Brits running short of qualified pilots to patrol no fly zone

MARHAM, UNITED KINGDOM - MARCH 20: A Tornado ...Image by Getty Images via @daylife
Telegraph:

Since the conflict began, a squadron of 18 RAF Typhoon pilots has enforced the Libya no-fly zone from an air base in southern Italy. However, a shortage of qualified fighter pilots means the RAF may not have enough to replace all of them when the squadron has to rotate in a few weeks.

The situation is so serious that the RAF has halted the teaching of trainee Typhoon pilots so instructors can be drafted on to the front line, according to air force sources. The handful of pilots used for air shows will also be withdrawn from displays this summer.

The shortage has arisen because cuts to the defence budget over the past decade have limited the number of pilots who have been trained to fly the new Typhoon.

There are also fewer newly qualified pilots coming through after the RAF was forced to cut a quarter of its trainee places due to cuts announced in last year’s Strategic Defence and Security Review.

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There is more.

The Brits have been putting social programs ahead of defense efforts for decades. It is not at all surprising they are out of pilots. It would not be at all surprising that they would be running short of planes too if any had been lost in the current effort. The cost of rationed health care has made the UK a weaker power.
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