UAS (University Air Squadron)

[Alister101]

Hey chaps,

I've been wanting to joining the University Air squadron for a couple of years now. However i know there is a demand to get in and i know theres a formal interview. I know my UAS would take place at RAF Leuchars, Fife however im not too sure on what they will say in the interview. I know my history about the RAF and my aircraft etc etc however i called up the RAF information line and the chap wasnt too sure, either was my local AFCO. They said they would ask you along the lines of reasons why, what will you bring, what are your interests, but does anyone else know the other types of questions they will ask? Also ive spoken to my doctor about joining and he said i would pass beyond the equivalent to that of a Group 2 (HGV) drivers licence, would this be worth mentioning in the formal interview?

Thank you

[Aerouk]

I wouldn't mention the medical, they'll do their own medical and decide.

Worth checking out these posts:

University Air Squadron FAQ (WIP) - The Student Room (http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=392670)

http://www.pprune.org/military-aircrew/241468-university-air-squadron-selection-process.html

Good luck!

[UAV689]

They will ask you about the RAF, what you know about the uas, your interests, motivations for wanting to join, they may even ask you a little on current affairs, certainly Raf ops overseas etc.

Good luck, been there done it and it was ace.

[Alister101]

cheers for the links. Cheers for the tip i wont mention it, after reading on the UAS website that "Applicants must satisfy a number of medical requirements. At present the required medical standard is equivalent to that of a Group 2 (HGV) drivers licence" thought it would show that i have put a degree of research into it :)

[Aerouk]

You'll love it, the flying is excellent. I've got a few mates that done it, including one that's now being streamed for FJ in the RAF.

What Uni are you studying at? What course?

[Alister101]

Most likely Edinburgh Napier University as its closer to home :) and im studying Economics with Management :D

[nick185]

The Medical is done by your GP - they dont hold their own medicals as far as I know (Left my UAS last year).

Its a standard interview as you would have at OASC - mr nice and mr nasty
Know your current affairs - find something that is significant to you and not to the whole population. Know your RAF aircraft, uses & bases, what you want to do with your life and make sure you mention everything youv done regarding sports & team stuff.

If your a heavy drinker with a flying problem then youll fit in fine and have a brilliant time.... you have to be good at sports too

Edit to add; make sure you can pass the RAF Fitness test (10 bleep test, 25 push ups in 1 min, 35 sit ups in 1 min). If you can - aim higher

[tjfly]

I think I remember a question along the lines of "Operational fast jet, could you drop the bomb and blow people to pieces?". I said yes of course!

As mentioned above... current affairs and reasons for wanting to join the military are topics discussed at interview.

Hmmm, a medical by your GP? I thought that was at Cranwell and I remember it being far more thorough than a JAA Class1.

Things must have changed since I left in 2005.

Good luck :ok:

[212man]

It's amazing how swiftly one transitions from 18 year old UAS student (in 1985) to a grumpy old git who gets really pi**ed off by the yoof of today! Can anyone actually write these days?

i know

i know theres

my UAS would take place

however im not too sure on what they will say Top marks for 'too' though!

i called up the RAF information line and the chap wasnt too sure, either was my local AFCO

They said they would ask you along the lines of reasons why No! Surely not?

Also ive spoken to my doctor about joining and he said i would pass beyond the equivalent to that of a Group 2 (HGV) drivers licence, would this be worth mentioning in the formal interview? They will be star struck!

Jesus wept:ugh:

[A2QFI]

Modern teaching is, apparently, that spelling, grammar, punctuation and general good structure don't matter so long as the sense/meaning is conveyed, innit?

[D O Guerrero]

212Man - give it a rest. At least he's keen. And I think you missed out the word "an" at the beginning of your post...

[scottyhs]

212man you also deserve a special mention,

You should feel proud as it only took you 7 posts to turn this thread into the typical "lets criticize the yoofs englesh skillz!"

I cant teach you English, but maybe a small lesson along the lines of "If you can't say anything constructive - Maybe don't say anything at all"

This enthusiasm should be welcomed, not berated at the first time of asking!

[A and C]

Get in quick and enjoy!

I fear that the UAS will be the next thing to go from the RAF now that UK PLC is potless.

[TorqueOfTheDevil]

one that's now being streamed for FJ in the RAF


Excellent! We look forward to seeing him at Shawbury by the end of the year...

[Hummingfrog]

212 Man

As an older crusty captain:E (UAS 1970-74) I am with you on this one.

The RAF teaches you to fly very accurately and I don't think that the education system of today prepares our kids to be accurate in anything:(

Shame really

HF

[Aerouk]

212 Man

As an older crusty captainhttp://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/src:www.pprune.org/get/images/smilies/evil.gif (UAS 1970-74) I am with you on this one.

The RAF teaches you to fly very accurately and I don't think that the education system of today prepares our kids to be accurate in anythinghttp://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/src:www.pprune.org/get/images/smilies/sowee.gif

Shame really

HF

Well you've only got yourself to blame then! We're only taught what our elders teach us :ok:

[Herc-u-lease]

The rather harsh attitudes of the ppruners do frustrate, yet a muse me sometimes. Eye only have to brows threw the OASC and general info threads to sea that peoples use of English is heavily criticized.

Their are moor polite ways to let prospective candidates no that a good use off english is vary important in the RAF, without being scene to be a grumpy, condescending bunch.

Forum torque is more relaxed than a lose minute to the boss; I urge fellow ppruners to make yaw point, butt in a nicer, yet assertive (and hopefully more welcoming) whey.


I did learn something on ISS;)

[Easy Street]

Well you've only got yourself to blame then! We're only taught what our elders teach us http://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/src:www.pprune.org/get/images/smilies/thumbs.gif

Aerouk, thanks for pointing out another failing of today's 'yoof' - they expect to be spoon-fed everything. Teaching is not just about direct transfer of information; it also involves setting the student off on their own voyage of learning. Our best universities still do this; the poor ones do not. Schools don't tend to, either, and the RAF has preferred non-graduate aircrew for a while now.

I for one am fed up of students turning up for phase briefs without having done adequate pre-reading because they expect to have everything briefed to them! I've tried the "toughen up and throw them out" approach; ultimately, it doesn't work though... there's a generational change in progress and no amount of old-school "behaviour management" can stop it now.

Next step will be the "modular" combat ready workup, in which the convexees learn-and-dump for each sortie, never being required to actually demonstrate a complete grasp of their role before being awarded their patch... hang on, actually, that sounds familiar as well!

[212man]

The issue I have, which appears to be supported by many, is not 'the standard of English,' because I would hope that actually the correct standard could be demonstrated if required. It's the fact that the standard is allowed to drop so readily, that p**ses me off - It's simply lazy.

There is no place for laziness in aviation and there is no place for laziness in the military. There damned sure is no place for laziness in military aviation!

D O Guerrero: thanks for spotting that ommission - I think it may have dropped into my glass of Claret!

[Fretus Pennae]

Dear Air Police

In the interest of advancing the collective linguistic and communicative ability of those reading this thread, I respectfully submit the following grammatical and language analysis of your post:

Sentence 1:- incorrect punctuation; the line should end with a colon not a full stop (you are making a suggestion, which follows).

Sentence 4:- 'Doctors' does not require an apostrophe (it is simply a plural). Stylistically, I would also suggest starting with 'Your lack of ability...', which then makes it clear who will have to clear those higher hurdles.

And finally, Sentence 5 flows somewhat clumsily for my liking - to improve it, I would omit the nugatory 'to be'.

I am confident that you will recognize this peer review and critical exposure as impersonal and academic in intent, and will support it, for the illumination and improvement of all.

I remain, sir, your most humble pedant,
F. P.

[Lingo Dan]

I believe that "piss-poor" is a compound adjective and, therefore, deserves a hyphen.

[BEagle]

Whilst I would indeed agree that the original post exhibited some woeful standards of written English, chaps, I think you've made your point.

The UAS system used to be truly superb. Competition was fierce and the lucky few enjoyed the opportunity of excellent flying training. They were taught by professional RAF QFIs who all had recent squadron experience. Students were always reminded that their degree studies had to take priority and that UAS flying and allied activities were to take second place.

Demands on the students' time were relatively few; perhaps a weekly training night in 'Town Headquarters', one weekend per month at the aerodrome and an annual 2 week Summer Camp at an operational RAF aerodrome.

You will note my use of the past tense - from which you may draw your own conclusions......:mad:

[A and C]

As an "old git" I have to disagree with those who say that the education system is getting worse.

The education that I was subjected to in the 1970's was for the large part a joke, most of the accademic teachers had the classes "streamed" at the critical point two years so that they only took the top 50% of students and then got a pass rate of about 70% at "O" level.

The attitude to the engineering class from the deputy head was "this is the place for those who we can't put anywere else" (that was said to a visitor to the school within my earshot).

The one teacher who stood far above the rest of the staff was the engineering master (ex- Sunderland flight engineer) , he would take anyone who showed an interest into the class and had a pass rate at "O" level of very nearly 100%.

It was this guy who set me on a career that started with aircraft engineering and then onto a jet airliner command.

Very interestingly at a job interview I was asked by the chief pilot (ex Queens flight CO) what I thought of the education system failing me!

I see something of todays education system and am quite impressed by the standard of education, those who want to be educated do quite well but political correctness fails to give the authority to the teaching staff to force the disruptive and lazy into line.

[neildo]

Many of you are judging this young lad for his written English on this internet forum. A lot of "kids" these days who have been brought up with instant messaging, social networking etc are genuinely not used to "formal" places of discussion on the internet, thus likely do not put as much effort into what they say as some of the older (read wiser) forum members. For that reason I wouldn't look too much into the quality of education today from reading posts on a forum.

To the OP; the student room threads should cover what you need to know in detail. If you don't join the UAS it's not the be all and end all of an RAF career; I for one did not and was still accepted when applying during my 4th year of university.

[muppetofthenorth]

OP, as an extension to what neildo has said, don't be put off by some of the comments on this board.

So the UAS system isn't the same as it used to be. Does that matter to you? Did you experience it the 'old way'? No, you'll experience it the way it is now.

Competition is still fierce, the training is still absolutely top-notch. If you can, then you should. That's all there is to it.