A sad sign of the times...

[Biggus]

I was reading a copy of the RAF News today, No. 1314, priced 70p at newsagents, when I came across an article about graduations. The details of No 29 IOTC caught my eye.

First of all, congratulations to all those that graduated, I hope you have rewarding and successful careers. However....


I must admit I was amazed at the (small) number of RAF officers graduating - just 16! The breakdown was as follows:

ATC -2
Provost/Security - 4
Regiment - 9
Engineer -1

In addition there were 7 international graduating officers, 11 Specialist Entrant and re-Entrants and 7 Reservists.

I graduated many years ago in the days when the RAF was three times bigger than it is today. There were two distinct Sqns as part of my IOTC, each with 8 Flts of approx. 10 students. 160 odd started and about 130 graduated.

I realise that no aircrew are going through IOT at the moment, but 16 seems a very small number, a "sad sign of the times"...

I wonder how small an IOTC can become before it becomes viable, both financially, and in terms of running some of the IOT whole course exercises, camps, etc...

I wonder how the low numbers effected the spectacle of the graduating parade and subsequent ball?

This whole situation really has brought it home to me what a small organization the RAF has become during my time in service...

[Courtney Mil]

I guess we bon't need the two Officer Training units that were running when I went through. Sad times indeed, Biggus.

[Wrathmonk]

I must admit I was amazed at the (small) number of RAF officers graduating - just 16

But how many started....? You never know, perhaps they have raised the standard required to graduate at such a high level that many enter but few pass!

Then again.....with 9 rocks and 4 scuffers it can't be that difficult

[Lima Juliet]

Basic Recruit intakes at RAF Halton have also been very low - circa 60 compared to 100+ not too long ago. Furthermore, I think 1 in every 4 intakes has been cancelled. However, things are on the up so I'm told, the numbers will start increasing from FY13/14 onwards.

- after note - read this Training Increase at Halton for 2013 it would seem recruit intakes are up 35%

I believe one bright spark has been looking at putting all recruit training at one location (probably Cranwell); which is fine whilst numbers are very low as they are at the moment, but in the future it wouldn't work without a massive infra program (££££s). Furthermore, when the New Employment Model reports, and if the rumours are true, then there may well be a bigger 'churn' of personnel.

Anyone would think no-one is capable of strategic planning these days in manning / Air Cmd...

LJ

[AR1]

I can see a situation where IRT/IOT becomes tri-service. Thats already going to happen for technical groundschools so we're almost there.

[iRaven]

I can't see a combined IOT/IRT as the numbers are just too big. If you consider that joint techie training is just one small part of multiple branches within the 3 services - and they're having problem smashing that together on 1 station.

Also, the money question is huge. Brown field sites (like an RAF station) is not worth much at all - nowhere near the money requred to build the facilities needed. Don't forget that the Defence Infra Org and their Regional Prime Contractors are ripping of MOD left, right and centre - paying well over the going rate.

So no, I don't think combined service IOT/IRT will be practicable...IMHO...

iRaven

[Pontius Navigator]

CM, three when I graduated. Aircrew at Cranwell, engineers etc at Henlow and us direct entry rubbish at ITS. In the latter it was around 100 per month.

I am not sure but Cranwell output may have been annual. Maybe it would go that way in the future.

If it did go annual, how do you 'capture' early successful applicants that might have to survive for a year before joining? Maybe they will decide to seek employment elsewhere. Their airships might say 'good' as it proves they were not committed in the first place.

[Blanket Stacker]

Don't forget the ground equivalent of ITS, OCTU. It was at Feltwell when I joined.

[rlsbutler]

PN

My squadron (one of four) had 10 graduating in the summer of 1961. The next entry graduated with fewer numbers in December. Extrapolating like that, from the photo in the loo, I guess Cranwell put up 70 officers per year in your time and mine.

By the way, I seem to remember that Henlow produced only Engineers while, even then, Regiment, Provost, Equippers and Secretaries were part of the Cranwell output - as long as in all cases they were gaining permanent commissions.

R

[Willard Whyte]

Rock Ape?



waiting for the inevitable 'apes have no tails' pedant.

[Not Long Here]

OCTU, Henlow graduated all types in the '70s, not just ground trades

[sisemen]

Obviously I had the best of times!

My graduation in '76



One I instructed on in '84



Millions of faces! Wonder if they're still up on the walls of RAFC?

[500N]

Siseman

I hope the gloves were not that colour in reality,
they look totally out of place.

[Heathrow Harry]

I'm surprised that anyone is surprised.....

If you are issuing redundancy notices and plan to continue to do so for several years AND the final establishment is going to be significantly lower than today it makes sense to throttle back recruitment & training now to forecast replacement levels for say, 2020.

You can up the bar and only take the best of the applicants and be reasonably sure they'll have a career path in front of them

It would be madness to keep training at the levels of the mid '00's is you are thinking of laying them off in a couple of years

[Tankertrashnav]

Then again.....with 9 rocks and 4 scuffers it can't be that difficult

Oi!

Actually I did two courses - the Junior Regiment Officers Course at Catterick in 1965 and the basic and advanced nav courses at Gaydon and Strad in 1969/70.

Didnt shine in either, but I passed out higher on the nav course than the rock one. Neither course was a doss.

Guards WO/SNCO instructors on your course, Siseman, was that a one-off?

500N - I always wondered why we wore brown gloves when black would have been would an obvious choice to wear with blue, but that's how it was/is.

[Tashengurt]

I happen to know one of the 'scuffers' and can safely say that in her case while quantity may be falling, quality isn't.
Well done B!


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[Courtney Mil]

Sisemen,

How did the girls on your course pass with non-standard WRAF legs?

[burnden]

'76 Graduation

Sisemen,

That Graduation in '76 looks like mine on June 24th ! I expanded it and it is mine !! Thanks for sharing.

Nice to see the old faces.

Burnden

[sisemen]

# Unfortunately, yes, the gloves were that colour - probably an overhang from the days of the Royal Flying Corps and its Army origins

# SNCOs were the disci NCOs who trained the cadets for drill etc (and how to behave as young gentlemen/ladies). Sorry TT misinterpreted that one and referenced the wrong pic. On the '76 course the chappies in the red jackets were, from memory, Jamaican Defence Force (Air Force section).

# Depends what you mean by "non standard legs". If you are defining them as 'upside down legs' then we probably got the best of the bunch. But in No 2 pic the girl with the 'upside down legs' was an absolute star. (I married, and subsequently divorced the one next to her - but the less said about that the better!)

# Burnden PM me and see if we can swap notes

[sharpend]

'CM, three when I graduated. Aircrew at Cranwell, engineers etc at Henlow and us direct entry rubbish at ITS. In the latter it was around 100 per month.'

Yup, I too was rubbish... but had a brilliant time. I once flew C in C Strike who I congratulated on his promotion to such an exhaulted rank (plus a knighthood). He replied that he would rather be doing what I was doing as a very lowly Spec Aircrew Sqn Ldr.