The Air Force Reserve is focused on “moving capacity and capability into a more efficient and effective force structure,” said AFR Chief Lt. Gen. James Jackson. Speaking Aug. 9 at the Reserve Officers Association’s National Security Symposium in Washington, D.C., Jackson also said the Reserve needs “to remain Tier 1-ready” to support the Air Force’s needs. “We get programmed, planned, and trained to that Tier 1-ready level, [and] that allows us to bring it . . . every single day to the fight,” he said during a panel discussion. Further, Jackson said he “was disappointed” that the Pentagon’s recently completed Strategic Choices and Management Review “did not have more discussions concerning the Reserve component.” He said he anticipates that the forthcoming Quadrennial Defense Review will include those discussions.
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.