Oggin,

We are on the same wavelength - there should be more use made of the facilities through more integration, not less.

sw

This seems so obvious that I'm astonished that anyone can't see it, let alone that professional military aviators are arguing the point.

I can see that co-locating AWC and the OEUs is a good plan, but they haven't done that.

I'd think that moving the AWC to Boscombe, and the OEUs, and making Boscombe the 'T&E Hub' might be a good plan.

I'd deploy frontline squadrons there, using those HASs, much more often, though, and make sure that the TPs and OEUs visited the frontline bases more often.

Simple if you don't bother yourself with informed knowledge!

Ah, but Jacko, you are forgetting the first rule of MOD planning - discard the logical option.

sw

Jacko,

You are raising the obvious but forgetting the reality.

Boscombe would be hard pressed to host all OEUs, if one goes there, logic says they should all go there. That will cost money, MOD has a difficulty with that commodity currently.

The HAS sites are unlikely to be usable for flying ops. Places to store things, yes, but when were they last serviced? As Farnborough flying moved to Boscombe, we lived in a hardened Ops Complex initially. All the infrastructure failed after about 2 weeks of use, no electrics, no ventilation - wonderful example of cheapest contract strikes again! God help the USAF F111 guys had they needed to use the sites for real.

Liaison with front line units for tps has been an issue for ages. We had a scheme running years ago, 1970s, but it caused the front line grief in coping, even then, and releasing busy tps was always an issue. Moreover, the tps work on systems 5-25 years ahead, what relevance is 'legacy' operational tactics and methods?

The flight test world needs stability, it has been change and change again since the early 1990s, let the system settle and bring on the younger FTEs etc. The UK flight test organisation already has its foundations built on sand, the essential, experienced flight test engineering expertise is rapidly approaching retirement, without sensible management all will collapse in a few years time.

lm

Apparently going to be Apr 08 for FJTS.
:(
sw