To drag this back to the original question, and before the thread is locked / deleted ....
The original letter, as published in the RAF News 2nd Feb 07, from a Cpl in the RAF Police stated:
According to the latest advert, broadcast on national radio, ‘the only line of defence for aircraft on the ground is the RAF Regiment gunner’.
This has come as something of a surprise to me and, no doubt, the thousands of RAF Police dog handlers who have spent the last 60-plus years patrolling airfields throughout the world.
What doesn’t come as a surprise is the realisation that our hard work and even our existence is now being denied.
The RAF Police have suffered one cut-back after another and have had our workload dramatically increased.
We have continued with our role without fanfare and self-promotion and, as a rule, have not complained. However, there comes a time when something has to be said.
I would suggest the people responsible for these adverts re-think their reearch procedures before spending time and our money making spurious claims to recruit youngsters to stand in watch towers for a living.
They should consider limiting their advertisements to those which correctly identify them as airfield defence.
The official reply from the Inspectorate of Recruiting at Cranwell was:
The radio advert in question was part of a campaign to raise awareness of a particular trade, in this case the RAF Regiment.
The advert was aimed at potential recruits who may not have considered the RAF Regiment as an option.
The word ‘only’ was used to emphasise the importance of the trade, not to undermine in any way the important role undertaken by other key personnel who have an active role in the protection of a station, such as the Military Guard Service, MOD Police, station guard force and, of course, the RAF Police dog handlers.
Moreover, it would be incorrect to state that the existence of the RAF Police, including the dog handlers, would ever be denied.
When adverts are placed to help bolster recruitment for the RAF Police, similar emphasis is used to highlight the vital role they undertake.