§ Mr. Trotterasked the Secretary of State for Defence in which of the categories of Royal Air Force officers listed in paragraph 404 of Command Paper No. 7099 there have been recruiting deficiencies of a substantial margin; to what cause he attributes the shortages; and what action he has taken to correct the situation.
§ Mr. WellbelovedThe general duties (pilot, navigator and fighter control) and engineer branches. It is not possible to pinpoint precise reasons for the shortfalls; each individual will give weight to different factors when making a career decision.
Short service commissions have been reintroduced in the general duties branch. Recruiting shortfalls receive special attention from the recruiting organisation and in advertising.