Life after the RAAF

Unfortunately, the mental strain of such a transition can have a detrimental effect on veterans, and tragically can and has led to individuals taking their own lives.
Since 2015, over 370 current or former members of the RAAF alone have attempted suicide, self-harm or have had suicidal thoughts since 2015. Since 1997, there have been at least 1,600 recorded deaths across the RAAF and the ADF.

Further exemplifying the seriousness of the issue, The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) found that suicide attempt and self-harm rates for veterans were considerably higher than that of civilians, and even higher again than those who were currently serving.

The AIHW report Serving and ex-serving Australian Defence Force members who have served since 1985: suicide monitoring 1997 to 2020 showed that ex-serving males had the highest rate at 30.4 cases per 100,000 annually from 2018 to 2020.

Involuntary medical separation also drives rates dramatically, with 73.1 people per 100,000 who committed suicide being discharged involuntarily compared to 22.2 per 100,000 for those who left voluntarily.

Of all the ADF branches, the RAAF had the highest number of suicide-related incidents with 100 in 2021 alone.
Furthermore, 70 per cent of air force members that took their own lives between 2001 and 2018 had mental and behavioural disorders, indicating that support for RAAF veteran mental health is massively insufficient.

Unique challenges faced by the RAAF

Many challenges are faced by ex-RAAF and ADF members, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), unemployment, family breakdown, homelessness and more.
Australia is taking steps to improve the wellbeing of its veterans. Suicide rates for ex-serving males having dropped from 42.4 per 100 in 1997 to 1999, but more still needs to be done to assist people in their transition to life after the RAAF.

Submissions to the recent Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicides by serving and ex-serving defence personnel have identified just how abandoned they have been by the country they fought to protect.

Several reports discuss instances of sexual assault and bullying whilst others discuss the lack of financial and emotional support when members leave, leading to mental health issues, relationship and family breakdown and cases of homelessness.

These reports are common, with 184 submissions available for public viewing alone on the Royal Commission’s website.

Owen Bartrop, an ex-RAAF fighter pilot with the No.77 squadron in the 1950s and 60s, said in his submission that rather than alleviating stress levels, seeking help from the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) is a process that negatively affects mental health.

“The Department of Veteran Affairs (DVA) itself is one source of stress,” says Bartrop.

“Although DVA does a reasonable job, those who work there cannot understand stress, let alone detect it, act to prevent it or deal with it.

“Because of this bureaucratic tendency, veterans find it impossible to deal with this organization [sic]; they even consider bureaucrats inhuman. Ex-service members speak a different language to DVA bureaucrats, and that causes stress.”

In a submission to the Productivity Commission, Bartrop shared the difficulties he faced himself that left him feeling lost and hopeless.

“I personally had a very bad experience when seeking home help through DVA. Not knowing what was available or how to go about the process I telephoned DVA just after 9 o’clock one morning,” he said.

“I spent the rest of the day on the telephone going from section to section, department to department until 4 o’clock when I was told to ring the number I first rang in the morning.

“I was so upset and frustrated that it took me a week to get over the episode, and what really hurt was that I still did not know how or where to get help.

“It was only after I wrote to the Ministers for Health and the Minister for Veteran Affairs that I was pointed in the right direction, although, the officer in the Health Department who answered my letter referred me to a website and documents that I had difficulty in interpreting.”

Increased stress from cases like this is what Bartrop says can lead someone down a dark path towards taking their own life.

“Stress, added to an already hopeless situation, can cause a person to lose sight of a future, without which the only other option is suicide. The thought of ending their life can bring a sense of calm, something to look forward to—freedom from hopelessness and depression at last,” he says.

The call for change

Submissions to the Royal Commission like Bartrop’s hope to fuel change and better treatment of RAAF and defence veterans.

The Royal Commission, led by Commission chair Nick Kaldas, “is examining a broad range of themes, systemic issues and risk factors that contribute to suicide and suicidality within the Defence and veteran community,” said a spokesperson for the DVA speaking with Australian Aviation.

“The Royal Commission’s Interim Report, released in August 2022, made 13 recommendations to the Government which addressed issues requiring urgent and immediate action.

“The recommendations focused on three key themes: improving the claims process, Royal Commission administration, and access to information by loved ones.

“The Government has accepted the majority of these recommendations, having already implemented one (recommendation 5), agreed to nine, agreed in principle to one, and noted two others.”

As a result of the Royal Commission, the government has provided the DVA with funding in the October 2022–23 budget to respond to its interim report.

Improvements to the DVA and the way it provides aid to ex-serving defence personnel have also been recommended by the Productivity Commission, which released a report entitled A Better Way to Support Veterans on July 4, 2019.

The report urged the government to adopt a total of 69 recommendations and consider 26 findings, many of which have been or are being implemented.

“The Government believes that major reforms, particularly of the legislative framework and involving entitlements for veterans and their families, must be carefully assessed and incrementally implemented,” said former Minister for Veterans’ Affairs Darren Chester in the Interim Government Response to the Productivity Commission.

“The Productivity Commission recognized [sic] that Australia needs its own unique and dedicated veteran support system.

“The Government agrees with the Productivity Commission’s view that the system needs to move from a predominant focus on the illness or impairment of veterans, to a model that supports the lifetime wellbeing of serving and ex-serving members and their families, a shift that has been underway for several years.”
Implemented recommendations include:

• Reforms to the 2020–2024 Defence Corporate Plan that recognise in writing that “Defence has a responsibility to respect and support members of the Australian Defence Force having regard to their lifetime wellbeing”.
• Public reporting on ADF rehabilitation.
• Public progress reports on veteran support system reviews.
• Better training of relevant staff.
• Greater awareness of DVA mental health services.
• Increased number of trials and reviews of initiatives and outcomes for veterans.
• The development of a veteran research plan.

Recommendations from both commissions have led to the DVA reworking several elements of the veteran experience to make processes for finding assistance easier.

For example, the DVA in 2021 launched an overhaul of the veteran’s claim system. Minister for Defence Personnel Andrew Gee said that it had enlisted the assistance of consulting firm McKinsey & Company to work with families of veterans who have committed suicide to increase the simplicity of making a claim and reducing the time taken for it to be addressed.

“One of my top priorities is to improve the claims processing system and cut waiting times for veterans and their loved ones, and as such, I have directed that this rebuild takes place as a matter of urgency,” said Gee.

“This is not another review.”

Furthermore, in the 2020–21 budget, the DVA sought to establish the Joint Transition Authority (JTA).

Working with the DVA and a variety of ex-service organisations, the JTA aims to assist veterans in their transition by providing them with transition coaches that can help them plan and create a roadmap for a successful transition.

Getting past the RAAF’s ‘toughen up’ culture

A common issue identified by both the Productivity Commission and the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicides is the difficulty veterans face coming forward to discuss their issues.
Despite suffering from a higher rate of mental health issues, there is a ‘harden up’ attitude within the RAAF and defence force that too often prevents members from speaking out.

Free counselling services for veterans and their families are available through services such as Open Arms, which work specifically at breaking down culture and mindset barriers that prevent those in need from seeking help.

“For too long now there has been stigma around mental illness and suicide, particularly for our ex-service and serving personnel,” said the DVA spokesperson.

“Much work has been done in recent years to reduce this stigma and shift the culture within the military and afterwards to encourage acknowledgment of the reality of mental health concerns and encourage and promote early intervention.”

Open Arms was developed in 1982 by Vietnam veterans who, inspired by the mateship they experienced while serving, lobbied for a specialised counselling and support service.

Building on its image of shared lived experiences, Open Arms’ Community and Peer Program sees veterans share their real-life experiences to provide those struggling with insight and advice when it comes to dealing with trauma from their experiences as well as the transition to civilian life.

“The Open Arms Community and Peer Program works collaboratively with veterans, families, community agencies and mental health clinicians. Open Arms Peers draw on their own lived military experience to provide a holistic and therapeutic experience for clients,” the spokesperson added.

“Open Arms Peers have undertaken training and have been specifically recruited to break down barriers to mental health help-seeking.”

If you have been affected by issues in this story and require urgent help, please call 000. The Suicide Call Back Service, on 1300 659 467, also offers 24-hour counselling via telephone, online and video.