Originally Posted by
DODGYOLDFART
Just an aside on the subject of rank. When I left the RAF in the early 60's I joined one of the main UK IT developers. IT was called data processing at that time. Around a decade later I had risen to be a "senior manager" with around 1200 staff working for me and a very comfortable salary with all the fringe benefits. A comparison with RAF pay etc., would have placed me somewhere above that of a Group Captain.
Whilst the job was both challenging and enjoyable I felt I needed to do something else with my life, so I joined the Met Police as a Special Constable in South London. I was surprised to find that among my colleagues were a great variety of people including a barrister, a couple of medics and several other senior managers and academics. Whilst there was ample opportunity for us to "rise from the ranks" we were all happy to stay as just plain policeman plods. Happy to be accepted by the regulars because we were always there to do the more menial or to them boring tasks.
In the six years I served as a "special" I had ample opportunity to observe how the police organised themselves and managed people. They earned my greatest admiration. Whilst there was a rigid structure when it came to real policing - out on the beat each copper was largely an island, expected to make your own decisions, act upon them and cope with the consequences.
Apart from flying as PIC in an aircraft there are few direct comparisons with the RAF or the manner in which the chain of command works. It should therefore IMHO not be surprising that the rank structures due not directly map across.
Thankyou, very much. I need say no more.
TN.