Oh wow. That's a massive change. I'm not sure I see how this increases the recruitment of 'jet' caliber pilots... I'd have thought having the wider range of selection would've been more desirable.
Is this applicable for pilots who elect to go down a jet 'stream', or is it applicable to all pilots? Just wondering how it affects pilots aiming to fly aircraft in other roles i.e. air lift or bizjets
This policy is applicable to all RAAF pilots. The fast jet world is hurting for numbers. The non-FJ units are over-stocked with pilots. The reasons why are another argument altogether.
It's basically supply and demand. It's their train set, so they recruit and man as they see fit. Personally I reckon there's better ways to go about it, but apparently the opinion of a 28+ years pilot doesn't count for much.
I guess one way around it is to say you want to go FJ, fail the course and get posted to where you want to go anyway!. One word of advice though, don't tell them you want to fly "bizjets" (I assume you mean VIP). The RAAF wants combat aviators, not airline pilots.