The U.S. Air Force has reversed a policy that allowed transgender personnel with between 15 and 20 years of service to take early retirement with prorated benefits — a move advocates say is cruel, destabilising, and a betrayal of those who served.
The abrupt policy change, outlined in an August 4 Air Force memo, means affected members must either take a one-time lump-sum separation payment — for which the application deadline has already passed — or be involuntarily discharged without any retirement pay or benefits.
The memo cites the president’s recent executive order banning trans people from military service, which frames transgender identity as “selfish, dishonourable, deceitful, undisciplined, and unfit for military service”.
Policy reversal removes key lifeline
The now-revoked Temporary Early Retirement Authority (TERA) program offered eligible personnel early departure from service while still receiving partial retirement benefits, such as lifetime health cover, disability payments, and access to housing on military bases.
Instead, all TERA offers for trans service members have been rescinded. A Pentagon official claimed the policy treats “anyone impacted by it with dignity and respect,” according to the Associated Press.
For Master Sgt. Logan Ireland, the change came without warning.
“I applied for TERA, but had my early retirement request recently revoked without a case-by-case review [and] without any justification,” Ireland told The Advocate.
The highly decorated 15-year veteran — who has served multiple overseas tours in the Middle East and Asia — said his military leader, otherwise supportive, delivered the news “with tears in their eyes”.
“This is a core part of who I am, and now it’s just being ripped from me… Being allowed to still retire was a way for me to find closure and to look at the Air Force and say, ‘you know what? Despite this policy, they’re trying to do right by some service members.’ But now I feel like I was just betrayed by the same service that once celebrated who I am.”
Legal experts condemn move
Employment discrimination lawyer Shannon Leary called the decision “arbitrary on its face and cruel”, noting that “these military members have dedicated their lives to serving our country.”
Shannon Minter, legal director at the National Centre for LGBTQ Rights, said the policy was “devastating” and a “betrayal of a direct commitment” made to these service members. She warned the impact would be “severe”, costing veterans hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost lifetime benefits.
Public opinion shifting
A February Gallup poll found 58% of Americans support allowing openly trans individuals to serve in the military — down from 71% in 2019.
The Pentagon has indicated it will pressure commanders and use annual medical screenings to identify and discharge trans personnel who do not voluntarily leave.
