At least 92 accusations of rape involving the US Air Force personnel in the Pacific were reported to military authorities there from 2001 to 2003, according to a new study by the service. The findings, which surprised some USAF officials, also singled out serious flaws in the reporting of sexual assault claims and assistance to victims.The five-month review was the most comprehensive report of its kind by an Air Force command and has led to an investigation into how sexual assault is reported, how it can be prevented and how commanders deal with victims. Investigators said on Monday that conditions varied at their installations, depending on the services available on and off bases. Last week, Gen. William J. Begert ordered broad changes in training, reporting of sexual assaults and assistance for victims.‘‘We’ve got to take this on and lower the number of incidents. Our mission gets done by us trusting each other, and this undermines that trust,’’ Begert said.Of the 106 service members accused in the 92 cases cited in the report, 14 have been tried by court-martial. Seven were convicted, four for rape and sentenced to an average of eight years in prison; more than 40 others were convicted of lesser, related offences and received punishments like demotions and lost pay as well as letters of reprimand. No action was taken against 28, and many cases are still pending.The Air Force’s Pacific command study comes as the overall military faces the most serious accusations of sexual misconduct in years. There have been at least 112 reports of sexual misconduct, including rape, in the past 18 months in the Central Command area of operations, which includes Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan. Two dozen women at Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas have reported to a local rape-crisis centre that they were assaulted in 2002.The Defence Department and the Army have opened separate inquiries in recent weeks, and last week the Pentagon established a toll-free number for people to provide information to the investigations. The individual armed services already have such numbers.
