Who They Are

DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

PERSONNEL

The ARMY is the largest of the armed forces. Its percentage of blacks is more than double that of the national population

--SEX Men 84.5% Women 15.5%

--RACE White 58.4% Black 26.3% Hispanic 8.9% Other 6.4%

--RANK Enlisted 84.1% Officers 13.6% Warrant officers 2.3%

--AGE 17 to 19 -- 20 to 24 -- 25 to 29 -- 30 to 34 -- 35 to 39 -- 40 to 44 -- 45 to 49 -- 50 and over --

Enlisted -- Officers --

FAMILY

Slightly more than half of ARMY personnel are married, and just under half have children. On average, soldiers are just over 24 years old at the birth of their first child

--MARITAL STATUS

Married 51.5% Unmarried 48.5% Percentage married to other service members: 11% Women married to other service members: 17.8% Men married to other service members: 3.2%

--CHILDREN

Have children 47.1% Have no children 52.9% Both parents in the military: 12,000 Single parent: 36,000

RESERVES

--The Army Reserve has the highest percentage of minority officers, 25%

--46% of Army Reserve and 52% of National Guard members are married. Very few reservists-1.6%-are married to another service member

--30% of reservists have children. The average age at which reservists have their first child is relatively high: 27 in the Army National Guard and 35 in the Army Reserve

--5.5% are single parents

UNITED STATES NAVY

[PERSONNEL]

The NAVY had the highest percentage of minority recruits last year, 43%. Overall, 37% of sailors are minorities

--SEX Men 85.9% Women 14.1%

--RACE White 62.8% Black 19.0% Hispanic 9.7% Other 8.5%

--RANK Enlisted 85.5% Officers 14.0% Warrant officers 0.5%

--AGE 17 to 19 -- 20 to 24 -- 25 to 29 -- 30 to 34 -- 35 to 39 -- 40 to 44 -- 45 to 49 -- 50 and over --

Enlisted -- Officers --

[FAMILY]

The NAVY has the lowest percentage of members married to another person in the military as well as the highest percentage of single parents

--MARITAL STATUS Married 46.2% Unmarried 53.8% Percentage married to other service members: 6.6% Women married to other service members: 9.1% Men married to other service members: 2.0%

--CHILDREN Have children 42.7% Have no children 57.3% Both parents in the military: 7,300 Single parent: 29,000

[RESERVES]

--19.6% are women, more than 5% percentage points higher than those on active duty

--Just 26% of reservists are minorities, substantially lower than the active-duty Navy. Blacks comprise 14% of the reserve

--63% of Naval Reserve members are married, but only 2% are married to another service member

--45% have children. The average age at which naval reservists have their first child is 29

UNITED STATES AIR FORCE

[PERSONNEL]

The AIR FORCE has the highest percentage of women in the military, and has the smallest percentage of minorities

--SEX Men 80.8% Women 19.2%

--RACE White 75.5% Black 16.2% Hispanic 5.0% Other 3.3%

--RANK Enlisted 80.6% Officers 19.4%