Personnel Management Mysteries Uncovered
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Personnel Management Mysteries Uncovered
From The Sky Suspended A Fighter Pilot's Story by Jim Bailey:
Whilst the author was working in a unit to "simplify or eradicate bumph", he looked into postings...
"Also, we inquired why postings of staff should occur pointlessly, to discover eventually that the Records Office, Gloucester, was run by Air Commodore Cordingley, who refused to allow us into his department to investigate it. We thus discovered that when Major Trenchard had formed the RFC, Sgt-Maj Cordingley had been in charge of his orderly room. As the RFC grew in size, later to become the RAF, Cordingley advanced in rank, so that in the early months of 1945, no-one else save Cordingley had ever been in charge of Air Force postings - and there the matter stood. And little did we know then, a fact which came to light later, that a group of his frustrated clerks were playing 'happy family' with the RAF, shifting people about the world in an edeavour to achieve, with the aid of their minutely detailed reference books, one unit composed entirely of people with scars on the left thigh and another unit composed entirely of people with hare-lips."
Folk lore perhaps... It couldn't happen today...
Whilst the author was working in a unit to "simplify or eradicate bumph", he looked into postings...
"Also, we inquired why postings of staff should occur pointlessly, to discover eventually that the Records Office, Gloucester, was run by Air Commodore Cordingley, who refused to allow us into his department to investigate it. We thus discovered that when Major Trenchard had formed the RFC, Sgt-Maj Cordingley had been in charge of his orderly room. As the RFC grew in size, later to become the RAF, Cordingley advanced in rank, so that in the early months of 1945, no-one else save Cordingley had ever been in charge of Air Force postings - and there the matter stood. And little did we know then, a fact which came to light later, that a group of his frustrated clerks were playing 'happy family' with the RAF, shifting people about the world in an edeavour to achieve, with the aid of their minutely detailed reference books, one unit composed entirely of people with scars on the left thigh and another unit composed entirely of people with hare-lips."
Folk lore perhaps... It couldn't happen today...
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It couldn't happen today...
Last edited by Climebear; 5th Jun 2005 at 18:29.
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It's all true!
PMA sent all the handsome, intelligent people to Buchan. All the ugly but intelligent people to Boulmer and all the ugly, dumb ones to Neatishead.
Regards, ADIS
PMA sent all the handsome, intelligent people to Buchan. All the ugly but intelligent people to Boulmer and all the ugly, dumb ones to Neatishead.
Regards, ADIS
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I hear they matched people to locations too:
Buchan: ugly stupid and violent
Boulmer: ugly, unintelligible and broke
Neatishead: ugly, stupid and married to their sister
Wait - I've been to all three...........
Buchan: ugly stupid and violent
Boulmer: ugly, unintelligible and broke
Neatishead: ugly, stupid and married to their sister
Wait - I've been to all three...........
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Although the ugliness and the Fighter Control Branch debate could run and run, could PMA ever be accused of being 'selective' without there ever appearing to be any sense to what they do?
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Thre's certainly a plaque somewhere in HQ Parent Teacher Command that lists "OCs and AOCs of the RAF Record Office", wheer Cordingley figures, if not as a SM, in every rank from Wg Cdr to Air Cdre.
And he got a quarters patch named after him.....
And he got a quarters patch named after him.....
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I seem to remember a radio programme in which an Anthony Smith*, a regular broadcaster at the time, claimed to have spent part of his National Service posting airmen with similar physical attributes to the same units.
I understand the 'game' now is to ignore 'last posting' requests and to get personnel to sort out their own postings!!
* I believe he flew a Hot Air balloon over a game reserve in Africa ... another piece of useless information!!
I understand the 'game' now is to ignore 'last posting' requests and to get personnel to sort out their own postings!!
* I believe he flew a Hot Air balloon over a game reserve in Africa ... another piece of useless information!!
