Regrettably, the abject failure of 'contractorisation' of the OM at our secret Oxfordshire Air Base has turned what was once a well-run and pleasant establishment into the sort of run-down and charmless institution which no-one in their right mind would want to stay in, given the choice. Probably the only people you'll find at Happy Hour are koalas, people on various courses and the Cartoontown drunks who can stagger home to their pre-fab ghetto at chucking out time. I say 'probably' because I don't actually know - I haven't been to a so-called Happy Hour there for years, the place is so lacking in conviviality.........
But the Cheltenham chapter have themselves an excellent social life, I understand.
However, if you want to fly the RAF's fastest 4-jets in both AT and AAR roles world-wide, don't be overly influenced by the OM life! Incidentally, presumably you know that we now train all new pilots on both the VC10 and the VC10K in both AT and AAR? Neither squadron is single-role, so once you've finished the course you will indeed have a variety of short AAR trips, AT trips bouncing round Europe and back in a day, detachments to Turkey, the Gulf, the Islas Malvinas (which, bar the awful DeathStar flights there and back isn't too bad when you're actually there), North American AT trips, eventually AAR trails and the world will indeed be your lobster! You are trained to First Pilot, not co-piglet standard and most people find it very rewarding. The only turd currently festering in the water pipe is the standard of accommodation in Onan.....
But if you just want to drone round at a sedate pace in a 130 (your chances of going straight to TS are virtually zero, by the way), then if that's your bag, baby, who am I to sway you! They seem to like it at Wooty B International though.
Why you would want to fly TTTIPs around in a little biz-jet, I wouldn't know. Apart from the fact that the OM is good and Ruislip Gardens tube station is only a 5 minute walk if going up to the Smoke is what you want to do in your time off.
Ice Station Kilo seems to have either those who want to stay there forever, or those who will try anything to escape from the place......
Waddo used to heave with activity when it had 40-odd Vulcans based there.....note that I say 'used to'!
[ 30 December 2001: Message edited by: BEagle ]</p>