As an Air Cadet in the 1960s I flew in quite a few aircraft types but, to be fair, the RAF then had a huge number of RAF Stations and many aircraft types. Of the four annual camps that I attended, only the one unit was a none flying station; albeit that it did have a Chipmunk AEF. The RAF of today is a much smaller organisation and that their operational commitments are of a much higher order of magnitude. Is it therefore not understandable that the opportunity to fly Air Cadets, with air experience flying, is increasingly problematic?
On the subject of gliding courses, I did achieve my ATC A&B gliding certificate at RAF Hemswell. I was one of the lucky ones to be invited to return and, perhaps, become a staff cadet to assist with gliding operations for other cadets. I would "hitch-hike" from Sheffield to RAF Hemswell, every weekend, in the hope that my efforts would be rewarded by just the one flight before "hitch hiking" all the way back home and readying myself for school the next morning. I would surmise, in retrospect, that only a handful of cadets were ever selected to gain the opportunity to, perhaps, continue to fly beyond their A&B certificates. Given the huge numbers involved in giving (todays) cadets the opportunity to fly, are we perhaps kidding ourselves that we can do all of this on a shoestring budget and with fewer opportunities of RAF airframe availability?
Within a much earlier post (within this thread) I had suggested that, during the pause to flying, that cadets should, perhaps, be given a good grounding within the art of pilot navigation. The response, at that time, was met with much derision of, and I quote, "Most cadets don't have the mental capacity to wish to engage within the suggested mental arithmetic to remain interested in flying"!
I would therefore suggest that, for many (cadets), the futuristic belief that they might become fighter pilots isn't achievable! However, the fact that they might become more aviation orientated by experiencing free flight in a glider, could well become the catalyst for them to join the RAF in some other form of aviation related employment.
The "bottom line" in all of this "return to flight" saga is, what is the worth of Air Cadet Gliding upon the recruitment of cadets into the RAF?
To all of those folk who might wonder, or object, to the Haddon-Cave report. Yes, it has taken some significant time to filter down to Air Cadet gliding operations but, the MAA has had to consider, firstly, front line operations above all others. Like it or not, the MAA has a job to do and that it was wholly appropriate for the DH to pause flying operations. Everyone has been focussing on the word "pause"... it was initially meant to be a "pause", though, the enormity of the findings has gone well beyond what was initially thought to be something of a hiccup.
Air Cadet gliding has entered a new era of military aviation management and airworthiness requirements, which is the alignment of Air Cadet gliding operations to that of every other aircraft platform operated, and managed, by the military.
The pre-emptive strike that has been previously alluded to, by the release of the 2012 document, I believe, was a well written document and that each and every consideration was taken into account when considering the effects of the suggested closure of each VGS. Whilst that the report might not be well received by everyone, it does address the facts that were known at that time... it was a balanced report.
Where to go from here... deliver the capabilities as they are known today and for the foreseeable future. I believe that the report delivered the correct answers.
TCF