Originally Posted by
alfred_the_great
And then reset the culture such as “OOADs”/“deployments” are routine and positive, not something to be whinged about - as many do on here.
A glib and frustrating comment. I really hope you are not one of those people that have deployed for 6 months in the last 10 yrs. I feel you might be slightly out of touch.
I can't speak for all, but OOA has never bothered me per se, I take the wages, I gotta earn them.
However.....There is a middle ground. When most units have a shortfall of 5-50% in the required manning due to sick, lame, lazy and empty JPANs, it gets tedious VERY quickly.
The 20% that do 80% of the work has never been more true than the last few years. I have spent 3.5 yrs of the last 6 yrs out with my own marital bed due to exercises, courses, deployments, standby, exercises etc... And just to be clear, I dont mean weekends aren't counted, I mean 1,277 days I was not home. Others that I have worked alongside, have spent around 9 months away from home in the same time period.
Personally I have been lied to and manipulated to deploy as "you are the only person qualified in the RAF". This really sticks in the throat and frustrates those who are willing to dig out blind and work hard. The role I was doing ended up with me being replaced by someone fresh out of Ph 2 training who did not have 50% of the required quals....
I had one of my Sqn mates coerced into deploying when his wife had diagnosed post-natal depression. She was 4 months post birth, had no family to help and had another child to look after whilst dealing with physical birth trauma and severe depression which led to a severe lack of sleep. My boss told him that there was no replacement and he had to go....Unsurprisingly he was Comp B'd less than a month into his deployment when his wife fell asleep at a set of traffic lights before the police were called and then had a breakdown which required a neighbour had to intervene and call the Chief Clerk! This was his 3rd deployment in 2.5 yrs.
Be mindful that general statements will by definition not include all. They will very likely deeply anger those, who are the opposite, of what your statements profess to demonstrate.