excuse me the RAF and the Royal Navy do actually have similar systems in the navy its called a ship and in the RAF it called a Squadron!!!!
the Public and media are very ignorrant of our armed forces because the forces are now so small that few people come into contact with them. Added to the fact that things like the Royal tournament and events to keep the armed forces in the public eye were scrapped to save money. Armed forces careers offices were closed and how often do soldiers sailors or airmen visit towns, villages etc in uniform to keep the services in the public eye?
The media also don't help by always looking for negative stories and the PC lobby trying to undermine the values and sandards that make the military what it is. Add this to the fact that most MP's and civil servants have not served in the armed forces and no wonder the armed forces are in the state they're in.
The British armed forces are now to small and badly balanced. They need investment of both money and care by the country. we are meant to have looked at what we wanted the forces to be able to do but not invested in them to give them the capibility to do it. At present its all save today for the hope of investment in the future.