I'm sticking my head above the parapet here and will not complain if I get an arrow in the eye.
I would pick up on a point made earlier that perhaps things will only change after a major accident. Heaven forfend.
I sadly think that this is true.
Its all very well for a Johnny Harrier/Roland Rotary type to pipe up about fields ops and flying. They DO NOT perform 12hrs sorties with the fatigue related to such.
The airlines don't want to spend money on decent hotels, reliable staff travel and ensuring their staff have good morale. However a lot - and all the best of them - do so because they have heeded that quote of chilling clarity that is " If you think flight safety is expensive - try an accident. "
The RAF - unique as it is in British Military aviation - may just have to learn that lesson the hard way I believe.
That fact distresses me enormously. Yes, it does. It means the beancounters have won. It means the spirit, ethos and personal character which delivered to us the best Air Force in the world has gone.
I fear it will never return.
WWW