You know you have become a third rate Air Force when....
 

..... Your shiny new fighter aircraft have to be trailed around the work by someone else's tanker force. (RAF News Friday 12 Apr 13. Italian AF KC-767 trail 1 (F) Sqn to Malaysia). :rolleyes:

Props start falling off basic trainers :uhoh:

Three successive graduations from RAF Cranwell that didn't include a single pilot :(

You know you have become a third rate Air Force when....
 

You don't have an airborne jamming capability.
You don't have an MPA capability.
You don't have a CSAR/TRAP (or credible PR) capability.

To name but 3.

Sun:{

Ahh, but you do have lots and lots of senior officers, who's job titles are a string of meaningless letters, and must therefore be very important.

Sounds like a Third World African State, remember the bling, they need lots of bright gold braid and lots of tinware, they need to look important even if they have nothing to command...

Wednesday afternoon sport stopped.
The BBMF is wheeled-out at Air Power demos.
Capability delivery is measured in numbers of bombs dropped rather that tonnage.
FJ pilots started flying fewer hours a month than most people work in a day.

Every aircraft type has its own airfield and there is still room to share.

When did it start?

Wed Sport
 

Get some time in Pub User!

3rd Rate
 

When far too many of the stations you were posted to are now closed as RAF bases:

Swinderby
Kinloss
Finningley
Gutersloh
Aldergrove

That's just 29 years of my RAF life down the drain!

Not closed - Odiham (dump)
Benson (Not bad)
Shawbury (Pretty good)

Ho hum?

You openly brag on the Defence Intranet about how you feature in the top 57 of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, & Transgender Employers in the UK.:D

Not enough for BEagle to moan about!:ok:

CG

You know you have become a third rate Air Force when....
 

There are more ATC Cadets than Airmen.
Most of your commanders only have Jubilee medals.
Additional duties take priority over flying.

I could go on..............

...there are probaly fewer `active` pilots in the RAF now, than the number of Squadrons we once had....

You are in the RAF.

The RFC was a better outfit, by far.

Just ask Biggles, the Professor, and Algy. :ok:

You know you are third rate when you bring a 5th Gen fighter into service thereby giving you some form of first day punch. Thus elevating you from the fourth rate service you were prior.

To be second rate you have to be able to find a warship and sink it.;)

.

And you award pilots wings to people who don't actually fly aeroplanes. :eek: :ugh: :mad:
.

..when you actually worry about silly articles submitted by retired officers and devote threads to refuting them - rather than giving Sharkey (OOps I mentioned the evil entity) a patronising ignoring.

Unhappy Days.
 

Well folks,
It sounds like things are pretty 'Crook in Tularook'. Same gig in Aus.
Lots of brass and no kit. I am long out of the service (1974) but we did have three Sqns. of Victor tankers. One enjoyed servicing 'Frightnings, Buccs, Jumpers, Vulcans, Chocolate Bombers, Tombs and our NATO cousins.
Chins up and have a fine English ale. I shall be at Duxford in July doing same.
I am addicted to Spits, Hurris et al.
BBMF with 6 merlins at one hit. Beautiful.

Per Ardua ad Everything,

D.