§ Mr. Naylorasked the Under-Secretary of State for Air if he has any further statement to make concerning the complaints still being received from men in the R.A.F. contingents in India, especially referring to the reduction in the maximum period of the tour; the recalling of men who have spent the major period of their service in England after serving only a short time in India, while others who have served several years abroad are being retained; and the anomaly of the repatriation of time-expired men being given the lowest priority.
§ Mr. StracheyIn my statement on the Air Estimates on 12th March, I said that from 1st April the overseas tour of duty for single men in the Royal Air Force would be reduced from three years and six months to three years, thus bringing their overseas tour into line with that at present laid down for married men. As I also explained then, it will take until 1st October to complete this reduction, which we are carrying out at a time when we already have a heavy programme of release and repatriation. After then we hope to go further.
Since the beginning of the release programme, I realise that it has sometimes been necessary, in order to avoid delays in the release of men due for demobilisation, to send other airmen overseas who have had 434W only a limited further period to serve before themselves becoming due for release. This has been done solely with the aim of ensuring that release should not vary between members of the R.A.F. serving in this country and those overseas. It is for this reason, too, that those who are overseas and are due for release, have priority in transport, together with those who are posted home on compassionate grounds. Fortunately, this priority has not generally affected the repatriation of tour-expired airmen, very few of whom have been delayed in their return for duty to this country.