Originally Posted by
Cerney218
Could anyone explain the purpose of this unit and the timescale of it's existence. It was referred to recently in another thread and raised my interest.
What was the units official description?
At the end of both phases on the Low Level training the budding fast jet navigator had completed 35 hrs of visual navigation using only a stopwatch and compass. On their final trip they were given a 'time on target' 3hrs before briefing, this was for the second of usually 3 targets. They then planned, briefed and led a pair with an 'aggressor' intercepting them before the second target leading to controlling the pair in evasive tactics and off route navigation. The standard which most achieved was to be over the target within 10 seconds of their tasked time. The target was either for recce or dive attack. The staff pilot contributed tuition and flying and on the final test was 'mute' as far as running the mission. Number 2 of the pair usually had a staff navigator.
I was always very impressed by the standard achieved with so few resources.