VR(T) Commission Change

Interesting thanks, I read QR3002 as saying that you must be a substantive Flt Lt or above to retain rank on retirement (the acting bit is specifically for an ‘officer of the regular air force’) and this was one of the reasons why VRT were kept as regular Fg Offs.

I have read this post with interest!
Basically some people think the new commission is a move to the future and others think it’s a pointless change!
My biggest problem with it is the chaotic and amateur way it has been dealt with.
It must be very embarrassing that the Royal Household points out errors before it is submitted to HMQ. If it is the newest commission for centuries, surely you would make sure all the t’s are dotted and the i’s are crossed before placing it in front of our Monarch? What must she think?
With regard to the points made about how this will affect staff recruitment, I think that they are greater problems in that area than what type of commission an officer will hold.
I have stated my opinions on other fora regarding the change in commission and have been abused, being called a Walt who doesn’t understand what actually serving your country in the RAF, with all the sacrifices, is like! I have also been called a “mood hoover” for not being positive enough and rushing out to buy rank slides from RipOff Direct!
The change of commission is not going to change my commitment to the ATC and the young people in my Sqn.
My main complaint, which is mirrored here quite a lot, is that everything important which has required actions and staff work from our leaders has been mired down in indecision and miscommunication. Flying, Gliding, Shooting, a new badging system and now the transfer of all staff to the same organisation have shown the ACO management in very poor light.
The fact that a lot of announcements are now made on Social Media, well before any official communication, shows a disregard for the CoC, as information should go both ways!
I would like to find out such important stuff formally rather than restricted to 140 characters!
My final part of this rant is the death of the Air Training Corps! I have proudly served in the Corps for over 35 years and it is suffering from “a Death of a Thousand cuts”! If we are becoming the RAF Air Cadets, do it properly! Rebadge all of us, including Cadets, give the Cadets silver RAF beret badges and do it on a significant date. Is there one coming up?

7 Likes

The only disagreement I have here is that it’s not the first new commission in centuries. The RAF is 99 years old and that was a new commission. The RAFVR is gone than that. What about the training branch of the RAFVR?
The Act the press releases reference is incorrectly named and all it does is let HM not put her sign manual on commissions but leave it to be signed by the Secretary of State. They couldn’t even get that law right. Which is lucky because if the Act had created a new commission then we’d need primary legislation to create this new commission.
Having thought more on the move to a cadet forces commission I’m no longer anti it but the way it is being implemented shows nothing but contempt for us staff and makes me worry about what will they’ll do once the service complaints mechanism is removed.

Need to try harder to make my sarcasm more obvious! :roll_eyes:

1 Like

If we are all getting the new commission on the same day, does that mean we all have the same Seniority? !!!
That would be such fun!

What’s this? We are still ATC! RAFAC refers to ATC and CCF(RAF), same as ACO had before the rebrand.
This is why staff will be badged RAFAC rather than ATC - it applies to CCF too.

1 Like

There is so much crap flying around my wing at the moment regarding this very point. I lay the blame fairly and squarely at HQAC. Unless you have access to SharePoint and ask team the rank and file don’t have a clue what is going on. You should hear some of the ideas that some people have regarding the future of the RAFAC.

1 Like

So, all staff then!
(unless you are a buffoon and failed the infosec course I suppose)

That would be impressive, given you just need to click through - there is no test.

No Access has been revoked as yet, the threat is merely hanging…

Though other squadron staff may withhold the password for the general account from people who have not met the standard.

Hi Sarge,
Not the rank, the seniority for those with the same rank.
Normally not really a problem, however I don’t see it mentioned any where and at some stage it will rear its ugly head!!
As I say I don’t mind. When we look back in a few years we will wonder what all the fuss was about, though if I was a gambling man I would put a punt on the Army changing their minds and sticking with what they have!

Or you yourself are a blithering idiot and/or have a dithering OC who doesn’t give all staff access. I met a Training Officer a few weeks ago who “wasn’t permitted access” to SharePoint or SMS - just Ultilearn and Email. He failed to appreciate that Email & SharePoint share common information to gain access. When confronted with this cold hard fact he said “yes - but she said I’m not allowed it and I’m not going to break the rules”…

For some, there is no hope. Suffice to say, he knew nothing of the CFC until he got a letter on his doormat. That must’ve been a surprise!!! #mushroom

1 Like

Has seniority amongst those with the same rank ever mattered? My deputy is the same rank as me with more time in rank, doesn’t matter as I’m the OC. If I go on Camp there will be a Camp Com, they might be Senior to me that might be Junior, they are still the Camp Com.

1 Like

Even the RAFAC news section on the RAF website gets this wrong. What hope is there for the rest of us?

Not a single mention of “Air Training Corps” and by the looks of the photo the certificate doesn’t use that phrase either.

1 Like

[quote=“incubus, post:1954, topic:2647, full:true”][quote=“themajor, post:1953, topic:2647”]
No Access has been revoked as yet, the threat is merely hanging…[/quote]
Though other squadron staff may withhold the password for the general account from people who have not met the standard.[/quote]
By standard I assume you mean the protecting info course that rambles on about things that I doubt apply to many people in the Corps. It has to have been one of the dullest and least applicable things I’ve encountered in my time in the Corps.
If you are looking at Corps matters at work or out and about, then work and or life must be slow. But even then, I would doubt anyone would give a monkey’s about the trvial drivel that comes out in emails and on sharepoint, it’s hardly earth shattering in any security sense.

Sorry, I was asking a semi mischievous question. Though my understanding is that Seniority only comes into play when you are the same rank. I accept your point though. I was just being naughty!
:flushed:

“Household Cavalry drum horses carry the rank of major and as such are senior to all other animals of rank in the army,” added the spokesman.

Picturing the Ask The Team question: “Dear Gp Capt Leeming, as a Squadron Leader, can you confirm whether the CFC will result in me being equal to, or inferior in rank to Major Big Red and his equine colleagues?”

1 Like

No need - as a regular OF3 the horse will be the superior of the CFC Sqn Ldr in question.
There is a reasonable chance that the horse will be superior, regardless of rank :wink:

6 Likes

:sunglasses:Obviously inferior as Maj Big Red will have a Regular Army Commission which takes precedence over CFC…

…but what if it is Regimental Rank and not Army rank?

:heart_eyes:

2 Likes

The ATC & CCF (RAF) still do exist, but my point is the constant change of emphasis away from the two distinct parts of the ACO towards the RAF Air Cadets.
The above post from Bob the Builder from the RAF website and the below link from the ACO website shows this


I have hunted the website and can’t find badges from either part of the ACO, apart from the RAF Air Cadets logo!
Logic states that if all staff in both ATC & CCF are badged the same, why not the cadets?
We spent all last year celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Air Cadets, which was a bit disingenuous as the CCF (RAF) section was not formed at the same time as the ATC. Will we do the same thing again in 2023 with the 75th anniversary of the formation of the CCF (RAF)?
I am proud of being a part of the ATC. But if the change is going to happen, just get it done!!!
The irony is that the RAF want the Air Cadets to be more RAF but are making the staff, both Officers and SNCOs, more civilian!

1 Like