At the risk of thread creep I’m going to throw this one in.
In the current high tempo climate for all Army types there is a shortage of willing volunteers to step up to the QHI course and QFI course alike. Now if you offer the line of least resistance the average pilot will take it, after all, we are all lazy! I digress. If a pilot wants to better himself/herself the old option was the QHI/QFI course. This took a fair bit of effort, even to get a recommend was hard enough, and then the Standards check ride and then the board. I recall that pilots were often deferred and even with a Standards recommend individuals were not guaranteed to be loaded onto a course. Life is very different now. To my knowledge there isn’t a single applicant for QHI training from 4 Regt and QHI courses are bereft of Army pilots! A number of reasons (mainly no one left who’s got the hours!). There is an easier option to get out of the “line shag” rat race. The panacea for instructor shortages which is the AI. For the AAC this a dream come true. For the lazy pilot it is even better. Okay, a recommend is required (most of the time, DE officers can, and have bye-pass that one) I don’t need to attend a difficult to pass course which will up-root the family and get a posting to Wallop. I’m out of the “line shag” rat race, and in a Sqn appointment with minimal effort. Win Win.
Now then, what of the QHI. A dying breed. Unless there is an incentive to get the boys and girls to step up, then the line of least resistance will be the one most often trodden.
As a QHI myself, I would not say "No" to a pay rise, though I do consider myself to be well paid, however my colleagues of the non-QHI type do get slightly better value. The world we all live in is changing. The greed that is inherent in any capitalist market will drive us all to want more money. For me, I’m a bit of a socialist; all I want is the best training for the lads and lasses who are soon to be sent in harms way. Now, if that comes at a cost, then it is a price that must be paid. If we are to place an incentive to get the QHI’s through the door, it will most likely be financial in its origin. We promote REME technicians as far as Sgt in order that we can pay them the required amount to compete with civilian trades. So do we offer promotion to QHI’s and run the risk of over promoting unsuitable leaders, but pay them a higher amount, or do we give them a higher rate of flying pay, I do believe that parachute instructors get instructor rates of para pay!
We all know how long, costly and rewarding the QHI course is. If we can train AI’s to deliver the same quality of training at a fraction of the price, then fine. But so far I am yet to be convinced, something has to give, and unfortunately it is quite often the quality, there are exceptions, I accept. What I do know is this. The demands on our people are increasing, and the rewards seem harder to find. There was a time when quality flying was reward enough, but CH47 escorts in Helmand (and I know B Flt, 18 Sqn RAF, thought they didn’t need them) and currency flying in LFA 10 just don’t cut it any more.
So, the demands on our leadership increase as well. If there isn’t adequate compensation for effort and sacrifice then the current trend of voting with feet will continue.
There, thread creep complete.
