values in the air force and as everybody here knows, the number one core value for us is integrity. >> reporter: the cheating was discovered amid an ongoing drug abuse investigation involving 11 officers. serious allegations in a job that requires precision. >> this is terribly important because there is no room for mistakes with nuclear weapons. >> reporter: questionable behavior is becoming a pattern. in december a senior nuclear commander fired for drinking too muh during conce io r force weree learned that four