Quote :'Airfield availablity is also an issue'.
Linton on Ouse, Topcliffe, Leeming?

And who's fault is that for closing them all down or selling them off.....?
:ugh:

If they need another airfield for training its got to be Leeming? Unless they can squeeze another unit into Lossie?

Why on earth would they need another airfield?

With the miniscule fleets that MFTS works with surely each and every one of their airfields has spare capacity? Especially when you consider the number of aircraft that were based at them some time ago.

Sure Linton is on C & M but why not Topcliffe? Still notified in the AIP(MIL) and could be used as a SLG vice Leeming. AIP says it's even got a radar.
Also Kinloss could be used as a satellite of Lossie unless the Army have already ruined it, not to mention Leuchars could be reprieved..

Again, for what? The tiny MFTS fleets have plenty of unused space both hangar and dispersal wise at their existing stations. There is no expansion planned, there are no more squadrons coming, the only issue is the continuing non serviceability of the Hawk T2 fleet.

Quite so. A few weeks ago I drove past Barskton Heath and Cranwell mid-week in the middle of the day during excellent weather. No aircraft flying at either station and nothing on the tarmac either...

And on top of this there is an Ascent proposal to dispose of the Prefect and Phenom fleets entirely and have prospective fast jet pilots transition from the new primary trainer (Tutor replacement) directly to the Texan T1 and then the Hawk T2 replacement, and for multi-engine pilots to transition from the primary trainer direct to OCU. I do hope that this proposal is given the disregard that it is due, or the tiny MFTS fleet will be even more ridiculously small.

One hears that EFT students destined for the ME stream now only get about 5 min solo flying on Das Teutor - surely that cannot be correct?

Because the airfields are open and hardly being used.
Use it or lose it.

Hawk
 

The Hawk is doing just fine.

BV

They have to have lunch hours or maybe it was a wednesday.

No more engine issues affecting availability?

LAL
 

Someone stated that ‘the only issue is the continuing non serviceability of the Hawk T2 fleet’.

That is not a true statement. The engine issues have not fully gone away yet but Hawk availability is much improved.

Along with various other disparaging remarks in previous posts it shows that many posters are relying on out of date, incorrect and biased opinions.

BV

" it shows that many posters are relying on out of date, incorrect and biased opinions."

On PPRUNE!!!! My God - I may have to cancel my 3 guinea subscription

Psst: It's only a rumour but don't let on.

I weekend fly with several people who've been through EFT in recent years. One solo circuit is all they got, although one had to repeat the trip so has two! Some are RPAS, another is ME-bound.

One thinks you may have misread what they opined, which I’m so told is just one of several options the enterprise is exploring. If I’ve read the same material as you, then the deletion of Prefect and Phenom would be commensurate with a growth in the Texan fleet in this scenario to deliver what in NATO parlance would be Phase One thru Three? Heresy you say! Where’s the elementary or the multi-engine aeroplane? Guess what, you don’t really need them unless your anchor firmly remains to a system derived from the 1930s.

Air 5428 Phase One PTS has successfully taken ab-initios straight onto PC-21 with ZERO issues at both East Sale and now Pearce with streaming occurring after Phase Two with multi-engine folk going straight to the OCU. Guess what? The kids have coped absolutely fine on C27, C130J, C17, KC30, P8, and E7.

RNZAF just use the Texan as a trainer before students streamed to ME or Heli. Obviously no Fast Jet option.

I never could understand that.
An Air Force with an operational fleet that features exclusively side-by-side crewed aircraft (both fixed & rotary-winged) chooses a tandem-seat trainer.

They wanted much higher performance than the air trainer. Not many side by side options.

And I come back to the point of has it affected the output and input standard just because the instructor isn’t adjacent to you? There’s not a right or wrong answer, the output is what matters, and I suspect with CBL / CBTA it becomes even more moot.

Now then, as air forces shrink the interesting question is where do you set the baseline for entry (aptitude et al) and should the streaming point stay where it is, move left or move right? Some believe you can stream from selection based on empirical data sets. Fascinating times.

AERALIS has just gone into administration! No cash left

Best for MOD to send someone around to `43 Belgrave Square`,to see if they can help...

AERALIS is in administration

Although there is no "OCU" per se for any of these types, I understand your point.
But to follow on, I think we should have a "737 type" OCU for the P-8, E-7 and VIP aircraft to save on circuit-bashing for conversions and continuation to these types. Two or three similar ex-airline 737-7 or -8s could fulfil this role in a dedicated training flight (much like the TAP-3s were able to do) and save on fatigue/hours/effort of the front line units.

RIP Aeralis
 

British firm vying to build next Red Arrows jets collapses https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cpwp11v82lno

Sad but inevitable.

BV

Realistically, a firm only employing 30 people today was not going to be winning the contract, no matter how long winded the MoD are with it.

Any contract will inevitably go to one of the five or so major players.

Thirty? They can’t even tell the truth on that 🙄 although if they include their long list of associates you might get to that number. Mr China 🇨🇳 may now have to find a new advisory role too. Blaming MOD and the DIP delay is disingenuous at best, wait for the we’ll restructure 🤫🫣

For the life of me I cannot understand why the MOD ever thought it might have been a good idea to think a tiny business could somehow provide a fast jet trainer to replace the Hawk.

It sounds like more political posturing to placate a particular section of society, but like the pint bottles of Champagne!

It's only in administration not liquidation so someone like Branson could buy the project (I don't think)

What project?
There's nothing to buy.

There are some pretty graphics and not overly detailed CAD blueprints…….anything down to the ICD level simply does not exist.

Meanwhile, the CAF have announced they will be purchasing the CT 157 Siskin II which is based on the Pilatus PC 21.

If the RAF were smart, they’d ditch Texan at the same time as replacing Hawk by left shifting in the pipeline reducing that what is required in a jet.

Wouldn't the U S Navy have plenty of spare T-45 Goshawks lying around in boneyards in the USA? A dozen of them would help until Healy wins the lottery.

That was announced a while ago https://asiapacificdefencereporter.c...-gen-trainers/. Recent media releases are about purchasing more aircraft as a replacement for the Tutor - IOW Snowbirds.

Careful with your 'Tutors', the Canadian one and the UK one are totally different aircraft.

New Boss and no new Aircraft
 

What a change. Female Wg Cmdr no doubt driven by recent shenanigans by male team members ( Red and Blue) and no new British jet replacement in sight for the Hawk.
Will any British government accept a non British aircraft for the Reds? A turbo prop straight wing?
A 4 aircraft team? Perhaps all female and/or from non white backgrounds to emphasise RAF commitment to DEI?
Or perhaps no national military aerobatic team just role demos by one fighter jet, one transport aircraft and a helicopter flown by regular front line aircrew?
Welcome to the post Cold War Services.