Jacko, not sure exactly when doing EFT at UASs actually came in, but my sources tell me that the decision at the time was taken to protect the UASs. It seems that the stark choice then was either do EFT on UASs or lose UASs. This info comes from about as high up the food chain at the time as it was possible to get.
I have to say that I have never liked the situation where somebody who was completing EFT over 2/3 years was compared with somebody doing the same EFT over a few months (with the consequent vast improvement in continuity) when streaming decisions were made. When you consider that the course is only about 60 hours anyway, that system seems to me to be inherently unfair. When you also consider that – not THAT many moons ago – streaming decisions were made at the end of a 160-ish hour course flown in about 11 months, the current system seems even more unfair. I know the current plot allegedly saves money, but I firmly believe that it only saves money from one pot, and actually places a bigger expense further down the stream, because the real decisions have to be made whilst or after flying aircraft that are more expensive to run. If I had my choice (not that I ever will), I would elect for all students to fly EFT over a short course, then ALL STUDENTS to fly BFT on the Tincan, with streaming taking place after that. The bean-counters would never permit that though because it would “cost more” on the surface and they are not interested in the real down-stream expenses incurred by streaming after 60 hours.
But what do I know --- I’m not a QFI!