QAR ASR & Tennisten
@Tennisten,
There has never been a pilot base, for VAA, in Manchester to my knowledge.
@QAR ASR,
Your posts are spot on. They should be consumed in great depth by any new joiner, or potential applicant to VAA.
There is a strong argument to include them in Ops Manual "Part A", section 1.01 for the unitiated, or naive.
I spent 3 years in VAA, but left in the enhanced voluntary redundancy round in 2009.
VAA is a strange place. One almost full of hope, but mixed with desperation for an FO.
I'm glad I left. I've got a really good Command now and a ski apartment in France which was 40% paid for entirely by my redundancy from the "omni shambles". And I got to keep and reinvest my VAA pension pot. But.....
I'd never, ever, ever, look to join VAA. I just got lucky.