I've heard from my man on the inside that it is due to a lack of money, and that there won't be a resumption 'for the foreseeable future'.

Where are you talking about? There is an airfield that requires maintenance that will be funded this year. To imply that AEF flying has run out of money is scurrilous nonsense. I really do think that this nonsense should be put to bed.

'I know a man who knows a man who was told by his boss's cleaner' come on, really? Go to the source and find out for yourself what is real, or do you prefer spreading nasty rumours?

beardy

The Tutor fleet is a pooled asset, shared between Elementary Flight Training, (top priority), University Air Squadrons, (second priority) and the Air Cadets, (bottom of the pile).

When the hours on the aircraft are getting low, or the Tutor fleet pot of money is running out, who do you think is chopped first?

You say it is scurrilous nonsense because you know the real reason Air Cadet powered flying has stopped? Please tell us.

Like speaking to someone quite senior in the organisation?.........oh yeah, I've done that.

Air cadet powered flying has not stopped. I am still doing it, weekend as well.
And since you asked 8AEF.

Now which AEF is curtailing cadet flying, apart from Woodvale which has airfield problems?

5 and 7 AEF as of last weekend

Sky Sports,


The Grob Prefect is replacing the Tutor as an elementary trainer, so by your reckoning they have just moved up one notch in terms of priority.

The airframes are a shared asset, but each role has a contracted number of hours and rate. I doubt that, over the contract period, the hours allocated to the AEF have not, nor will, change.

I can understand how what looks like a temporary, local problem appears worse than it is especially after watching the gliding debacle from afar. It must be frustrating on a daily basis. But from where I sit there is no change to AEF cadet flying policy nor hours.

RAF Woodvale airfield has been a contracted operation for years, what has changed?

I understand that essential maintenance is required to the operating surfaces.

OK, I see, thanks beardy.

That's quite a good question - and the answer is that it depends on your needs and whatever it is that you describe as legal.

In my opinion there is no legal requirements for any safety-related information page. Using a FB Page is as legal as any police notepad, closed website or service codebook. The use of a suitable forum may only need to be a procedural requirement (if written into procedures)

I was once part of an international group of companies that required me to join FB to discuss flight safety issues and processes for 400+ aircraft and 5000 personnel across 13 quite diverse states. I had never been on FB before, but became a user quite quickly as it helps keep in touch with distant extremes of our families. I still use it.

The XXX Flight Safety Forum worked well for a while but ceased when taken over by another company that did the same thing in another, more expensive, way. Possibly more secure, but certainly a lot more expensive!

A secure FB page is simple to set up, easy to secure and monitor, easy (for permitted people) to access from the widest variety of portable devices and easy to quickly share information and also to discuss issues with a fair amount of privacy.

Your statement assumes that EFT will cease to be taught on the Tutor. :=

According to the chat over on the Air Cadet Central forum, the 'pause' has been lifted at all AEF's, bar 2.

There was no 'pause' at all AEFs.

I wonder what the issue was, EMUAS and 7 AEF who were absent from the Cranwell skies the last two weekends, are planning to fly this weekend.

Air Cadet Central
 

I have just been over to Air Cadet Central :sad::sad:

The users of ACO gliding and flying (Air Cadets and Adult Volunteers) seem very unhappy with what has been going on in the Air Cadets since the "pause".

It appears to have started when OC 2FTS grounded the glider fleet without a plan, either short term or now, long term. The glider fleet has been destroyed, with some Volunteer Gliding Squadrons killed off. The adult volunteers are complaining about the mushroom treatment from on high and are voting with their feet! They get promises of AEF gliding and flying which appear not to come to fruition. Seems they have run out of excuses to give to the cadets' parents as to why in the two/four years that little Johnnie has been in the Air Cadets he has not had the opportunity to fly!

....and to cap it all they have removed the RAFVR(T) Commissions and replaced them with what the users are referring to as plastic commissions (rather like plastic policemen).....

Oh dear, oh dear. Nobody at the top (the very top) comes out of this smelling of roses. But after nearly four years of this (pause) debacle you can understand why!

I wonder how many airframes Southern Sailpanes have recovered since they were awarded the contract?

I did not realise how important the recovery of our ACO gliders was to national security and for the training of RAF pilot recruits. How stupid of me!

When the moaning stops be afraid.....

That's when the walking starts.

recovered airframes
 

It is 'rumoured' that SS have actually sorted around 20 airframes, but most of these have not 'filtered' back to a VGS (Gliding) unit.
I suspect that there is a shortage of both current and experienced staff to actually run several Viking operations other than at Syerston itself.
Many of the original staff will have 'aged out' and of course there has been little or no chance for serious training for any 'new influx'.
Much has been made of the use of the PTT, but of course no one is fooled to think that this is a serious replacement for actual flying.
Syerston seems to be growing into a mega centre with plenty of higher ranks and fancy titles, but the simple fact is THE PLOT HAS BEEN LOST,THE HORSE HAS BOLTED, and no one has a clue as to what to do to remedy this appalling situation. Without any credible leadership at the top and indeed any direction from anyone who has any idea of what they have thrown away the future must be slightly worrying for those left trying to hold the Cadet Squadrons together. The whole ATC 'Flying' theme is going to be a distant memory as the 'electronic' experience will become the future and replace the 'hands on' operation as we knew it.

As I think I have said several times on here, the whole point of the ATC was to give some young men that tremendous lift to their personal confidence the day they flew alone in an aeroplane. There is NOTHING that can replace that. AEF is all very well, but hands on flying beats it every time.

I think it is high time that 'rumours' of whatever kind are replaced with honest statements about whether there is actually going to be any glider flying.

Shouldn't this post now read: Air Cadets STILL Grounded ?.

Airframes recovered
 

24+ airframes out of SS to date. Although SS are the only 'approved' company doing the actual work they have to 'work' under the auspices of the 'larger' fish in the system which does not speed things up.
So the airframes are out there, but not much in evidence yet.
Lots of 'containers' appearing at 626.

Totally agree.(But don't forget the girls too)

Olympia 463
 

Olympia it would seem to me that you are showing your age a bit with your “ young men “ comments, the ATC has been open to female cadets for as long as I can remember.

Take my advice and refer to the cadets as young people that way you can stay on the right side of the PC brigade and not offend males ,females and those who are not sure.

"Higher ranks with fancy titles"
Retired RAF officers with military pensions and who are friends of the group captain?
Its only taxpayers money after all.

Sorry if I excluded the girls senior moment. I trained many girls to fly in civilian gliding clubs and was the 'go to' instructor for girls in one club.

I was authorised to recruit female cadets wef 1 Jan 85 (1811 Marlow Sqdn); other squadrons were a few years earlier. The criteria was the squadron HQ must have at least 2 toilets, one of which must be females only.
This meant those squadrons with 'new build' standard huts were the first to take on girls as they already had 2 toilets whereas my building being an old TA Centre had only the one toilet, so they converted a small storeroom next to it to a second toilet complete with an incinerator!

Over half are out in the "field" with more bunching to go to the next stand up site and a handful in acceptance checks. They aren't all sat at syerston doing nothing.

As for aging out not all the VGS were in the crusty zone at the start of the pause and even at the end have an average age in the late 20's not mid 60's

Tinger

You seem to have your finger on the pulse. Which site(s) are stood up at the moment ?, which sites are next, how many aircraft and winches at each site, how many staff and can you give a picture of how things are going 'on the ground' ?

I'm genuinely interested.


Thanks

Arc

622 @ Upavon
637 @ Little Riss (621 embedded
644 @ Syerston
645 @ Topcliffe (631 embedded)

Are all cleared to fly cadets

632 are flying at Ternhill with CGS doing RTF, all of which is freely publicised on their Facebook pages. 3 ac assigned to the sites, varies with maintenance obviously.

No idea how many instructors at each site but enough to be operating autonomously

Tinnger (spelt correctly this time)

That is encouraging news.

Thanks for the update.

Regards

Arc

Arclite

Try two G's and one N

ACW

Doh !!

I was trying to be nice - honest Guv !!

Arc

Only another 7858 hits and this thread reaches 1 million !

Well, I'll add to the total by saying it would be very nice to see 615 active again at Kenley before the swifts arrive this year. Please...

615? Not before JM builds his fence to keep the dog walkers out!

The Kenley 'Fence'
 

Rather a conflict of interest's here as the City of London 'commons' own the land and want the public to have greater scope to explore this historic site.

No doubt even now someone will be 'reading' the lease to see who has the right to do what.
Because the public can now access the location from many different places the fencing would have to be 'comprehensive' and quite costly.
In fact they have already spent thousands on a previous fence which proved to be unsuitable.
In practice once ATC gliding starts again the public will get used to the situation and it should not be a reason to curtail activities.
The 'listed' blast bays are well away from the operational area and the old camp area under private ownership. Me thinks it is the responsibility of the City of London to 'secure' their area of interest without reducing the operational part of the airfield. Be interesting to see how 2FTS play this one as they are now the 'authority' for the MOD interest's at the location.
There are few safety case's for a fence as it could be said they are a hazard to aviation when close to an operational area, and the aviation interest should be paramount whilst the MOD keep the lease active.

They should fence it in accordance with the old AM blocks which are still to be found in the undergrowth in my view :-)

Seriously though, there does need to be some sort of barrier because sooner or later someone will be hurt either because of operations or because of their own stupidity.................. either way it will put the tin hat on operations at Kenley and will have wider ramifications.

So lets get the fence built - I expect JM is currently saying 'We will build a fence - and the City of London will pay for it.....................' (one for all you Trumpsters out there)

Arc

Fencing at Kenley
 

Kenley is already limited in size and any fencing should be more of a frangible statement of no go area's rather than a stock proof construction. This famous survivor of 100 years of RAF service deserves some special consideration so it remains 'in use' for Cadet flying.
Whilst still in use it has 'life' and what more fitting place to enthuse Cadets; it having served our country so well in two major conflicts.
I feel a watershed has arrived that should 'protect' its place for future generations of both young aviators and the 'walkers' that both can respect its place in our history.
If the City of London play it correctly it will only enhance the location for the future, as an unique time warp of modern history at a time when the whole of our country was in real peril. It was a typical 'British' solution to an immediate need, and was born into conflict despite it being a Surrey common.
Its main test came in 1940 and it played its part in keeping this country free at a time when all seemed lost. The Luftwaffe failed to kill it off in Aug 1940 so I dammed sure we will not let current 'crats' try it again. The 'fretwork fighters' kept an aviation presence for decades lets hope the 'Vikings' rise again to carry on the fight.

Pobjoy, I am with you on that, had a number of great days at Kenley accompanying cadet from 1924(Shirley) some years back.