Air Mobility Command officials say the construction of new dormitories for single airmen at Dover AFB, Del., MacDill AFB, Fla., and Scott AFB, Ill., is expected to be completed before 2010. These dorms are being built to the new “Dorms-4-Airmen” standard, meaning each airman will have his own bedroom and bathroom in a quad-bedroom set-up that otherwise features a common living room, kitchen, and washer and dryer. “This is a higher standard than previous [dormitory] configurations that didn’t provide either a private room or a private bath, or both,” said Anthony DeSimone, AMC’s chief of integrating planning. The new kitchen set up will make it easier for airmen to prepare their own meals as opposed to having to eat in a dining hall or off base. And the dorm common areas will offer cyber cafes and recreation areas with amenities like pool tables, dartboards, and big-screen TVs. In addition to the new dorms, AMC also plans to renovate existing ones, with improvements including new furnishings, upgraded heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems, and new cyber cafes and exercise rooms. (Scott report by Desiree Mahr)
A provision in the fiscal 2025 defense policy bill will require the Defense Department to include the military occupational specialty of service members who die by suicide in its annual report on suicide deaths, though it remains to be seen how much data the department will actually disclose.