For the love of God

[bangout]

Not the most reliable of sources, but worth a look.

150 more Top Guns face axe | The Sun |News|Campaigns|Our Boys (http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/campaigns/our_boys/3976063/150-more-Top-Guns-face-axe.html)

[Mach Two]

Well spotted, Dude. And this: £6k MoD bonuses as soldiers axed | The Sun |News|Campaigns|Our Boys (http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/campaigns/our_boys/3889581/6k-MoD-bonuses-as-soldiers-axed.html)

What the hell is going on? There will be nothing left of us. Do the polticians want to destoy the armed forces completely?

[Kengineer-130]

Yes... it's that simple Mach :(

[SilsoeSid]

What sickens me is that these RAF trainee pilots are the absolute cream of this country's youth. How they can be treated like this is beyond words.

[MaroonMan4]

Well, sadly it was bound to happen at some stage wasn't it?

Like both the Pongos and Fisheads SDSR cut the pure mass of our equipment and people and a marked reduction in the number of aircraft. Add in the political decision to hand over Merlin as well speculation on this site over Puma, and let's just take an honest look at the size of today's and future RAF-no wonder some 'clever' civil servant has done the maths and seen future bums on seats does not equate to Defence's actual future requirement. Let's be honest here, so far we haven't lost any pilots in the first round of redundancy, with even the kipper fleet pilots being hidden around the world to retain the skillsets for any future potential MPA requirement.

The fact that we are broke, I get. The fact that just as the rest of Defence is shrinking (sorry, becoming more efficient), I get. What I don't get is that are the civil servants and ministers aware of the forecast geopolitical situation forecast in the open press over the next 5-10 years?

I would like to see these same people attempt to 'buy back' (in 'best effort' time frame) the experienced personnel and capabilities that they are possibly signing off as rumoured 'capability holidays'.

[APG63]

True. We've had problems with the pilot training 'pipeline' for years. The old IPS issue is nothing new. The end of that pipeline has been getting narrower much faster than we've been turning down the tap. There is a lot of lag in the system between recruitment and entering front line service. So, yes, it was always coming.

Now we're worried about the sustainability of the 'branch' and (I would argue) the RAF as a whole.

This sucks!

[MaroonMan4]

APG63

It sure does-and nothing like the Service I joined.

What worries me is that if we do not get a Defence Helicopter Command from this Rotary Wing study that is going on, then that means the Army control all our helicopters (now that SAR H has been announced). Add in the Voyager PFI with glossy job adds in Flight, that leaves us just Typhoon and JSF(with the Fisheads not likely to give an inch on a joint force after they still bang on about Tornado being more expensive than Harrier crying into spilt milk). Hercs, I haven't forgotten about you-but the truckie fleet is also shrinking.

What do we look like as a Service? Having been told to 'get on with' handing over the Merlins, a possible further reduction in our helicopter fleet (if Puma goes), contracturisation where possible and a few (very few) fast jets. The JFC and ISTAR debate will inevitably rumble on as we go into SDSR15.

What are we? With a JHC and JFC is there a requirement for Air Command anymore? Are there enough aircraft for us and is there enough of us anymore?

Not good

:{:confused::{

[APG63]

Yep! Let's go to the bar and sob. Can't think of anything else left to do.

[MaroonMan4]

Yep-off out now :)

[Kengineer-130]

All I would say is get qualified and get out, I left in April, and have not looked back. There is life outside the RAF, beat the rush & get yourselves into position now, there are plenty of jobs for the right people :ok: Jet2 are recruiting at the moment.

[Fox3WheresMyBanana]

Now,
If you are a big country that currently isn't broke and doesn't have top-notch equipment/personnel,
wouldn't it be a good idea to hold your horses for a few years whilst NATO drops capability, training, and pushes all it's upgrades to the 2020's.
Maybe even pick up some of the kit they're flogging off.
Then amble in around 2015/8 and grab whatever bits of the planet you've always fancied? Sorry, "have always been a historical territory of the glorious Mother/Father/Cute-Second-Cousin-Land"
Up the Rodina!

[Sandy Parts]

could be worse - you could be a fish-head getting binned only to read in the sneaky friday press release about the RN (and MOD) spending £13million on refurbishing HMS Victory! Mmmmm, "our people are our number one priority", "investors in people" etc etc :ugh:

[Jollygreengiant64]

Why people insist the country is broke is beyond me. There is plenty of money, but it is locked into areas which any sane Brit would view as ridiculous. Foreign aid anyone? Paying for million pound houses for asylum seekers? The only problem is that politicians- Dave- don't have the backbone to change anything significant that does actually need fixing.

[Fox3WheresMyBanana]

Sandy Parts,
Dilbert comic strip for 03/03/1993 from the official Dilbert comic strips archive. (http://dilbert.com/strips/comic/1993-03-03/)

[Jimlad1]

Oooh goody, someone brought up the bonus system. The suns report claims

"Junior civil servants had up to £5,635 added to their pay in August. "

I've seen the figures, and the average payment is in fact about £250-£300. It is the non consolidated part of the old payrise system, designed to reduce pension bills in the future - its not a bonus system, its a savings measure. I'd love to know who got £5,635 - by my reckoning thats a B1 getting an exceptional bonus award -so 1 or maybe 2 people in the entire MOD?

Still, cant let the truth get in the way of a good tabloid rant...

[Siggie]

Sandy Parts,

spending £13million on refurbishing HMS Victory

They're not putting in steam catapults by any chance?

[A and C]

It has become clear to me that a lot of RAF aircrew had seen the light a long time before the latest headlines hit the Sun.

A large number of serving RAF aircrew are getting civil licenses, even the ones who I would have classed as career men.

It seems to me that with the good value that the RAF flying clubs offer the wise are taking advantage of these and getting themselfs into a position were they have to buy the minimum amount of flight time from the approved and more expensive civil training providers.

Some see civil pilots licences as the next career move others view it as an insurance policy incase they find themselfs the subject of the next round of cuts.

It would follow that the guys in the hangars are also taking action to get their civil aircraft engineering licenses.

[Alexander.Yakovlev]

Should this really come as such a surprised when there are officers on holds of up to three years waiting to start EFT? As sad as it is, it just doesn't make any sense to hold someone for so long to begin phase 2.

[P6 Driver]

18 posts on a thread and no-one has used the term "journo scum" in relation to an article from The Sun. Must be some sort of record.
:rolleyes:

[Mach Two]

(RANT HAT ON)

Right, P6. Very unusual. But I guess this time it's not the tabloids that have it all wrong. They're not the ones squeezing the defence budget until every last gramme of capability has been wrung out of all three services. They've been talking about overstretch in the past. Just wait and see what the future brings.

(RANT HAT OFF)