Absolutely I would. I may joke about chinning it off for AT, but in reality it is a valuable additional activity in our quiver.
It’s just that in its current state it is unsustainable because the effort:reward ratio is all wrong.
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Something that might help add I have suggested before and in the survey, is if each VGS and AEF had assigned a dedicated small team of CFAVs (5 - 6), so there could always be 2 available on flying days.
These CFAVs would be responsible for providing concurrent activity, supervision and admin.
That way Sqns dont have to do transport.
Parents can take and drop cadets.
This team of non flying CFAVs would look after the cadets and provide the concurrent activity during the day.
Reduces Sqn burden to a minimum.
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Of course the down side is it would boost the already planet sized egos of the uberkinde skygod breathen as they would see themselves as ‘too good to do any of that’… oh wait they already do.
Mandatory social reeducation for these muppets required.
Maybe a mandatory ultilearn module for them.
That works fine if you live within 30-45 mins of the place they are flying from…
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I think your more likely to get Parents be keen to drive 2 hours there and 2 hours back for their kid to do 20 minutes of flying than you are staff members.
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I do wonder what the experience was that you had that breeds such a strong distaste of VGS CFAV
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Ok. Everyone can ignore the majority of @Drainingtheswamp as they are clearly baiting and trolling.
@Paracetamol you need to tone down your language and rhetoric too. Try and be constructive rather than insult people.
Constructive feedback.
Have every aef and vgs pilot spend a minimum time on Sqns per year supporting admin.
That way they have a better ‘understanding’.
Else to quote Shania Twain… “that dont impressing me much”.
@pep how so? Is an alternative view or opinion to yours trolling or baiting then? Nothing I have said is inaccurate or a realistic possible future.
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I can’t speak for @Paracetamol, but I can share my own experience.
I’ve only had one interaction with VGS since joining as staff, escorting cadets for an afternoon of PTT - a mix of blue and bronze.
The quality of the training I observed was, quite frankly, abismal.
The “ground school” presentations were uninteresting and poorly delivered - a cadet that had completed presentation skills would have done a better job.
The presentations were delivered to the whole group of cadets (despite them being at different levels), leading to boredom before we’d started.
As we went through the afternoon, I asked if I could observe one of the PTT sessions. The instructor agreed. What followed really shocked and disappointed me.
The session delivered was a bronze session. The cadet (not from my squadron) hadn’t had any interaction with flight controls since completing blue about 6 months prior (they’d been very lucky to get a follow up slot so soon).
The cadet struggled with straight and level flight. The instructor progressed on regardless, trying to get them into turns and circuits within the allotted (20 minute ?) timeframe.
Both the cadet and instructor (a senior instructor at the unit) became increasingly frustrated. The cadet ended the session almost in tears, having had their confidence severely affected.
During the day, I also had a brief interaction with the unit’s adj. They were… unhelpful… to say the least.
Maybe I caught them on a bad day. But speaking to staff from other local squadrons, this seems to be a fairly representative experience.
Prior to that day, I’d considered looking into joining the VGS, and was looking forward to seeing how VGS operate. Now, I won’t be going back unless cadets would completely miss out because there’s no one else available.
We’re all, hopefully, on the same side here. It just doesn’t often feel like it.
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Maybe that bit?
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Most VGS staff have and do spend time on squadrons.
It’d be worth staff on Sqns doing the same to understand the work that goes on behind the scenes at a VGS. It may just open your eyes on what they do.
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Yeah good luck getting people from my Wing to drive the several hours to our nearest VGS just to watch them do their roles when they could be doing something productive with the cadets in the same time.
I offered. I was told only if I was looking at becoming a permanent volunteer but that I can’t because of childhood asthma. So I’d rather spend what little free time I have to myself at the weekends gliding at the BGA club where that doesn’t seem to be an issue even for the CFI
Did you tell them on the day or the OC later?
This.
Thank you for making me stop feeling like the only one.
It’s almost an unspoken truth how poor the standards are st AEF and VGS.
Like criticising the NHS or something. Just something we cant do in this org as ‘flying is so precious’
To be clear, “some AEFs and VGSs”. I have experienced the opposite.
Just as we don’t want them to tar us with the same brush of “not being bothered about getting cadets flying”, we should be careful to say that there are some fantastic units out there.
I did speak to the instructor politely, yes, and I spoke to my OC to raise up the CoC.
I’m aware of others raising the issue through the CoC appropriately as well.
I’m also very hesitant to act on a single experience - I prefer to give people the benefit of the doubt.
This was my experience at one unit. It does, however, seriously affect how squadron staff “served” by this unit approach gliding activities.
As a cadet, my experiences at different AEF and VGS units were completely different and much more positive. I really hope this is still the case in other parts of the country.
@Paracetamol has two excellent ideas there - CFAV AEF ground staff could reduce supervision burden on the ground and provide additional activities to those waiting, and I agree AEF pilots should do some kind of 5 night minimum local squadron attendance ‘work experience’ in first year or something
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I don’t dispute that, unfortunately we don’t have a VGS anymore. They were Vigilants and got disbanded, why they didn’t convert to Vikings I still don’t understand, BGA fly from the same airfield.