Yes it has increased by 5.2%. However from a person who has a
relative who was a sqd Ldr on departure of RAF on salary of £55K so 2/3rds pension before increase was £701 per week and now £741 per week which he is fully intitled too and earned over the years, it makes me feel a liitle ill to think people are actually complaining when this is the sort of money they can achieve! I understand for the lower ranks, but if any of these former officers on such salarys are complaining then they need to live in the real world! My other relative who also has worked hard all her life has retired on a pension from the NHS of only £360 A MONTH, yes a MONTH!
So get real you officer types!
CR,
Welcome. I'm not an 'officer type', so I won't make some class based philosophical statement other than a Sqn Ldr who commits to a long term career that demands and offers much in equal amounts
is probably deserving of more recognition in retirement than someone who was in the ranks for 6 years and who may have done less.
I have a few clients who have started pensions for their kids (as did I for mine, a few years back). You don't have to set aside a lot now in order to make a difference in the future and someone in civvy street starting off a personal pension 25-30 years ago would have no reason not to be enjoying a similar retirement to the Sqn Ldr you mention, if they had planned ahead or focused on it properly. I accept that the NHS might pay less and that its harder to save more, but did your relative do that?
The officers of the future will have a more punitive retirement than the SNCOs of today (based on Future AFPS). Despite the incredible demands that are constantly placed on them these days (and far more than in my day), servicemen and women are discovering that their retirement could be a lot less rosy than it was - I hope
that unfairness is of some consolation to you..? Finally, lets put all talk of retirement in context.
Inheritance Tax (IHT) exemption for veterans deceased following certain injuries - Echelon Wealthcare