Originally Posted by
Ken Scott
I'm not a huge fan of the Reds in the sense that they're all a bunch of egomaniacs.
On what, exactly, do you base this rather offensive comment?
I think that when we've just endured a quite shameful week in which the tabloid press have successfully told a nation what to think (the
Big Brother saga) I think everyone can now confidently dismiss any newspaper stories about the RAF (or any other topic) as being a load of nonsense, intended to merely to sell copies. The Red Arrows subject is bound to come-up now and again, but just because they've been included in a review doesn't mean that anything will ultimately change. But it makes a newspaper headline for a dull Sunday.
It's my guess that they'll probably announce that the display season is to be pruned slightly, or something like that. Given that the RAF's airshow participation is being changed quite radically, it would seem like a good opportunity to cut-back the Red's activities in line with this policy. Of course it won't actually save much cash, but then these exercises are never about real savings - they're about being
seen to save money.
Given that the Hawks will be worn-out in three years or so, it would seem likely that the team will continue to operate them until they're out of hours. The real question is what happens then. Tucanos may have been a possibility but with the new training system gradually coming along, even the Tucanos will be gone before too long, so the RAF's not going to be in a position where only the Reds operate Tucanos, while Linton has a fleet of shiny new trainers. Financially it's just not a practical proposition. I guess the Reds could be given new trainers too but it's unlikely that there will be sufficient aircraft to even handle all the RAF's basic flying training needs and also equip an aerobatic team.
More new Hawks would also be an option, but the new order doesn't even realistically cover the RAF's training requirements, so there's no chance that the Reds might get some of these aircraft too - that's just not going to happen.
Realistically, I think we can expect the Reds to stay in business (possibly with less display dates) for another three years or so. When the Hawks then start to reach the end of their lives, I guess there may be some opportunity for bringing-in aircraft from 4FTS to keep the Reds in business a little longer (as Valley begins to receive new-build Hawks) but once that route is also exhausted, I fear that it really will spell the end of the Reds.
Perhaps it's a cynical view, but it would be the most appropriate time for the bean-counters to let the proverbial axe fall, as it will enable the MoD to simply say that they are not "chopping" the team - but that the team's aircraft are simply no longer airworthy. It's the perfect opportunity, so you can only expect it to be used
