buoy15,
I have no doubt that as a visiting aircraft, essentially performing an AT task, you have been "fecked around" when all you wanted to do was land, load and go. I once saw/overhead the crew of a Nimrod R1 that had diverted in to BZZ trying to get a crew bus to come the aircraft after the first bus had refused to take them as he was a pax bus.
However,the frustrations that you experienced with all the other agencies are unfortunately part-and-parcel of the AT business. The sections that you complain about actually do get their job done safely - but doing it efficiently, every time, needs manning and experience levels that they simply don't have. Customs are not under the control of Brize, but UK servicemen have not proven themselves trustworthy to this agency. You may have been seen as a slightly lower priority than packing the next TriStar off to points east - not ideal I know, but surely you can understand the need to prioritize.
Such problems are no different to those experienced every day by AT crews - even (usually?) at their own bases. Other RAF bases are usually worse and the US military bases have many of their own special frustrating rules - such as no people on, or working on, the aircraft during refuelling. Airports are generally much better, but we often use the cheapest (and worst) handling agents and the MoD are such bad payers that they will abandon us for their better customers when one arrives. I'm afraid if you don't want to wear day-glo jacket then you should rule out working at an airport - it's not a Brize invention designed to p*ss you off!
In no way do people at Brize think it is the equivalent of Heathrow. In many ways I wish they did, maybe then we could have ATC rules and equipment that are more appropriate for large aircraft. I don't understand what you mean by "competing to be in the same league". Are you saying that Brize should redesign it's processes? Using what as a model?
As for your assertion (I think) that movers are following rules laid down by aircrew - you are simply wrong. Movements regulations are set by the own policy people, striving to adhere to the rules and practices of the airline industry as laid down by ICAO, IATA, JAR and the CAA. Similarly, the regulations for the operation of the aircraft attempt to follow best practice from those sources. What is your suggested alternative?
Finally, as to insulting the crews - again I believe you are simply wrong. Considering the age of the aircraft, the relative inexperience of the crews and the demands of the tasking, I think they are doing a fine job. The last HERRICK RiP saw a 100% dispatch success rate for the TriStar - something for which movers, engineering, ops and crews should all take credit. Do you think that the crew of your tanker on ops behave as BOAC prima-donnas? And, by the way, one difference between BOAC/BEA and Brize crews is in the accident rate; Brize has been doing Strat AT for 40 years without killing anyone.