allan907,
I was one of those comprehensive wimps and was also one of the first students on recourse flight back in april 84, as you say a far more sensible way of training.
Ended up back there as a Flt Cdr 10 years later and surprise surprise we had a syllabus re-write (course increase 18-24 weeks) and the introduction of ??? Yes you've guessed it recourse flight.