RAF Regiment Opinions? Bad Promotion?
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Original post by Clip
Loads of people used to leave after years at SAC (or whatever it was then) with absolutely no prospect of promotion in the near future.
That's a bit disingenuous. How many leave the Army after 6 or 9 years with little promotion? Given that over 20,000 leave the Forces each year, most of them will come from the main body of the biggest Force - infantry. Not everyone can or will be a SNCO, so people leave.
Trapsters - having to pass P Coy means the average Para is fitter than the average line infanteer ( and the average line infanteer in the british army is one of the best trained infantrymen in the world ) but they are not unique and a well disciplinbed and goes the extra mile line infanteer will be the equal of a para , just he;snot forced to be of that standard , and Paras are not 'nearly special forces' ( if any British Line infantryman carries that title it's the Marine) the level of success in SF slection of late Para applicants is a function of their higher baseline fitness because ofthe requirment to maintain P Coy levles of fitness and performance...
Clip - my point was that the faster promotion seen in the Army based on 22 years full career and leaving at 40 ish unless you pick up as an LE or are in specific trades will disappear the Army career model moves to a longer full engagement with reitrement at 50
Clip - my point was that the faster promotion seen in the Army based on 22 years full career and leaving at 40 ish unless you pick up as an LE or are in specific trades will disappear the Army career model moves to a longer full engagement with reitrement at 50
(edited 9 years ago)
Original post by ProStacker
That's a bit disingenuous. How many leave the Army after 6 or 9 years with little promotion? Given that over 20,000 leave the Forces each year, most of them will come from the main body of the biggest Force - infantry. Not everyone can or will be a SNCO, so people leave.
and for both OR and Officer career pathways thisis how it has tended to work with natural exit points for the 8./9 private / lance jack who isn't going to be get that second tape or the 14 year army corporal who isn;t going to make the sgts mess or the Catpain that isn't going to get his /her Majority ...
(edited 9 years ago)
Original post by Trapsters
Interesting, that's good that I have also applied for the paras too as I back up. But may I ask why as he served so long if the promotion is low, why hasn't he left and joined the army?
Like many people in all branches of the armed forces he's in a very tribal mindset. He thinks where he is the the sine qua non of soldiering, and maybe he would feel like he's letting his side down if he jacks it in to join the Guards or something.
Original post by Trapsters
What do you think about the paras?
The paras are the paras. They're uncouth and basically animals. It's where you go for thrill seeking and to prove how tough and stupid you are.
It's less settled than being in a county regiment (although they can be quite chaotic too) and there is enormous internal pressure to keep proving that you're alpha dogs.
The Parachute Regiment and RAF Regiment is not a good comparison. In many ways, the RAF Regiment is more analogous to the Royal Marines (although nowhere near as good). They are both the soldiering aspect of the "other" services, have their own ways and means separate from the Army, and are in many ways self-contained and have roles that the Army doesn't really do. The Marines have their own dead-mans-shoes problem with promotion, although a lot of them seem quite happy to stay long term as marines.
Ah, the RAF Regiment 
Once upon a time, when I was a baby faced TA Infanteer, I used to berate the Regiment. Laughing at the stories I had read on Arrse about them, thereby forming an opinion on them without having actually met one.
Fast forward a couple of years to Southern Afghanistan and I got to meet my first real life Rock. There he was, stood in the queue for Pizza Hut in Camp Bastion wearing scruffy desert trousers and a dusty green temperate DPM shirt. He was surrounded by plenty of people all dressed in clean deserts from head to toe, staring at him.
A Sergeant Major approaches him and enquires why he looks like a tramp and is in mixed dress. The young lad, bold as brass, points out he has just come back from a Tesseral (once round the immediate area of the airfield security patrol) and they wear green DPM because it's dark...(temperate DPM is good for the Green Zone, of which there is none of around Bastion and it actually makes you stand out even more at night as you are silhouetted against the light coloured moon dust in the desert).
By this point, the only audible sound in the NAAFI area is distant aircraft rumblings, generators whirring away and the clattering of pans coming from the Pizza Hut ISO container. Everyone is looking at the RAF Regiment Gunner and Sgt Maj.
The Sgt Maj by this point has his Brecon point well and truly zeroed in to the young lads chest and proceeds to point out that three quarters of the blokes sat down supping on ice cold Mountain Dews and inhaling pizza just to the left of the Rock were up to their balls in irrigation ditch on Op Moshtarak just a few hours previously, yet some how they had managed to square their weapons, kit and personal administration away before setting foot in the rather public, tri service, international NAAFI establishment.
The point I'm trying to make with this dit is that the RAF Regiment really don't help themselves out. At that particular point of the Herrick campaign lots of people had been to lots of places and done all sorts of funky stuff. There was a mutual respect and nobody used to dick swing in public about how tough their tour was, the game was played very well by 99% of the blokes when it came to dress regs because it made for an easier life. The only ones to cut their own were the RAF Regt, and thus cementing the opinion of many soldiers that the RAF Regt are a bunch of billy big timers and unprofessional.
Fast forward another couple of years and my career path has taken a dramatic change and I find myself working rather intimately with the RAF Regt in the Air Land Integration side of life. Clearly, I still carried my prejudices across from years of reading Arrse and the previous Pizza Hut event and was apprehensive about working with them, fearing I would be stuck with a load of knuckle draggers who spent their days finger blasting each other while regaling tales of daring do chatting up Danish chicks on the Boardwalk in KAF.
I spent two years, several exercises both domestic and abroad as well as tour of Helmand working with the RAF Regt daily. I can categorically confirm that the vast majority of blokes amongst their ranks are of almost identical mind set to your average soldier. Naturally, you will get your absolute belters, as you do in all walks of life, and I have been just as embarrassed by members of my own organisation when co located with RAF Regt, as I have when I see RAF Regt making themselves look like turbo throbbers in front of other units.
I'm proud to call many RAF Regt guys good friends now, and if anything the banter we have is exceptionally sharp due to the RAF/Army divide amongst us. We are all on the same side, and once people get over themselves and their balloon egos and prejudices then the joint environment is actually quite a nice place to work!
My favourite past time remains correcting RAF Regt whenever they mention "soldier" or "soldiering" that they are Airmen, gets a bite every time
To the OP, when deciding on whether the Army or the RAF is for you, have a look at the actual job spec. If you want to fire a chain gun out of a Warrior turret in support of a company assault on a village, then join the Army. If you want a higher chance of getting posted to Cyprus for example, then join the Raf Regt. Whatever choice you make, just give it 100% and keep an open mind, rather than being brain washed into thinking you are better than everyone else, because you're not, you're all human
Once upon a time, when I was a baby faced TA Infanteer, I used to berate the Regiment. Laughing at the stories I had read on Arrse about them, thereby forming an opinion on them without having actually met one.
Fast forward a couple of years to Southern Afghanistan and I got to meet my first real life Rock. There he was, stood in the queue for Pizza Hut in Camp Bastion wearing scruffy desert trousers and a dusty green temperate DPM shirt. He was surrounded by plenty of people all dressed in clean deserts from head to toe, staring at him.
A Sergeant Major approaches him and enquires why he looks like a tramp and is in mixed dress. The young lad, bold as brass, points out he has just come back from a Tesseral (once round the immediate area of the airfield security patrol) and they wear green DPM because it's dark...(temperate DPM is good for the Green Zone, of which there is none of around Bastion and it actually makes you stand out even more at night as you are silhouetted against the light coloured moon dust in the desert).
By this point, the only audible sound in the NAAFI area is distant aircraft rumblings, generators whirring away and the clattering of pans coming from the Pizza Hut ISO container. Everyone is looking at the RAF Regiment Gunner and Sgt Maj.
The Sgt Maj by this point has his Brecon point well and truly zeroed in to the young lads chest and proceeds to point out that three quarters of the blokes sat down supping on ice cold Mountain Dews and inhaling pizza just to the left of the Rock were up to their balls in irrigation ditch on Op Moshtarak just a few hours previously, yet some how they had managed to square their weapons, kit and personal administration away before setting foot in the rather public, tri service, international NAAFI establishment.
The point I'm trying to make with this dit is that the RAF Regiment really don't help themselves out. At that particular point of the Herrick campaign lots of people had been to lots of places and done all sorts of funky stuff. There was a mutual respect and nobody used to dick swing in public about how tough their tour was, the game was played very well by 99% of the blokes when it came to dress regs because it made for an easier life. The only ones to cut their own were the RAF Regt, and thus cementing the opinion of many soldiers that the RAF Regt are a bunch of billy big timers and unprofessional.
Fast forward another couple of years and my career path has taken a dramatic change and I find myself working rather intimately with the RAF Regt in the Air Land Integration side of life. Clearly, I still carried my prejudices across from years of reading Arrse and the previous Pizza Hut event and was apprehensive about working with them, fearing I would be stuck with a load of knuckle draggers who spent their days finger blasting each other while regaling tales of daring do chatting up Danish chicks on the Boardwalk in KAF.
I spent two years, several exercises both domestic and abroad as well as tour of Helmand working with the RAF Regt daily. I can categorically confirm that the vast majority of blokes amongst their ranks are of almost identical mind set to your average soldier. Naturally, you will get your absolute belters, as you do in all walks of life, and I have been just as embarrassed by members of my own organisation when co located with RAF Regt, as I have when I see RAF Regt making themselves look like turbo throbbers in front of other units.
I'm proud to call many RAF Regt guys good friends now, and if anything the banter we have is exceptionally sharp due to the RAF/Army divide amongst us. We are all on the same side, and once people get over themselves and their balloon egos and prejudices then the joint environment is actually quite a nice place to work!
My favourite past time remains correcting RAF Regt whenever they mention "soldier" or "soldiering" that they are Airmen, gets a bite every time
To the OP, when deciding on whether the Army or the RAF is for you, have a look at the actual job spec. If you want to fire a chain gun out of a Warrior turret in support of a company assault on a village, then join the Army. If you want a higher chance of getting posted to Cyprus for example, then join the Raf Regt. Whatever choice you make, just give it 100% and keep an open mind, rather than being brain washed into thinking you are better than everyone else, because you're not, you're all human
(edited 9 years ago)
Original post by NFI
Ah, the RAF Regiment
Once upon a time, when I was a baby faced TA Infanteer, I used to berate the Regiment. Laughing at the stories I had read on Arrse about them, thereby forming an opinion on them without having actually met one.
Fast forward a couple of years to Southern Afghanistan and I got to meet my first real life Rock. There he was, stood in the queue for Pizza Hut in Camp Bastion wearing scruffy desert trousers and a dusty green temperate DPM shirt. He was surrounded by plenty of people all dressed in clean deserts from head to toe, staring at him.
A Sergeant Major approaches him and enquires why he looks like a tramp and is in mixed dress. The young lad, bold as brass, points out he has just come back from a Tesseral (once round the immediate area of the airfield security patrol) and they wear green DPM because it's dark...(temperate DPM is good for the Green Zone, of which there is none of around Bastion and it actually makes you stand out even more at night as you are silhouetted against the light coloured moon dust in the desert).
By this point, the only audible sound in the NAAFI area is distant aircraft rumblings, generators whirring away and the clattering of pans coming from the Pizza Hut ISO container. Everyone is looking at the RAF Regiment Gunner and Sgt Maj.
The Sgt Maj by this point has his Brecon point well and truly zeroed in to the young lads chest and proceeds to point out that three quarters of the blokes sat down supping on ice cold Mountain Dews and inhaling pizza just to the left of the Rock were up to their balls in irrigation ditch on Op Moshtarak just a few hours previously, yet some how they had managed to square their weapons, kit and personal administration away before setting foot in the rather public, tri service, international NAAFI establishment.
The point I'm trying to make with this dit is that the RAF Regiment really don't help themselves out. At that particular point of the Herrick campaign lots of people had been to lots of places and done all sorts of funky stuff. There was a mutual respect and nobody used to dick swing in public about how tough their tour was, the game was played very well by 99% of the blokes when it came to dress regs because it made for an easier life. The only ones to cut their own were the RAF Regt, and thus cementing the opinion of many soldiers that the RAF Regt are a bunch of billy big timers and unprofessional.
Fast forward another couple of years and my career path has taken a dramatic change and I find myself working rather intimately with the RAF Regt in the Air Land Integration side of life. Clearly, I still carried my prejudices across from years of reading Arrse and the previous Pizza Hut event and was apprehensive about working with them, fearing I would be stuck with a load of knuckle draggers who spent their days finger blasting each other while regaling tales of daring do chatting up Danish chicks on the Boardwalk in KAF.
I spent two years, several exercises both domestic and abroad as well as tour of Helmand working with the RAF Regt daily. I can categorically confirm that the vast majority of blokes amongst their ranks are of almost identical mind set to your average soldier. Naturally, you will get your absolute belters, as you do in all walks of life, and I have been just as embarrassed by members of my own organisation when co located with RAF Regt, as I have when I see RAF Regt making themselves look like turbo throbbers in front of other units.
I'm proud to call many RAF Regt guys good friends now, and if anything the banter we have is exceptionally sharp due to the RAF/Army divide amongst us. We are all on the same side, and once people get over themselves and their balloon egos and prejudices then the joint environment is actually quite a nice place to work!
My favourite past time remains correcting RAF Regt whenever they mention "soldier" or "soldiering" that they are Airmen, gets a bite every time
To the OP, when deciding on whether the Army or the RAF is for you, have a look at the actual job spec. If you want to fire a chain gun out of a Warrior turret in support of a company assault on a village, then join the Army. If you want a higher chance of getting posted to Cyprus for example, then join the Raf Regt. Whatever choice you make, just give it 100% and keep an open mind, rather than being brain washed into thinking you are better than everyone else, because you're not, you're all human
Once upon a time, when I was a baby faced TA Infanteer, I used to berate the Regiment. Laughing at the stories I had read on Arrse about them, thereby forming an opinion on them without having actually met one.
Fast forward a couple of years to Southern Afghanistan and I got to meet my first real life Rock. There he was, stood in the queue for Pizza Hut in Camp Bastion wearing scruffy desert trousers and a dusty green temperate DPM shirt. He was surrounded by plenty of people all dressed in clean deserts from head to toe, staring at him.
A Sergeant Major approaches him and enquires why he looks like a tramp and is in mixed dress. The young lad, bold as brass, points out he has just come back from a Tesseral (once round the immediate area of the airfield security patrol) and they wear green DPM because it's dark...(temperate DPM is good for the Green Zone, of which there is none of around Bastion and it actually makes you stand out even more at night as you are silhouetted against the light coloured moon dust in the desert).
By this point, the only audible sound in the NAAFI area is distant aircraft rumblings, generators whirring away and the clattering of pans coming from the Pizza Hut ISO container. Everyone is looking at the RAF Regiment Gunner and Sgt Maj.
The Sgt Maj by this point has his Brecon point well and truly zeroed in to the young lads chest and proceeds to point out that three quarters of the blokes sat down supping on ice cold Mountain Dews and inhaling pizza just to the left of the Rock were up to their balls in irrigation ditch on Op Moshtarak just a few hours previously, yet some how they had managed to square their weapons, kit and personal administration away before setting foot in the rather public, tri service, international NAAFI establishment.
The point I'm trying to make with this dit is that the RAF Regiment really don't help themselves out. At that particular point of the Herrick campaign lots of people had been to lots of places and done all sorts of funky stuff. There was a mutual respect and nobody used to dick swing in public about how tough their tour was, the game was played very well by 99% of the blokes when it came to dress regs because it made for an easier life. The only ones to cut their own were the RAF Regt, and thus cementing the opinion of many soldiers that the RAF Regt are a bunch of billy big timers and unprofessional.
Fast forward another couple of years and my career path has taken a dramatic change and I find myself working rather intimately with the RAF Regt in the Air Land Integration side of life. Clearly, I still carried my prejudices across from years of reading Arrse and the previous Pizza Hut event and was apprehensive about working with them, fearing I would be stuck with a load of knuckle draggers who spent their days finger blasting each other while regaling tales of daring do chatting up Danish chicks on the Boardwalk in KAF.
I spent two years, several exercises both domestic and abroad as well as tour of Helmand working with the RAF Regt daily. I can categorically confirm that the vast majority of blokes amongst their ranks are of almost identical mind set to your average soldier. Naturally, you will get your absolute belters, as you do in all walks of life, and I have been just as embarrassed by members of my own organisation when co located with RAF Regt, as I have when I see RAF Regt making themselves look like turbo throbbers in front of other units.
I'm proud to call many RAF Regt guys good friends now, and if anything the banter we have is exceptionally sharp due to the RAF/Army divide amongst us. We are all on the same side, and once people get over themselves and their balloon egos and prejudices then the joint environment is actually quite a nice place to work!
My favourite past time remains correcting RAF Regt whenever they mention "soldier" or "soldiering" that they are Airmen, gets a bite every time
To the OP, when deciding on whether the Army or the RAF is for you, have a look at the actual job spec. If you want to fire a chain gun out of a Warrior turret in support of a company assault on a village, then join the Army. If you want a higher chance of getting posted to Cyprus for example, then join the Raf Regt. Whatever choice you make, just give it 100% and keep an open mind, rather than being brain washed into thinking you are better than everyone else, because you're not, you're all human
Excellent write-up mate.
Original post by zippyRN
Trapsters - having to pass P Coy means the average Para is fitter than the average line infanteer ( and the average line infanteer in the british army is one of the best trained infantrymen in the world ) but they are not unique and a well disciplinbed and goes the extra mile line infanteer will be the equal of a para , just he;snot forced to be of that standard , and Paras are not 'nearly special forces' ( if any British Line infantryman carries that title it's the Marine) the level of success in SF slection of late Para applicants is a function of their higher baseline fitness because ofthe requirment to maintain P Coy levles of fitness and performance...
Clip - my point was that the faster promotion seen in the Army based on 22 years full career and leaving at 40 ish unless you pick up as an LE or are in specific trades will disappear the Army career model moves to a longer full engagement with reitrement at 50
Clip - my point was that the faster promotion seen in the Army based on 22 years full career and leaving at 40 ish unless you pick up as an LE or are in specific trades will disappear the Army career model moves to a longer full engagement with reitrement at 50
I'm fit than the average applicant as I do boxing 3 times a week for 4 years, than that and overcoming a little fear of heights plus the mental side and all the other bull**** you have to go through hopefully i am a suitable candidate for the paras
Though I was never in the 'paras' my late friend was! (unfortunately he died at 29 when an armoured car toppled over and crushed him out in Germany....and when one think's of all the jumps he made in 12 or so years without a scratch it was totally ironic and bloody hard luck!) However he had become a sergeant and was highly regarded by his superiors, he had plum postings to Canada, Kenya etc, but also **** in the Provence, where he was wounded by an armalite proj. He was a tough cookie, but a brilliant lad too and still miss him lots 39 years on! So, my friend, if you have the balls (and i'm sure you have!) then go for it!!! As my late athletics coach used to say to me "Chris, what ever you do in life, do it with all your might"...Wise words I think.
Did you join? And if so, do you like it and where have you been and what rank are you now young man?Regards, Commander Straker.
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