The thing is, I think that the Sector Commander (ex-sqn boss) & probably OC Wg, know that I will do exactly that if I need to.
I got 2 massive hits against 2FTS for ACTO35; the bigger they are, the harder they fall.
Hangfire. Weâve a whole thread dedicated to not having dogs on squadron⌠
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Unsure how much of an update this is past what is already know, but I have spoken to Comdt Air Cadets today regarding this.
He said that Tayside went under a few days after the contract was renewed. Apparently a bidding process for a new contractor was opened and has subsequently closed and that there have been some applications. He said they will get 2FTS in to check suitability of whoever these applicants are and also go through safeguarding processes etc.
When asked about timeline he suggested sometime around the New Year, as Comdt 2FTS also suggested in the previous letter to successful ACPS applicants.
It was only a brief conversation so I apologise for not being able to provide/get any further info.
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Sounds like the party line.
Shame you didnât have the chance to ask about the cadets who will age out.
still makes me question what assurances and checks were made that Tayside were well placed to be awarded the contractor - or is this simply âthey have always had it and not messed up so weâll just renewâ
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But how many companies go bust without people knowing 
, what about Wilco, RBS, etc
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i have no clue.
but during the due diligence checks is there not some form of audit showing the company is in a good state�
before i commit to purchasing ÂŁ500k of services from you, i would like assurance that you can provide such a service and the business is in good shape to provide it
If that was done why was it not spotted that within a week it all fell apart?
auditing a company is not unusual, my employer does it regularly to its suppliers and even fellow offices and plants
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But part of putting something like this out to tender should involve checking the financial stability of bidders so either:
- Someone our end was negligent in checking/not asking for information.
- Someone at Tayside lied or deliberately hid info
- Someone at Tayside was negligent with providing accurate info.
- A major unforeseeable catastrophe occurred in those few days.
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I would suggest 4 is unlikely, 1 is the most possible with the public sector mind set of âits only taxpayers moneyâ plenty more where that came from 3 thatâs why you have due diligence and 2 possible.
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To add, didnât anybody think to do a little digging around the industry as somewhere like that doesnât just fold up.
Take Shoreham for exampleâŚâŚ
If 2FTS think that they are so wonderful, canât their instructors get CAA approved and provide flight training ??
THe clue is in the title Flying training School !
They probably could - although Iâm guessing that a lot of them wonât have a civilian licence - but then they would need to have the appropriate number of instructors / aircraft / associated resources to train 120(?) ACPS students per yr? Contracting out is probably easier in many respects.
i am taking this as a positive, however highlight that this is not a ânewâ aim, but a long standing target for 20+ years.
it is however reassuring that this âtargetâ is not simply something written down in an ACP but is something the team are driving for
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It is also something that is very easily said!
To summarise Mikeâs post aboveâŚnothing will change, because A) itâs too costly, and B) they perceive it as too risky.
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Well, saying it in from the of the AOC is something to hold them to if necessary.
Again, as the topics were raised / discussed / solutions mooted, they arenât hidden to just a few. Very easy now to push for movement / updates (at the appropriate time).
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I think we should give them the benefit of the doubt here. Clearly theyâve been willing to engage seriously with Mike at a high level. If this was a fob off they would have, at most, sent an email from a junior lackey.
Maybe things wonât work out, but seems the best evidence to date that they are keen to resolve the issues as best they can. The cultural changes over assurance of civilian sites seems the biggest issue
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Indeed itâs a different OC 2FTS and AOC so they should be judged on their actions and not that of their predecessors.
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The proposal document found on the Astra Hub sets out quite a sensible proposal for the PTS, but yeah I agree with the question of âWhatâs taking so long?â
Iâd also like to see (and this goes for all our PTS areas actually) more work on activity ideas that incorporate multiple PTS areas into a single activity to put those skills that cadets develop to use.
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