BEagle
To answer your questions.
1. EFTS started last year on the Prefect about a year ago.
2. Rotary training for ab initios started last week (hybrid courses finishing off those that did not get a chance to finish on Squirrell finished just before Christmas on the Jupiter/Juno).
3. Phenom ab intio course starts in February 2019.
4. T2 training has been going on now for several years.
5. Texan got it’s military release to service at the end of 2018 and is still on track to replace Tucano later this year.
6. The T1 training and ENJPTS training are needed for the uplift of Typhoon squadrons announced in SDSR2015 that UK MFTS was not originally supposed to provide for. Plus the build up of Lightning II increases the ‘thirst’ for baby FJ pilots.
7. Some multi pilots have been outsourced to a large commercial provider - again due to the run on of C130J, the purchase of P-8 and possibly some other ISTAR assets needing to grow.
I am the first to agree that the introduction of UK MFTS has been a bit of goat at times, but it is definitely starting to ‘fire on all cylinders’. There are also enhancement options in the pipeline to help cope with the extra demands of the SDSR2015 announcements. New training systems nearly always have teething issues and the introduction of new aircraft from unplanned defence reviews enhance the effect of the teething issues. But, continually sniping at a system I would suggest shows what little you know about capabilities introduced 20 years after you left the Service - Hunters and Gnats with practice bombs, rockets and guns would not prep our people for 4th and 5th generation combat aircraft!!! Also, please give those that are involved in training the next generation of the RAF some credit that they might actually know what they are doing, rise to the challenge and come up with fixes like every person has involved in RAF flying training for the past 100 years.
The B Word