Originally Posted by
Corporal Clott
The hat is required to wear a badge with the Sovereign’s Crown (in our case Her Majesty The Queen).
When serving personnel salute an officer, they are acknowledging Her Majesty the Queen as Head of State and saluting the rank the officer holds (the Queen's commission) rather than the individual themselves. When an officer returns a salute, it is done so on behalf of the Queen.
So it most definitely serves a purpose unless you want that badge tattooed on your forehead or pinned on it - which might be a bit messy or painful…
I know all that, I used to be a DI on IOT. A simple "Good morning Sir/Ma'am" serves the same purpose, acknowledges the commission and is courteous without being over the top. If we had been formed as an entirely new service from scratch, not from the RN and Army, there'd be none of this nonsense. We just inherited a load of their traditions, I still fail to see how performing 18th century battle drills in front of CHOM is relevant or traditional to a modern Air force.