ADF Aviation
 

As a new immigrant it is interesting to see the ADF pushing pilot roles quite heavily, I even saw an advert at the cinema the other day. Is there a significant pilot shortage or shortage of applicants? Does this mean those of us thinking of applying will have an 'easier' selection, common sense says no. However if they can't encourage enough people to apply then there would have to be a 're-alignment of standards' to enable a consistent number in training. Or is there a tolerance of shortages?

Wishful Thinking
 

I can see how you could arrive at that conclusion given the amount of advertising out there for ADF Pilot roles, and having been through the process, I can assure you that the standards benchmark hasn't been lowered.
The purpose of the ads is to put the idea of becoming an ADF Pilot in as many heads as possible to encourage them to apply, thus giving the ADF the biggest pool of applicants from which they can select the best using the tried and proven methods of past years. There is never going to be a shortage of applicants. I've seen figures that say of 2200 applicants over the last 2 years, 112 made it onto a course. There is a fair buffer there to play with.
Also this isn't a new phenomonon either, it has been a heavily advertised position as long as I've been alive.
All the best.
Upgraded

I can only speak from the point of view of someone who is going through the process currently, but from what I've experienced between 10 years ago when I first applied and now the only area they are becoming a little more tolerant is with the medical fitness and age.

Case in point - I am slightly short sighted (6/9 measured by recruiting's recommended eye doctor) Ten years ago I was automatically rejected because my eyesight was not 6/6 or better whereas today they have medically passed me. T'was a happy day when I found that out... :ok:

I doubt however their standards of selection in terms of personal attributes and commitment to the RAAF won't change simply because the training requirements haven't changed and flight hours still cost $$$. I recall reading an article that quoted the CO of 2OCU at the time saying they have no quotas for passing through the F/A18 Conversion Course - if they all meet the required standards they go through, and conversely if none of them do then they won't be passed.

Of course I'd love to hear more from those in the system as I'm not there yet (waiting for a Flight Screening position)

As for tolerance of shortages - Wasn't there a time in the early to mid 1990s when the RAAF had a grand total of 8 F111 and 43 F/A18 pilots that were actually out in the squadrons and flying (i.e. not elsewhere flying desks)?

I thought that was probably the case. Anyway the other day I downloaded the guidelines for testing, not wishing to seem obtuse, it would appear that the testing for atc and air defence is more comprehensive than for pilot and observer, namely an extra battery of mental arithmetic questions. would I be right in assuming that there is more to pilot/observer testing than is stated in the guide, and that we poor applicants being lured into a false sense of security?