I've worked for both organisations and they both face the same issues, they are desperately short of qualified controllers but don't want to fess up the reality of situation. I left the RAAF knowing the situation was bad at AsA, but I'd just had enough. Having said that, the mood on the floor in the centres is just as bad, possibly worse than in the RAAF.
What I find interesting is that you hear talk of recruiting campaigns and getting the numbers in the door, but neither organisation has taken a real objective look at the way it trains at the coalface to ensure it is getting the
best possible product in the shortest amount of time. When I was in the RAAF (and I make an assumption that its still the same), becoming a training officer was career development and essentially mandatory. So it wasn't about selecting and training suitable candidates who would provide quality instruction. I know that some units simply chose not to use some people in these roles, but others had no choice.
Please note that I am not tainting all with the same brush, I've seen some exceptional training officers in the RAAF; but not everyone is cut out to teach/provide instruction, and some probably don't even have an interest in it.
So perhaps it can be said that the quality of the product you produce is indicative of the time, effort and money you are prepared to resource it with. Of course if you're with AsA, then at least you'll potentially have until the next ice age in the same sector to gain experience to overcome any possible training shortfalls.
