ANNEX B
The length of time between the previous and
current tour of each unit and sub unit currently deployed to Northern
Ireland, SFOR and KFOR and on routine deployments (eg Armilla
Patrol etc); their current anticipated length of tour; and an
indication of where these are significantly worse for individual
personnel or categories of personnel.
NAVAL SERVICE
Information is provided in the Operation Tasking
Frequency Snapshot as at 1 July 1999, at Appendix 1.[14]
It is more difficult to relate the question to the Naval Service,
as the personnel within a Ship, Submarine or Royal Marine unit
do not remain in that unit on a permanent basis. Whilst a ship
might be committed to return to the Armilla Patrol after just
six months in UK, not all the ship's company will sail again with
the ship.
It may be more appropriate to note the Policy
of Minimum Time Ashore (MTA), the minimum time to be spent ashore,
by rate, between each sea draft which has not been breached in
the past two years. Ratings may themselves, however, elect to
return to sea early: MTA does not apply to officers. The MTA policy
provides for a rating to spend the following minimum amount of
time ashore after a 30 month sea draft.
|
| Rate | Minimum time ashore
|
|
| Able Rate | 5 months |
| Leading Rate | 12 months |
| Petty Officer | 15 months |
| Chief Petty Officer | 18 months
|
|
Some 60 rating categories (specialisation by rate) of a total
of 280 were down to the defined Minimum Time Ashore on 1 July
1999.
ARMY
Annex B, Appendix 2,[15]
gives an indication for HQ Land personnel as at 1 July 1999 of
the time elapsed since the end of the previous tour. These figures
should not be confused with Tour Interval calculations. It has
not been possible to calculate the individual unit Tour Interval
for Combat Service Support and Royal Signals units as these are
subject to deployment at sub unit level and below. Furthermore,
the majority of these units are sustained by trickle posting so
that unit tour intervals are not representative of individual
experience. Despite the agreed level of 24 months, the current
level of commitments has resulted in projected Tour Interval for
1999-2000 as follows:
**
A number of specialists within the signals, engineers and
logistics corps face shorter Tour Intervals due to operational
demand and, in the case of the R SIGNALS, the effects of under-manning.
**
RAF
**
The duration of tours vary considerably in the RAF:
(a) Roulement of/through Formed Units is normally on a
2-monthly cycle but RAF Regiment Field Squadrons deployed to Op
Agricola and Op Bolton for six months and Rapier Squadrons are
on four monthly rotation in the Falkland Islands.
(b) Detachments for personnel of Non-Formed Units are
normally for four months.
(c) Northern Ireland is a standing commitment, not a tour,
the lengths of duration (at RAF Aldegrove) are for two years.
14
See p. Back
15
Not printed. Back
| 
