§ 143. Mr. de Freitasasked the Secretary of State for Air which of the recommendations of the Second Hollinghurst Committee have been carried out, accepted but not yet carried out, and refused, respectively.
§ Mr. BirchThe review undertaken by the Second Hollinghurst Committee covered the arrangements for servicing aircraft and other technical equipment, for holding and distributing such equipment and for the employment of technical tradesmen. The Committee was primarily concerned with the R.A.F. in this country, and its main recommendations and the action taken upon them are summarised below:
187WRepair and Servicing
The Committee recommended the transfer to industry of such "fourth line" servicing of aircraft and M.T.—that is, servicing which requires the facilities of a main base—as is still undertaken within the R.A.F. This recommendation has been accepted for airframes and M.T. As regards aero-engines, the importance of preserving some knowledge and skill in fourth line servicing within the R.A.F. makes it necessary that some of this work should continue to be undertaken in the Service: the position will, however, be kept under review.
The Committee recommended that other major servicing of aircraft should be transferred to industry under Air Ministry supervision. A further examination of the manpower and financial implications has shown that no worthwhile manpower savings would result, and this recommendation has in consequence not been adopted. There is, however, certain work at particular stations which might be put out to civilian contract, and this possibility will be kept in mind.
The Committee recommended that all technical activities at R.A.F. stations should be centralised so that the Chief Technical Officer was in a position to deploy the technical resources to the best advantage. The Committee also recommended that the present arrangements under which certain servicing is carried out at prescribed intervals should be abandoned and that servicing should be undertaken progressively when aircraft are unserviceable for other reasons. As a result of these recommendations, which are closely allied, centralised servicing is being introduced in two Commands and experiments are being carried out in two others.
Holding and Distribution of Technical Equipment.
The Committee recommended that the existing system for ensuring that stocks are reduced periodically should be tightened up: that a detailed work study should be undertaken of the layout and handling of stocks within depots: and that the system under which certain types of equipment were held in more than one depot should be reviewed. All these recommendations have been accepted.
188WThe Committee also made certain recommendations on the location, functions and manning of particular units: on the transport of stores: on the siting of technical stores on stations and on the methods for the control and issue of stores at stations. Most of these recommendations have been accepted.
Personnel Matters
The Committee stressed the need to reduce to a minimum the frequency with which technical tradesmen are posted and the demands made on them for extraneous Service tasks. It also recommended further investigations into the possibility of economising in the use of R.A.F. technical manpower at Ministry of Supply establishments and the further civilianising of R.A.F. Equipment Depots. These recommendations involve no departure from accepted policy; and, as a result of a further review, it has been decided that the functions of two of the five remaining Service-manned equipment depots should be civilianised, while a third is being closed.
General
I should like, for my part, to express my great appreciation of the work of the Committee, which I am satisfied will lead to a substantial saving of Service manpower.