Active Duty Suicides Rise

There were more Active Duty military suicides in the third quarter of 2015 than the same period of 2014 or 2013, according to a report released Jan. 4 by the Pentagon. In the Air Force, 16 Active Duty airmen died by suicide in the third quarter of 2015, compared to 13 in the same time period in 2014, and 15 in the third quarter of 2013, according to the report. However, while the total number of National Guard and Reserve troops who died by suicide in the third quarter of 2015 is significantly higher than the same time period in 2013 and 2014, the number of Air Force Reservists and Air National Guard troops who died by suicide is down from 2013. In all, the Air Force lost 70 Total Force airmen to suicide in the first three quarters of 2015, compared to 61 in the first three quarters of 2014. (See also: Preventing Suicide in the Total Force.)