Mike Southby

Like most, I was saddened yesterday to hear the reports of one the Red Arrows tragically crashing and it’s pilot, Flight Lieutenant Jon Egging loosing his life at the annual Bournemouth Air Festival.

I think it’s important before I start diversifying to pay a personal tribute to the pilot, whilst the details are still vague the general consensus is that he stayed with his aircraft to the point of no return to ensure that his aircraft did not crash into a populated area killing others; he must have known that in doing so the outcome personally was not going to be a good one, it’s split second selfless decisions like this that define true heroism.  Much respect Jon.

Flight Lieutenant Jon Egging tragically died in a crash following a Red Arrows display in Bournemouth. Photograph: MOD/PA

No doubt at one stage or another in our lives we have all seen the Red Arrows display whether in personal or on the television and there can be no doubt, they are without question one of the finest aerial display teams on the planet.  The pilots flying skills are a testament not only to themselves but to the world class training received by our armed forces.  It’s easy to forget that the pilots serving in the Red Arrows are front line fast jet RAF pilots first and foremost plying their trade with a smile of their faces.

However, given the state of the UK economy and our military activities overseas, especially considering the recent Defence Spending Review, I do have to question the place the Red Arrows have in the RAF; I want to stress though that my feelings are not aimed at the pilots, the crew or anyone associated directly with the team but with the system of decision making at a very high level.

Having a quick glance over the official website the Red Arrows have at their disposal a team of highly skilled and qualified personnel, a fleet of modern fast jet aircraft and a large support mechanism; it’s not just this that factors into my thoughts though, for every resource given to the Red Arrows, there is a resource denied or taken away from the front line, remember the pilots of the Red Arrows are active front line RAF pilots and whilst they are serving with the Red Arrows, they are away from the front line.  I’ve never been in the forces myself but I’m sure if I had of been, I’d have appreciated a few extra aircraft overheard watching my back.

At any given time, the team have the following (not a comprehensive list by any means) at their disposal:

• 9 highly trained, exceptional fast jet pilots.
• 9 experienced aircraft engineers, each working on a specific aircraft alongside it’s pilot.
• A large engineering team and engineering support team.
• Management and base staff, including the base itself of course.
• Public relations team.

On top of this they also have a fleet of BAE Systems Hawk T1 aircraft, including the 9 actual display aircraft I believe this totals 13 aircraft in all.

I haven’t taken the time to look into how much this all costs in any detail and how much we as tax payers contribute to this but let’s be realistic, it’s not cheap.  According to the Red Arrows official website we do not contribute to foreign displays as this cost is met in the most part by sponsors such as BAE, but of course as I mentioned above this is only part of the story; we are still taking front line pilots away from protecting our troops currently serving in dangerous situations, Afghanistan for example.  The material cost of the team is only half the story.

“The benefits of the Red Arrows far outweigh the cost, promoting British interests and acting as an international ambassador for British industry. Further information relating to budgets should be directed to Royal Air Force 22 Group.

The Ministry of Defence considers that British tax payers should not bear the cost of overseas tours. The Red Arrows overseas tours, representing and demonstrating the very best of British excellence, are largely met by sponsors.”

The above is a quote from the FAQ section of the official website, the very fact that they feel the need to mention this tells me that a lot of people must be questioning the costs, especially the cost to us, the British taxpayer.  It’s not what is said that I find the most interesting, it’s what’s not said.  Clearly the powers that be do not want to publicise how much money it costs to run the team.  A little bit of research on Google turned up this freedom of information act request from the beginning of last year which helps to fill in the blanks a little.

I’m certainly not against the Red Arrows, I have seen them on a number of occasions and there is no question they are an awe inspiring sight; but the glory days are gone, it’s time to face hard realities and I wonder if the public purse should be continuing to fund them in their current capacity.  At the very least, why not return the pilots and engineers to front line duties during times of conflict and allow the team to take a break.  I’m not against us displaying what a great nation we are but I don’t think we are in a position to do this as a matter of course any more.  I think questions need to be asked.

I think it’s only right to end this post in a similar way to how it started.  The Red Arrows only recruit pilots who have proved themselves on the front line, all Red Arrow pilots have seen active duty and have put themselves in harms way to preserve our way of life.  The pilot in yesterdays tragic accident was no exception, seeing action in Afghanistan piloting a Harrier GR9 prior to joining the team and it’s for that I feel he should be remembered along with all the other servicemen and women who have lost their lives in conflicts to date.

My condolences go out to his family and friends.

It seems that I have nothing to talk about in a technical stance these past few days, I’ve been very busy churning out some pretty intense reports which have taken up a lot of my time and reduced my brain to mush, but I still find the old news story which catches my eye in the press.

In Australia, I came across this video footage of a mother who accidentally lost control of her buggy with small child in whilst stood on a platform waiting for a train.  Now of course, I do understand that accidents happen but really, could she have picked any better moment to let go of the buggy and tuck herself in when she could see the train approaching?  It beggars belief.  I’m utterly amazed and thankful that the little chap came away relatively unscathed.