Airtanker
Hey good banter..! 
Back to the theme; you are obviously after a Reservist job with someone like AT. Go ahead and apply but somehow I don't think you'd get it - no offence mate, but you come across as a bit of a stroker..
Back to the theme; you are obviously after a Reservist job with someone like AT. Go ahead and apply but somehow I don't think you'd get it - no offence mate, but you come across as a bit of a stroker..
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Justanopinion,
Overly personal and not even very funny, old chap. Especially with the number of very, very capable TA personnel serving in sandy places right now
Now please play nicely otherwise I'll have to bore everyone with my Dad's war stories from when he was OC xx Para (TA) if only to point out the value of the part-timers in the military of old, let alone the emasculated one of today.
If you'd prefer, I could start a bit earlier .. perhaps from when he was a regular and the youngest subaltern / Adjutant in the Middle East, running around in hot and sandy places doing daring pongo things. And go from there?
No? thought not.
CS
Note: aviation content warning: I do have quite a number of his photographs from the 60s showing lots of perfectly servicable aircraft in the sky with rather a large number of idiots jumping out of them for no apparant reason. One day I'll get round to scanning them and posting somewhere on here.
Last edited by cargosales; 1st Feb 2011 at 09:28.
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Originally Posted by Justanopinion
Trim stab forgot to mention ......
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Overly personal and not even very funny, old chap. Especially with the number of very, very capable TA personnel serving in sandy places right now
''Dear Deeply Concerned,
I should hereby like to formally accept your kind offer to swap accommodation. In fact, there's no reason why it should stop there. Please PM me a picture of your wife and we can talk further.
Yours,
A Fufkin''
Hey Art! You must have been on Victor tankers at Marham in the mid 80s!
I should hereby like to formally accept your kind offer to swap accommodation. In fact, there's no reason why it should stop there. Please PM me a picture of your wife and we can talk further.
Yours,
A Fufkin''
Hey Art! You must have been on Victor tankers at Marham in the mid 80s!
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Great news!
16:42 GMT, February 4, 2011 GETAFE, Spain | Cobham’s new 805E hose and drogue Fuselage Refuelling Unit (FRU), has successfully passed fuel from an Airbus A330 MRTT (Multi role Tanker Transport) to receiver aircraft for the first time.
In a three hour, 10 minute sortie from Getafe near Madrid on 21 January, the Future Strategic Transport Aircraft (FSTA) variant for the UK Royal Air Force conducted a series of “wet contacts” with two F-18 fighters of the Spanish Air Force. Both fighter aircraft received fuel at an altitude of around 15,000ft and at speeds from 250 knots to 325 knots.
“Cobham has led this field for more than 50 years, and the digital-electric 805E Fuselage Refuelling Unit shares its systems architecture with our wing-mounted 905E pod,” said Cobham Mission Equipment Vice President, Iain Gibson.
“This has allowed us to reach an advanced state of maturity quickly, as shown by the successful fuel transfer test on last month.”
The Cobham FRU 805E will be fitted in the rear fuselage of five of the 14 FSTA aircraft, and is capable of transferring fuel at a rate of 600 US gallons per minute (compared to the wing-pod’s 420 US gallons per minute), allowing faster refuelling of large aircraft such as the Airbus A400M military transport.
Cobham also supplies two wing-mounted 905E pods for each FSTA aircraft, which completed similar testing and certification in 2010.
In a three hour, 10 minute sortie from Getafe near Madrid on 21 January, the Future Strategic Transport Aircraft (FSTA) variant for the UK Royal Air Force conducted a series of “wet contacts” with two F-18 fighters of the Spanish Air Force. Both fighter aircraft received fuel at an altitude of around 15,000ft and at speeds from 250 knots to 325 knots.
“Cobham has led this field for more than 50 years, and the digital-electric 805E Fuselage Refuelling Unit shares its systems architecture with our wing-mounted 905E pod,” said Cobham Mission Equipment Vice President, Iain Gibson.
“This has allowed us to reach an advanced state of maturity quickly, as shown by the successful fuel transfer test on last month.”
The Cobham FRU 805E will be fitted in the rear fuselage of five of the 14 FSTA aircraft, and is capable of transferring fuel at a rate of 600 US gallons per minute (compared to the wing-pod’s 420 US gallons per minute), allowing faster refuelling of large aircraft such as the Airbus A400M military transport.
Cobham also supplies two wing-mounted 905E pods for each FSTA aircraft, which completed similar testing and certification in 2010.
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My 2p worth:
Having gone from analogue to glass, back to analogue and then back to glass again it really is a non-issue. I would imagine that being in possession of some military flying hours would be more relevant.
Do applicants require a valid civil licence? Unfortunately my recent medical problem will rule me out (the airtanker website appears to be down so I can't check the requirements).
Having gone from analogue to glass, back to analogue and then back to glass again it really is a non-issue. I would imagine that being in possession of some military flying hours would be more relevant.
Do applicants require a valid civil licence? Unfortunately my recent medical problem will rule me out (the airtanker website appears to be down so I can't check the requirements).
and if so what is the package?
Do applicants require a valid civil licence? Unfortunately my recent medical problem will rule me out
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I suspect that if that is your main concern, then it might not be the job for you.
I happen to think it's a very reasonable question. All that has been revealed thus far is 'competetive salary' or some such guff.
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employed 330 drivers to kick it into touch for the delights of MPA and AKT?
It is very much a sensible question. Neither of the two type-rated A330 guys I know would consider a job that paid below the market rate. There are plenty of pilots on the job market at the moment, but not quite so many type-rated A330 guys. And certainly not many that would meet the RAF fitness test, I'd wager...
The RAF contingent of the Air Tanker crews can presumably be posted onto the unit, so no factor for them. The civil contingent, meanwhile, will need to be 'attracted' -- why would anybody expect different?
If Air Tanker propose a weak package, there'll be limited take-up. Simples.
On the other hand, let's assume that the package does turn out to be uncompetitive due to the pervasive view that 'if it matters that much to someone, they're not the type we want'. If any civvie (ex-mil or not) applies despite a poor package based on the notion that it is some kind of 'noble cause' or that they are somehow 'doing their bit for Queen and country', consider this; isn't it the case that only 'some' of the AT assets will be at the RAF's disposal at any one time? Presumably, the rest of the time will be spent flying civilian charters. How would one of these 'noble few' feel after spending some* of their time flying normal, hum-drum civilian charters in competition with guys getting paid lots* more for the same work? Not very noble any more, I'd suspect...
* = speculative guesses, for the sake of making an example
The RAF contingent of the Air Tanker crews can presumably be posted onto the unit, so no factor for them. The civil contingent, meanwhile, will need to be 'attracted' -- why would anybody expect different?
If Air Tanker propose a weak package, there'll be limited take-up. Simples.
On the other hand, let's assume that the package does turn out to be uncompetitive due to the pervasive view that 'if it matters that much to someone, they're not the type we want'. If any civvie (ex-mil or not) applies despite a poor package based on the notion that it is some kind of 'noble cause' or that they are somehow 'doing their bit for Queen and country', consider this; isn't it the case that only 'some' of the AT assets will be at the RAF's disposal at any one time? Presumably, the rest of the time will be spent flying civilian charters. How would one of these 'noble few' feel after spending some* of their time flying normal, hum-drum civilian charters in competition with guys getting paid lots* more for the same work? Not very noble any more, I'd suspect...
* = speculative guesses, for the sake of making an example
Last edited by Charley; 18th Feb 2011 at 21:10. Reason: Stated something that I can't now find the reference for.
Nicely put Charley.
It's going to be the same with maintenance staff - If the conditions aren't right they'll walk at the first oportunity and the RAF will have to put more blokes into it or lose the AOC and/or 145/M Approvals.
In the end it will be another RAF maintenance drain by paying extra for the use of the aircraft and losing more and more manpower to the scheme.
If the pay AND conditions aint right the blokes wont move. Talk to anyone, inside or out, there's no "vocational" reason to do this, in these economically sensitive times, anymore.
There will never be a shortage of RAF volunteers as they will always see it a a way to earn a ticket and move to civvy street, like many of the pilots.
It's going to be the same with maintenance staff - If the conditions aren't right they'll walk at the first oportunity and the RAF will have to put more blokes into it or lose the AOC and/or 145/M Approvals.
In the end it will be another RAF maintenance drain by paying extra for the use of the aircraft and losing more and more manpower to the scheme.
If the pay AND conditions aint right the blokes wont move. Talk to anyone, inside or out, there's no "vocational" reason to do this, in these economically sensitive times, anymore.
There will never be a shortage of RAF volunteers as they will always see it a a way to earn a ticket and move to civvy street, like many of the pilots.