Guys ,If you don't mind my opinion from the outside.
If this FRI is to be considered it will need to be ABSOLUTELY HUGE.
As someone who left as a F/L with 10 years service, my civvy pay overtook mil pay at year two and now is @AVM+ level after @10 years!!!
In other words leave in your early 30s unless you believe you'll make AVM by early forties!!!
In pure pounds in your pocket (not everybodies raison d'etre agreed) a GOOD airline will be worth it in the long run.
As has been mentioned in previous threads airline flying is akin to watching paint dry, BUT, unlike in the Services, once you're on chocks with the donks off its "bye bye see you next time" with absolutely no extra duties to do.
Think very hard, number crunch service pension vs expected civvy salary (with pension accrual from an earlier age if you dont take the FRI.)
Is the x factor of goodies such as cheap accom,subsidised schooling etc better than an airlines free medical cover,loss of licence protection,widows benefits etc etc.
Sit down with a calculator and a spread sheet.
There will be an upturn in a year or two and the reputable airlines will be looking for capable 30 something people.
At the moment most airlines tend to only be recruiting people with 200 hrs and a rating. They can pay them( ***k all) on a "cadet" pay scale of @1/2 a normal fo's payscale.
This should change with demand.
As somebody else has stated, this FRI will only seem to benefit people who are going to stay in anyway.
Letters on the back of a postage stamp with examples of the last time MOD and financial acumen/planning were ever mentioned in the same breath
