BEagle, those prices might be "way out of date" outside with civvy flying clubs but take a look at the prices of a SE(P) with instructor at Waddington or Halton Flying Clubs (or others) and they charge about £100 all in per instructed flying hour in a C152. Looking at Halton's website they charge £15 per CAA exam.
So for a CAA NPPL with 32 hours that is £3200, plus £90 for the exams, plus a £50 GP's medical => easily within reach of my ~£3500 estimate.
For an EASA PPL with 45 hours then that is £4500, plus £90 for the exams, plus a Class 2 medical around £150 => £4740 which is slightly over, but they may be able to do a deal?
Look at the RAF Microlight Flying Association and you can fly a 3-axis 80hp all-metal low-wing bubble-canopy EV97 Eurostar for just £70 per hour with an instructor!
So, no, I do not believe my numbers are "way out of date"...
I agree that the idiotic commercial business folks would want to go to "invitation to tender". However, I would have thought that you could recognise the value-added of learning to fly at a Service Fling Club that a commercial flying school can't offer? Ethos? Military and ex-Military members? Government Aerodromes? Military oversight? Use of Military Mess accomodation?
The "invitation to tender" would have to be written to include these as part of the statement of requirement and then that would exclude the majority of civil flying schools.
Also, they used to give flying to non-flying branch UAS studes, so why not gve them trial flying lessons? That
is the point that I was making.
There is
every reason not to join URNU or OTC if you want to join the RAF and you like flying and/or aircraft.
Sorry, mate, but I see this as a very workable solution if UAS had to go in it's current guise. As we start to feel another budget squeeze for SDSR 2015, then why not? We are already skint you know!
LJ