EdSett100
Reference your comment...
"Service to age 55 will not be offered on a widespread basis, as it is has been in the past...."
ACOS manning have, due to a shortage of personnel in the RAF, actively considered the option to extend the retirement age to 60 (as the RAAF have apparently recently done) - but instead, they are going to make more use of extensions past 55 than they have done in the past. In the light of this information I would suggest your comments above are not very accurate....