This is exactly the type of bickering that is not doing any of us any favours. Only a few weeks ago CAS was supposed to have gone to Benson to provide top level leadership in managing this change.
Either he failed to get his message across or it has been misconstrued by those eagerly hanging onto every word he and AMP's team said.
Either the posters to this thread are saying 'it is not over' are either worried and concerned personnel from the Merlin Force, or staff officers from Air Command/1 Group trying to cover up the perceived poor management of the SH Force, both at the Shawbury end (what a sad debacle) and now in refusing to take accountabilty and responsibilty to manage the Merlin outflow of our personnel.
As to politicians suddenly having a eureka moment, and/or the Army stopping transition due to cost, we must be very careful, we asked for the studies and cost benefit analysis and trust me, there is a General looking down the back of Army's sofa (which includes JHC) and they have NOTseen a significant increase in cost to Merlin transition (HMT and RP don't care what the colour of the uniform converted/re-roled to Merlin is-a student pilot over the next 4 years could be RAF, Army or RN-they cost the same. And unless the Merlin Force is never going to have any 'churn' then Merlin training will continue regardless. .HMT are truly colour blind. But, when the Army has looked at our Stations they have found other areas that they currently pay for, but think they can make savings.
Unless HMG (through PR12) no longer want an amphibious capability, Merlin transition is happening. If it doesn't then we and Army need to start to re-craft all our career profiles for more time and postings in non flying jobs to sea to provide the aviation personnel to a boat even if we do replace an amphibious capability with a pseudo floating DOB concept if/when we can't find Host Nation Support.
If The Merlin upgrade is not taken forward as part of PR12 then the whole aircraft falls over due to obsolescence in the near future anyway, so everyone loses, including Army (reduction in lift).
The politicians know this and they also know that the marinisation is but a fraction of the overall cost.
I am so sad for the people on the shop floor that read these threads being given false information, which results in false hope to our lads and lasses (at this very late stage with Merlin transition already underway) which sadly results in ill feeling and resentment.
Where is our leadership? If there is new information that has changed the situation from CAS' last visit to Benson then it sounds as though he needs to re-visit and tell them that Merlin transition is off as currently there is perceived ambiguity and misinformation by some that is doing nothing but damaging joint relations and de-stabilising families at the heart of this transition.
We will not need to worry about the new pension scheme as our hierarchy would have screwed this so well that the majority of the new blood under training has been made redundant and all the trained experienced personnel are so disillusioned with the leadership that they are looking to leave at the earliest opportunity that suits them and not the MOD/RAF.
Last edited by MaroonMan4; 9th Apr 2012 at 14:36.