UAS/RPAS (‘Drones’) on squadron

Adult Staff
810

Just for clarity the drone project never intended to have responsibility for indoor drones, this is a relatively recent thing. Hence the reset.

I am sure if you were taking over something that perhaps previously had no structure of any safety controls then you’d take time to get it correct. I’m sure what you were doing was entirely safe, but that may not have been the case everywhere.

One thing that many wanted, and I see a lot on here, is people wanting consistency across the organisation. This gives that.

Maybe try to look to find a positive in this, and get flying with your cadets again.

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811

Sure would, wouldn’t take me this long though.

and no, I’m not interested in positives. The organisation, the way it conducts itself, is a joke, and its high time people were held to account over the way training reviews are conducted. And don’t bother replying, I’m not really interested in continuing this discussion.

It’s been over 3 years and 800 posts since my original post on the subject, and only now is RAFAC releasing a blue syllabus. Laughable.

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812

Your post was also multiple years after the initial stop order, I think. So it’s been more than 3 years!

It’s annoying that a few people doing something incorrectly leads to everyone being stopped from doing it at all.

We did previously have a structure. We had to follow all CAA guidelines. Many people were operationg quite happily under those guidelines. Yet there were a few incidents of people doing things outside those guidelines. Instead of a reminder of the rules, it led to a complete ban.

It’s like me going out and ignoring this new policy set, and instead of me getting in trouble, and some reminders being sent out, we instead ban it all again for another 5 years.

I think a new PTS structured system is great. I think it taking over 5 years with an absolute stop during that time is insane.

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813

This.

and I hate that the default position is telling people “find the positives”.

No. I will not ignore the terrible lack of planning and disorganisation that exists the RAFAC.

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814

Just to add to this, and so I’m clear. @Hercules, this is not aimed at you negatively. You are part of the solution here. This is a gripe with how HQAC does things as a whole.

I may not fully agree with the new stuff, but you are at least putting in significant time and effort to get something up and running.

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815

I totally agree with you that this shouldn’t have taken 5 years to resolve. However, when you realise that the entire thing had been run by three volunteers until very recently, it might be a bit more understandable.

The work to get us to this point has been significant and I’m proud of the work we have achieved. Notwithstanding this, I too wish we could have been here 3 years ago wasn’t but wi unds and having limited resource, that just achievable, sadly.

816

So why didn’t you step up to help ? We asked lots for help internally and even on here.

It’s easy to criticise from the sidelines without understanding the problem that is trying to be solved.

I am all ears if you can suggest ways that it could’ve been solved more swiftly, I am no expert, and I certainly don’t have all the answers. Please feel free to email me and we can discuss it further away from here. But you won’t do that will you.

if you continually look at the positives and not focus on the uncontrollable negatives, then life becomes a much better place.

Do I regret it’s taken this long, totally. Do I think we’ve done the correct thing, yes 100%. Could we have done it differently, perhaps.

The outcome is that we can deliver tangible qualifications to staff and cadets that a ‘free for all’ never could.

I don’t care if you wanted a reply or not, you’ve got one. I find 2 FTS a very positive place to volunteer and I hope you can find somewhere that gives you that joy as well.

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817

Because by the time you started asking it was years since I’d first asked 2FTS if they wanted my help (at the time I was working on a project for drone training delivery in my day job) I was thoroughly disillusioned by the lack of any acknowledgement or response.

Uh huh… given that for 3 years there was no sharing of any detail about the problem… how would one understand the problem out of curiousity? And again, per the above, I volunteered to help years ago, at a time when I was delivering a project for provision of training from novice up to GVC for the blue light services, but I didn’t receive any response, at all. So please don’t accuse me of shouting from the sidelines but not offering to help, because that’s nonsense.

Sure thing.

Year 1: day 1: Initial scoping of the problem, allocation of project lead from 2FTS.

year 1: day 2: all points email to gather any experts available in the ranks of volunteers, establish working group alongside training team.

Regular meetings to flesh out the issues, and create a project management plan over next 6 months so that by:

Year: month 6: run a weekend workshop weekend at Cranwell, Systerton, wherever to work through the syllabus, identify issues etc. end of workshop assign taskings;

Training team on resource creation

2FTS experts create content for resources.

Working group standby to quality assure.

Year 2: day 1: drafts out for consultation, identify a pilot group.

Run pilot, make changes, issue.

while I’m not privy to the intricacies of 2FTS, I do know that this project was never complex enough to require a 5 year lead time.

But instead the organisation insists on making it difficult, then when people get angry about the length of time it’s taken, dismiss people as bad apples that just want to moan, and nobody actually looks at what went wrong because they are just happy people can do the activity again after 5 years.

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818

Will also mention that alongside aforementioned project on GVC delivery, I have a masters degree in Education, and an expertise in learning and development.

So hardly like I wouldn’t have been an asset.

My initial offer of help to the project was August 2021, with follows up October 2021, January 2022, and May 2022. A final email was sent in February 2023.

But sure “shouting from the sidelines” :+1:

819

Let’s maybe step away and calm ourselves down shall we.

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820

Were those emails sent to me ?

if they were, I’m not sure I recall anyone with your experience or knowledge coming forward.

I’d love to have followed your plan, which to be fair would be practical if we were doing this full-time. But all having other jobs and families, it’s impossible to work in that way, it’s just realistic.

Please do get in contact with me to discuss further should you wish ti get involved still.

821

I’ve no idea who you are…

I’ve also no idea who they were sent to, I only have the dates because I found a message I sent to a friend in L&D complaining about the lack of response I’d received.

822

I’m sure you have done your best, and as you say, you are a volunteer.

Best of luck with the roll out.

823

I am head of the drone project. Im sure you can find me.

please send me those emails and I’ll follow up.

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824

this 100 times over this

look at ACTO035

there is a structure (follow the CAA/BGA format)

there have been no incidents

complete ban - with a hint every so often the policy is being reviewed.

if there was a structure already in place, as there is with other civilian activities (see AT: watersports, cyling, climbing, trekking etc) why “RAFAC-ise” it? and why does it take 3-5 years to do so?

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825

I think there were 1 or 2 incidents where CFAV were operating outside the CAA structure. Which is what led to the initial ban/pause over 5 years ago.

But an individuals’ failure is not a reason to ban for all.

If a CFAV decides to take cadets climbing and doesn’t follow the rules of Mountain Training, that shouldn’t lead to an organisational wide ban on climbing for 5 years.

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826

ah ok, but my point being no one got hurt, there was no “investigation” and a failure of the structure in place.

as you identify - the structure wasn’t followed and so an individual problem not a structure issue.

if people find holes in the system, by all means pause/halt the activity, review policy, structure and process, amend (close the loop hole) and reinstate - but it shouldn’t take years

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827

Anyone whats happening like nothing new come out at the start of the month?

829

The Blue syllabus is on the 2FTS RPAS portal on Sharepoint. Existing comms were it would be released on 01 Dec, and it appears this is what happened. Sign in to your account

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830

Oh silly me. I was looking for the training materials on the Training Hub.

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