1. Why pay a civilian workforce when you already have a military workforce that can do the job (and you need to keep that military workforce occupied in case of crisis)?
Knowing the skills required at Depths C and D, I can assure you that rolling forward to 2nd line where the work will be carried out by technicians more used to Depths A and B will, at the very least, create a void. Many are the tales of boxes of bits from attempted / botched repairs appearing at DARA workshops.
2. Turnaround time is not everything if the flow is constant and the aircraft are come out of servicing in the correct mod state and to an agreed standard?
If the MoD provided funding to keep documentation at the correct mod state (correct up-to-date documentation being part of the audit trail to ensure serviceability and safety – and we have seen from the Mull thread that neither are high on the MoD’s list of priorities) and had any interest at all in agreeing and adhering to standards, then I’d agree with you. As they don’t, I’m afraid the argument doesn’t stand up. I wish it did.
However, I do agree that the treatment of the workforce is appalling. Agreed!
Buy shares in whoever buys DARA. Given a modicum of commercial acumen together with detailed knowledge of the above, they’ll take MoD to the cleaners.