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Surely the same argument then should be that everyone gets the same pay, regardless of their job? WTF should a group captain get more than an SAC? Outranking other people and having to be responsible for them etc is surely offset by the generally better standard of living, greater freedom to determine ones own working week, and inner joy at the way even your worst jokes attract an audience response that makes you think you could have Frnakie Boyle on the run.

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Whilst the meat-bomb baiting is obviously entertaining, you clowns are missing the essential point of this matter completely.

Specialist pay is rarely a massive incentive to join a particular branch/regiment/ship but is, without doubt, a massive retention measure.

If we take the example of flying pay for pilots, the only spec. pay on which I am qualified to talk, the simple fact is that if flying pay is deleted then pilots will walk. And without pilots we won't have much of an Air Force. Allow me to elaborate.

In a time where I see many of my colleagues been squeezed into desk jobs as their next posting to an aircraft has vanished in the wake of the SDSR cuts, how many of those talented people do you think would stay if it meant a 25% pay cut? Now add into that the blossoming of civilian aircrew recruiting, the subterranean level of morale in all but the Typhoon force, and the reduction in capabilities and bases already announced, and seriously who would stay?

Quite simply the answer is very few, probably none of those squeezed into ground jobs. And then, my pedigree chums, we are fuc£ed. Good job we've got plenty of young, naive and cheap pilot recruits in the training system to take their places...oh no thats right, we sacked half of them, and gave the other half a thoroughly good brief on how **** the RAF is at personnel management.

You can debate the rights, wrongs and where-with-alls of the argument, but you cannot argue the facts: If you force someone into a ground job and then force a pay cut on them, pilots will leave, fact.

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