Sorry for dragging this back to the NCO pilot argument, but Here's my viewpiont:
Anyone who has the necessary qualities to be a pilot in the military also has the necessary qualities to be commisioned. So why hold someone down at the rank of Sgt? The guys who flew in WWII as NCO pilots were similarly worthy of commisioning but were held down at NCO rank becuase of fears about watering down the "offficer class" with the influx of people from all backgrounds that was necessary to keep pace with the demand for aircrew. Thankfully those attitudes are a thing of the past.
To have Plt Off as the minimum rank for a pilot is no more absurd than having Sgt as the minimum rank for Air Eng, ALM or any of the other NCA trades.
I work alongside many NCO aircrew who I would be far happier training up to be pilots than some of the guys the training system throws at us. They are in many cases more reliable, harder working, cleverer, and more fun to have a beer with. I would however, want them to recieve the same pay and conditions as all the other Sqn pilots though, so they would have to be commisioned first.
The biggest question I really cannot get my head around is why on earth someone would want to be an NCO pilot rather than a commisioned pilot?
If it is because they will be cheaper to employ and this is a magnanimous gesture to save the treasury money, then good on ya. That is however a viewpoint not often expressed on PPrune.
If it is because you believe that officers work so much harder when not flying, what with all that officering to be getting on with, then you are sadly mistaken. The guys I work alongside have just as many ACRs to write (more actually) or struggle under reams of secondary duties in order to chase that next elusive promotion.
If it is because you believe that all officers are toffs and you would rather not have to mix with that type, then you are probably not one of the clever reliable, sociable, leaders that I mentioned in a previous paragraph and therefore probably shouldn't apply in any case.
If it is because you believe that all pilots get treated as officers first and therefore suffer frequent "staff tours" at the expense of their profesional experience then you are once again, well off the mark. I have enjoyed 15 years continuous flying. The only sacrifice?.... no promotion to Sqn Ldr
(they do get staff tours!!)
I really can't see why anyone would want to be an NCO pilot rather than an officer pilot, anymore than someone would want to be an SAC loadie rather than a Sgt loadie. Please explain.
Come on, get a commision and become a pilot, ITS ACE
.
Arty Out