FJ2ME,
You're right. Engineers are the most concerning issue right now, as quite a few left for the oil and gas industry before the bubble burst. Recruiting them is a challenge, as is encouraging young men and women to study STEM subjects.
I don't share your cynicism re: very senior officers. All the ones I regularly come into contact with are actively addressing the situation and looking at both now, and the future, not just their nest eggs. Perceptions differ of course, depending where you view it from.
People forget that the desire to grow the equipment programme will demand measures to recruit and retain. That money will have to be found from somewhere and it won't be a fair allocation but the 'facts will argue for themselves', as Churchill once wrote in his famous memo to Whitehall staff.