RAF

The overview

The Royal Air Force (RAF) is concerned with all matters regarding airborne defence. In tandem with other defence bodies, the RAF’s raison d'être is to ensure the safety of Britain and its people from external and internal threats.

The RAF’s current targets include:

• Synchronising more closely with American air forces
• Developing the public’s understanding of the RAF and its activities
• Continually developing and enhancing current operations and internal infrastructure.

The RAF has a number of roles alongside its combat function, acting as an international peacekeeping force and humanitarian aid facilitator. It is essential for the delivery of aid packages abroad, delivers search and rescue operations across the country, engages in several charity events and is fundamental in peacekeeping activities, like patrolling ‘no-fly zone’ airspace.

At the end of July 2011, the RAF released new television and online recruitment advertisements, the first in 18 months. The campaign was part of the RAF’s drive to recruit 2,000 new staff, both the full service and RAF Reserves.

Air power

The RAF’s new recruitment ads are the first in 18 months.

Anyone reading about the RAF will come across the term ‘Air Power’ – a guiding concept for all of the RAF’s activities. This is defined as, ‘the ability to project power from the air and space to influence the behaviour of people or the course of events’. It covers four major principles:

• Control of the air – strength in specific airspace to lead and support ground and naval troops. As the most swift and broad-reaching of the forces, this is typically the first aim of any potential combat situation.
• Intelligence and situational awareness – satellite information of immediate ground situations, and detailed independent research into the culture of both civilians and enemy forces.
• Attack – firepower and its deployment, operating within the laws of armed conflict.
• Air mobility and lift – the transportation of troops and equipment across otherwise impassable terrain.

The RAF has a number of roles alongside its combat function.

Air Power aptly describes the reach and speed of the RAF’s response and the ability to adapt to a variety of situations, in attack, in defence or in support. The phrase also highlights the inevitable advantages of aircraft over ground forces, in terms of vulnerability to attack.

Rankings and awards

• Ranked 53 in Times Top 100 graduate employers, 2011
• Ranked 56 in Stonewall's Top 100 Employers in Britain for lesbian, gay and bisexual people, 2012
• Ranked 141 in Guardian UK300, 2011
• Ranked 27 in Universum’s UK’s Ideal Employers, 2009
• Named in Times Top 50 Employers for Women, 2011 and 2012
• Named as a Top 100 employer for lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) people in Britain by Stonewall, a LGB charity and campaigning group, 2011.

Some current RAF aircraft

• Sentry
• Chinook HC2
• Hercules C-130K C1
• Typhoon F2 (Eurofighter)
• MQ-9 Reaper
• Voyager (expected to enter service in late 2011).

Salary and benefits

As in other walks of life, different roles command different salaries. Theoretically graduates are able to apply to a wide branch of different careers in the RAF. As a guide, those who enrol as officers are typically offered between £24,500 – £31,000 as a starting salary.

Perks

• Six weeks’ paid holiday
• Subsidised food and accommodation on base
• Free medical and dental care
• Up to 26 weeks of maternity leave
• Two weeks’ paternity leave
• Various bonuses for length of service
• Pension options according to length of service, with full military pension after 22 years of service
• Following 18 years of service, a grant is available for personnel wanting to re-enter civilian life.

Educational sponsorship

• The RAF offers sponsorship toward some undergraduate and postgraduate courses. These generally consist of bursaries toward study, as well as opportunities for excursions and mixing with local University Air Squadrons (UASs).
• There are particular opportunities in the field of medicine. A medical ‘cadetship’ can cover the cost of as much as the final two years of a student’s studies.

Culture and values

The discipline inherent in any military organisation is clear from the moment new personnel step off the bus. However, a key aspect of the RAF, and indeed any of the armed forces, is that personnel are part of a wider unit. Everyone is responsible for everyone else, and this extends to working and living together. For example, when personnel initially join the RAF, they may well find themselves bunking with three other new joiners. The collective spirit is important

The RAF identifies its four core values as:

• Respect
• Integrity
• Service
• Excellence.

Each squadron will have its own dynamics.