The end of the airman's pin-up: U.S. Air Force orders pictures of naked women to be taken down after sexual assaults soar

All active, reserve and Air National Guard units have 10 days to complete the sweep for offensive images

Air Force believes pin-ups are contributing to a rise in sexual assaults

Over 700 cases of sexual assault were reported in 2012, 100 more than 2011

Pictures and calendars featuring half-naked women will be stripped from U.S. Air Force work spaces and public areas under a widespread inspection to stamp out sexual assault in the armed forces.

Commanders and supervisors in all active, reserve and Air National Guard units have 10 days to complete the sweep for pin-up images or materials reminiscent of the all-male military from 20 or 30 years ago.



Air Force chief General Mark Welsh said having a culture where such objectification of women is tolerated may be contributing to reports of sexual assault increasing to more than 700 this year in the Air Force alone.

Old-fashioned: Commanders in all active, reserve and Air National Guard units have 10 days to complete the sweep for pin-up images or materials reminiscent of the all-male military from 20 or 30 years ago (stock photo)

'You know, briefing slides that show a half-dressed woman for some reason,' Welsh told The Air Force Times . 'Inappropriate calendars on a wall, jokes being told at the beginning of a squadron meeting that are just off-color, and nobody appreciates them.

'It's the environmental stuff that has somebody going, "Well I really didn't need to listen to that today." "I don't need to walk into the door to see that on the side of the guy's cubicle."'



Welsh said he has received multiple complaints about images, jokes and comments that made women and some men uncomfortable.



The complaints suggest that many women in the Air Force feel they have to 'go along to get along' with offensive images and comments if they want to steer clear of trouble, Welsh told the newspaper.



'After talking to a number of our female officers... I believe that there is a potential that this is a problem in more than those isolated areas,' Welsh said.

Complaints: Air Force chief Mark Welsh said he had received multiple complaints about images and jokes that had made women and some men feel uncomfortable

Culture: Having a culture in the Air Force where objectification of women is tolerated may be contributing to an increase in sexual assaults

'Quite frankly, if we have 20 percent of our people who don't feel that they are fully respected and valued for all the incredible talents and the dedication they bring to the job, then that's just not the Air Force we want to be.'



In the past, the Air Force regularly named its aircraft after women and the name was usually hand-painted on the side of the plane next to a scantily clad beauty.

But this practice was stamped out more than 20 years ago, a spokesman told MailOnline, and none of the current fleet of aircraft features such images.



General Welsh, however, is concerned that offensive images are continuing to objectify women in work spaces across the Air Force.

He has focused on the need to stop sexual assaults and harassment in the workplace since coming to office in August.



'In my view, all this stuff is connected,' he said. 'If we're going to get serious about things like sexual assault, we have to get serious about an environment that could lead to sexual harassment. In some ways this stuff can all be linked.



'I'm not saying every case is linked, but it could be linked, and why would we want to tolerate there even being a chance of that?'

Focus: Air Force General Mark Welsh, pictured, has focused on the need to stop sexual assaults and harassment in the workplace since coming to office in August

No more: Images such as these famous calendar pin-up of Marilyn Monroe on wall at Officer's club bar, in Thule Air Force base, will now be outlawed

In a letter to airmen last month, Air Force secretary Michael Donley said the force was bracing itself for 700 reports of sexual assault for 2012 - 100 more than last year.



One shocking sexual assault scandal this year took place at basic training and involved almost two dozen military training instructors, of which 11 men have already been charged.



'Quite honestly, I'm not sure what we'll find,' Welsh told the Air Force Times. 'There might not be that many places where it's a problem; there might be a number of places where it's a problem. I don't know. That's part of my concern. That's why we’re not going to waste time trying to figure it out one place at a time.'



He said they did not intend to conduct a 'witch hunt' and officers' personal computers and email accounts would not be searched.



'Nobody's going to be going through somebody's pockets in their coat in a locker or through their personal drawers,' he said.