Long term reservists cost as much as full time permanents...not a bean counting solution.
How do you figure that? I'm not being critical, I'm just curious as to how you came to that conclusion.
While serving with the Army in 2003 I met a C-5 Pilot who, in his day job, was an NYC cop. He was a USAF reservist and was called up on Sept 11 2001 to support MEAO ops and was still going in 2003.
I didn't go into his flying background so I don't know if he ever flew civil a/c but it does beg the question; If the USAF can have reservists, who are not even employed civillian pilots, flying their heavy metal (with the right training of course) why can't the RAAF have
employed civillian pilots flying their aircraft as reservists?
It would take further training of course, but surely it is cost effective. It would take a big change in the culture of the ADF to make it work.