Manning 'Policy'
Is it me being stupid or is the RAFs suicidal manning through redundancy policy of the last couple of year finally coming home to roost? It seems the upper echelons have come to realise that the RAF is now not just stretched, but overstretched and is unable to meet its planned commitments. Those of you serving will probably think that has been the case for a long time. It does seem to indicate incompetence amongst the star classes when the actions below seen on a certain website have to be implemented to make up for the wholesale shedding of talent on the ground in the last two years
‘As part of a constant review of manpower requirements for the Service, Manning, in conjunction with the Manpower Forecasters, have identified a requirement to retain a limited number of personnel in a number of trades (rank specific), shown below, beyond their normal date of exit. Applications will be considered on a Service Need basis and will take into account the individuals’ specific experience and expertise.’
‘The high operational tempo, which requires some Forces to exceed their agreed Annual Flying Task and others to exceed Harmony guidelines, allied to the reduction in trained strength ahead of the disestablishment of associated posts has created a demand for TG1 manpower in excess of availability. To meet the manpower demands, the RAF TG1 Manpower Placement Plan has been developed to prioritise the allocation of TG1 manpower’
I do find the following throwaway line particularly disturbing: ‘As the RAF establishment is drawn down to its target manning levels at 1 Apr 08, units may experience some gapping at NCO level.’
To paraphrase an old saying ‘Flight Safety- nowt to do with me – I’m Policy Branch’