Well, I'm most surprised at another manning co*k up...after all, we only post HR professionals into those jobs not amateurs looking for the 'tick' before inevitable progression. All without repercussions when these 'future leaders' are proven to have made mistakes. I'm effectively being forced out at 44 as there is no route back to a cockpit for me...and I refuse to spend the next 11 years being shunted into those SO2 jobs too boring (or intellectually challenging....) for the 'Executive Stream' to consider. Sort this mess out before all that's left are first tourists (all doing their ATPLs...) and chisellers pointing the finger at each other over who caused the train wreck.
1. Reconnect proper military accreditation to professional licences.
2. Stop the FTRS creep; part of the problem is the lack of genuine 'rest tours' - for pity's sake we had these 'rest tours' when a static RAF in the UK/RAFG, we need them more than ever now (esp RW) and they're rapidly vanishing.
3. Prevent bean counters covering up for their errors by cutting AFT hours to claw back funding from other areas; it's a false economy to cut flying - crews do not get the requisite experience and a lack of flying de-motivates people.
4. Be honest and show integrity all the way up the chain; 'can do' is laudable but we risk killing people in the next 'near-peer' conflict as senior hands have been using smoke and mirrors to convince politicians that you can cut hours, platforms and people and deliver the same capability. Madness.
5. Let's have fun. The appeal of military flying was the sense of fun, freedom and camaraderie that it engendered; I think the biggest shock to me over the past 5 years flying with JPs has been that they don't know what it's like to have fun - it's been scared/beaten out of them by people worried about their careers in case the press got wind of (shock) people actually enjoying their work. Effective Supervision requires experience (and properly current and competent crews) not tracking tools and a 'No' mentality.
Anyway, back to that ATPL study....
