Each military culture throughout history has had traditions related to the deaths of their warriors.  The United States military is no exception.  These traditions range from honor guards to the playing of Taps to the delivery of the flag on behalf of a grateful nation.  Traditions such as these allow for the deceased to be celebrated in honor of their ultimate sacrifice in defense of the nation and in delivering freedom.  Simultaneously, they allow for the Service and its members to remember and mourn the passing of a hero. 
When an Airman gives their life in battle or in honorable service, it is a tragic loss.  For his or her survivors, this tragedy is eased somewhat by the knowledge that the Airman’s death was not in vain; it was a sacrifice that others may be free and safe.  Heroism warrants all the honors and traditions that the military can confer.  Deaths from suicide are also tragic; however, there is a special challenge in dealing with them—suicides are deaths that have no similar sense of purpose.  In order to prevent others from taking similar action, and while being careful to understand and be kind to the survivors, we must view these deaths as unnecessary and preventable.  These actions that leaders take post-event to properly respond to a suicide are known as “postvention”.
Leaders seeing others grieve the loss of an Airman to suicide may be tempted to reduce the grief of the survivors by treating the death the same as a death in service to the nation.  While this is an understandable reaction, it has unintended consequences.  We should respond to these deaths differently for two reasons.  First, the survivors of the suicide, especially spouses and children may have very complicated feelings about the death. Some may be sad. Some may be angry. Coworkers may feel let down. It is very difficult to have a public service or celebration of a death that addresses these complexities. Second, it is imperative that leaders carefully and thoughtfully consider memorial services for a person who has died by suicide and the potential impact of these actions on those who may be vulnerable to suicide in the community.  Family, friends, and Wingmen will usually want to have a memorial service of some type. That is healthy, yet there is a difference between having a memorial service for someone and drawing unwarranted attention to the person and particularly to his/her means of death.     We do not want to inadvertently glamorize a death by suicide by holding the same type of memorial that we would for someone who died in combat.  We do not want to give the impression that there is some honor in dying by suicide.  We also must not give our communities the impression that death by suicide is a common or expectable outcome of military service, deployment or war.  Below are a number of considerations that leaders should keep in mind:
1.	Memorials –The service should be planned in consultation with the family, and kept small.  Those in grief will appreciate the personal approach and this will not risk a public display which is easier for the public to misinterpret.  A large celebration or memorial service which distracts from the mission is inappropriate. It draws a lot of attention to the decedent, his/her manner of death and risks unintentionally glorifying both individual and the means of death-- suicide.  This sends the wrong message to others who may vulnerable in our population and see suicide as a potential option for their current situation.    
2.	Military burial with full honors – Is appropriate in most cases as long as the member has not committed a federal or state capital criminal offense or their behavior has not brought discredit to the Service.  More information on the process of obtaining a military burial can be found in Department of Defense Instruction 1300.15 (http://www.mortuary.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-100824-027.pdf).  
3.	Military burials are conducted under the purview of the Department of Defense Instruction 1300.15 (http://www.mortuary.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-100824-027.pdf).  There is no reference within this instruction which precludes individuals from receiving a military funeral with full honors if the individual died as a result of suicide.   
4.	Medals – In the aftermath of a death by suicide, sometimes there is a rush to honor the Airman’s life and service to their country.  If an Airmen’s service warrants recommendation for medals/awards, then the applicable award guidance should be followed without respect to his/her manner of death.  However, these honors should be presented to the family in private.  The intention is to allow the receipt of the appropriate recognition for service, but to ensure that award delivery does not unintentionally glorify a death by suicide or give the impression s/he is being honored in part for the manner of the death.
The actions of leaders are pivotal in planning a memorial response to a suicide that allows for grieving yet does not inadvertently raise the risk of suicide in the community.  The Air Force depends on its leaders to create a Service which meets mission demands while taking care of its Airmen.  
Please see Attachment 3 in AFI 90-505 for more post suicide response recommendations.