AD,
Not on the front page of my Torygraph - definintely says 12....
I can't see what the problem is. Possible solutions:
When the 18 curently deployed come home they are replaced by (and in turn replace) some of the 24 "committed to QRA".
Given that the Libyian airforce has been officially descibed as non-effective, we reduce our contribution of air defence assets in theatre, and cut down to say 12 Typhoon pilots.
At the end of the day, if we have 69 Typhoon qualified pilots that is enough to man say 2 Sqns (2x18=36), an OCU (15?) an OEU (5-10) a few senior needies (Sqn Cdr Conningsby, etc). How many Typhoon Sqns do we have currently declared as operational?
Of course,the hours spent getting Torphy qualified to fly solo on Typhoon could have been put towards making it 69+ ....