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Reported Pause in RAF White Recruiting To Meet Diversity Targets

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Reported Pause in RAF White Recruiting To Meet Diversity Targets

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Old 17th Aug 2022, 22:39
  #101 (permalink)  
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BBC2 Newsnight has just run an item on this. I doubt I heard anything said that hasn't already been said here.
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Old 17th Aug 2022, 22:39
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Just watched BBC Newsnight talking about this and their RAF veteran “expert” was none other than Sophy Gardner (now with a different name of Anthrobus) who got a political flaming back in 2015 on this very forum: Ex-GR Nav, Wg Cdr (Retd) Paul Smyth, to run for Parliament

The BBC had a picture of a F15 for their main backdrop, too. Showing the usual (poor) quality of their research. They had Sophy making out she was Aircrew having ‘been chopped and become an Air Ops Officer (Flight Ops in her day). She also really had very little of value to add and it was clear she knew nothing about the current furore!

The saddest thing is that motor-mouth Tim Davies of Fast Jet Performance was originally asked and then blanked by the woke BBC, who instead took Ms Gardner instead. The irony was not lost in the following exchange on Facebook from Tim:



Pretty much demonstrating why someone more sharp witted and also better equipped to challenge the MOD and the BBC at their own game was needed, rather than the demonstrably lacklustre guest that they actually used.

Classic irony, Tim
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Old 17th Aug 2022, 22:53
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Knew Sophy back in the day. Lovely person, nice lady and just a wonderful individual.

However, she never unfortunately never made aircrew and therefore has no experienced opinion about the current situation.

She may believe she knows what is happening, but she does not.
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Old 17th Aug 2022, 23:14
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https://www.wombat-womenincombat.com...-sophy-gardner

She'd joined the RAF with the firm intention of becoming a pilot. After completing her officer's training course at RAF Cramwell, she moved on to learning basic combat and manoeuvre flying, selected for the fast jet training on a Hawk. Unfortunately I failed the very last hurdle: the tactical weapon phase.” Although she could have converted to another aircraft, a personal tragedy decided otherwise and she stopped piloting. “You know, once you've flown a Hawk at 500mph, flying a civilian aircraft at 100mph is not very exciting,” she tells me during our Skype exchange. Because she had plenty of time on her hands whilst awaiting other training courses, she returned to Cambridge to do a MPhil in European Studies where she investigated how air power is used in peace-keeping operations.
if she found flying a civi aircraft afterwards not very exciting, her desk must have been something else.
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Old 17th Aug 2022, 23:22
  #105 (permalink)  
 
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In her 20 years in the RAF Sophy became the first woman to hold every job she had, from running flight operations on an aircraft carrier, to head of the RAF's transport and refuelling operations squadron, to her final job as head of the operations wing at RAF Valley on the island of Anglesey in Wales.
Really? I wish the lady well, but perhaps the meeja has over-egged her career history?
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 01:54
  #106 (permalink)  
 
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Wow. If you’re a white male, why would you even want to serve in the RAF after such a blatant insult?
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 05:50
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AAGPilot

The answer to your question is that those white males still need to pay the bills. For many/most people now it is just a job. Not a way of life. Resigning on principle is all very well if you have somewhere else to go and another way to pay the bills. Once those white males find a better offer though, the RAF is in trouble.

I cannot think of a clearer way to indicate how extreme this can end up than to use a similar example from some of my new colleagues from the South African Air Force. Just ask yourself why so many of the white South African QFIs end up working in the Middle East. The truth lies within.

BV
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 06:37
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Originally Posted by Baldeep Inminj
In 2010 I informed the RAF that I was converting to Jedi’ism (really) and applied for new dog tags with ‘Jedi’ on then. I was refused by HQ personnel on the basis that ‘Jedi’ism is a belief system and not a religion’. I fail to see the difference myself.
I have Jedi on my dog tags, they did not even question the request. The padre even included Jedi in her serviced oveeseas for me.
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 06:50
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Things have certainly changed a bit over the years........


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Old 18th Aug 2022, 08:32
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https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/r...hief-tkjsfcch6

The Chief Of Staff Personnel and Air Secretary AVM Byford
said she is “unashamed” of a policy that could mean women and ethnic minorities in effect being prioritised for roles over white men.

Air Vice-Marshal Maria Byford, one of the most senior ranking women in the military, said she had “slowed” down the recruitment process for all candidates after figures showed the air force was not hitting diversity targets.
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 08:38
  #111 (permalink)  
 
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Originally Posted by thegirlformazzy
I have Jedi on my dog tags, they did not even question the request. The padre even included Jedi in her serviced oveeseas for me.
I’m afraid the term ‘JEDI’ is now lost to us as well. The ‘J’ apparently stands for ‘justice’, and you won’t have any trouble guessing what E, D, and I stand for.
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 10:27
  #112 (permalink)  

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Hang on, I don't want to be protected by a force that reflects society! That's irrelevant to me! I want to be protected by the best that society has to offer.
Reminds me of a conversation I had with my USAF opposite number some years ago in the Gulf (or SWA as he insisted on calling it).

He was then proudly stating that the USAF's aim then (2002) was for a "force that reflected their society"

Teeters: Then why doesn't that apply to your Olympic track and field team?

USAF chap: Well, that's different, we've got to have the best........

Teeters: ????????

Examples would be the British Indian and Chinese communities, in which educational attainment levels are far higher than the national average and in which military service is viewed as a low status career,
and that reminded me of a conversation I had some years ago with a young, very bright female Air Cadet of Indian heritage.

YVBFAC: I really wanted to join the RAF to fly, but the family told me (sic) that I was going to be a doctor.

Moi: And?

YVBFAC: (With cheeky grin) I persuaded them that once I'd qualified (as a doctor) I could become a RAF Medical Officer - and maybe then still fly!!

I hope she succeeded.
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 11:04
  #113 (permalink)  
 
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AVM Byford

On so many levels, what astoundingly horrific leadership. She will probably alienate and aggravate multiple generations of current and future personnel, of all genders and ethnicities, with that statement.

Thank God she’s on our side (sarcasm).

BV
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 12:04
  #114 (permalink)  
 
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Originally Posted by Bob Viking
On so many levels, what astoundingly horrific leadership. She will probably alienate and aggravate multiple generations of current and future personnel, of all genders and ethnicities, with that statement.
The best way to appreciate air power, war fighting, guile and leadership is by sitting someone down, who is a practitioner in these skills, in a big chair before prodding their gums and announcing a hygiene score. Only a true dentist has the knowledge gained in this way to actively reshape the recruitment and retention of our current and future aviators & warfare specialists, no matter the concerns of the ladies and gentlemen who serve beneath her.

Occlusal and incisal are the new teeth of the RAF. Bicuspids welcome.


🦷
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 13:05
  #115 (permalink)  
 
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Originally Posted by Bob Viking
The answer to your question is that those white males still need to pay the bills. For many/most people now it is just a job. Not a way of life. Resigning on principle is all very well if you have somewhere else to go and another way to pay the bills. Once those white males find a better offer though, the RAF is in trouble.

I cannot think of a clearer way to indicate how extreme this can end up than to use a similar example from some of my new colleagues from the South African Air Force. Just ask yourself why so many of the white South African QFIs end up working in the Middle East. The truth lies within.

BV
I definitely understand that people have bills to pay. I was more so referring to future recruits.
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 13:26
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I suspect this post may be slightly controversial, but here goes

IMHO there are certain roles in the RAF that actually matter, and others that matter far 'less'. Aircrew matter. Air Trafficer's matter...amongst others of course. Get your job wrong and there are immediate and possibly fatal consequences.

Admin staff? Stackers?...In my experience they were usually obstructive and incompetent anyway so who really cares if we are not picking people for such roles based on ability?

If the RAF simply must increase diversity, then I still don't see that it needs to be across the board - as in 'every single trade'. Why not continue to select the most talented, even if they are white males, for the jobs that really matter, and then meet the ridiculous diversity targets by recruiting the 'targeted groups' into areas where they can do little damage if they are not up to the job? I mean, lets face it, when I went to stores to get something I needed, I fully expected to be told that they either didn't have it, didn't have my size, or did not accept that I needed it. When I asked PSF to do something, I fully expected it to be late (if done at all) and incorrect. I survived! Why not recruit to meet diversity targets into areas such as these (and I am NOT suggesting that 'diverse' people are less competent, just that if diversity is to become the main recruitment criteria, then it follows that ability may drop).

This way, the war fighters stay competent and able to survive the ultimate Darwinian environment that is combat, and the people from whom I never expected or received much in the way of service anyway can help the RAF stay WOKE, Rainbow coloured and all nice and fluffy.

Just my thoughts...
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 13:37
  #117 (permalink)  
 
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Originally Posted by Baldeep Inminj
I suspect this post may be slightly controversial, but here goes

IMHO there are certain roles in the RAF that actually matter, and others that matter far 'less'. Aircrew matter. Air Trafficer's matter...amongst others of course. Get your job wrong and there are immediate and possibly fatal consequences.

Admin staff? Stackers?...In my experience they were usually obstructive and incompetent anyway so who really cares if we are not picking people for such roles based on ability?

If the RAF simply must increase diversity, then I still don't see that it needs to be across the board - as in 'every single trade'. Why not continue to select the most talented, even if they are white males, for the jobs that really matter, and then meet the ridiculous diversity targets by recruiting the 'targeted groups' into areas where they can do little damage if they are not up to the job? I mean, lets face it, when I went to stores to get something I needed, I fully expected to be told that they either didn't have it, didn't have my size, or did not accept that I needed it. When I asked PSF to do something, I fully expected it to be late (if done at all) and incorrect. I survived! Why not recruit to meet diversity targets into areas such as these (and I am NOT suggesting that 'diverse' people are less competent, just that if diversity is to become the main recruitment criteria, then it follows that ability may drop).

This way, the war fighters stay competent and able to survive the ultimate Darwinian environment that is combat, and the people from whom I never expected or received much in the way of service anyway can help the RAF stay WOKE, Rainbow coloured and all nice and fluffy.

Just my thoughts...
Is it just me? How do you keep that username?
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 13:40
  #118 (permalink)  
 
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Baldeep

Sometimes the uncomfortable things need to be said! However, that is why we are in this mess and discussing this topic in the first place. Because nobody is willing to say what needs to be said.

Dare I say it, but promoting a dentist to the upper echelons of our service may, in retrospect, prove to be an error!

BV
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 13:57
  #119 (permalink)  
 
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Originally Posted by Baldeep Inminj
I suspect this post may be slightly controversial, but here goes

IMHO there are certain roles in the RAF that actually matter, and others that matter far 'less'. Aircrew matter. Air Trafficer's matter...amongst others of course. Get your job wrong and there are immediate and possibly fatal consequences.

Just my thoughts...
Actually the first on your list should have been Engineers, because without them your pilot is a pedestrian in naff sunglasses and your ATC will be growing tomato's in their greenhouse.

Just saying.....
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Old 18th Aug 2022, 14:12
  #120 (permalink)  
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