As you know, the truth is born in a dispute. However, often the dispute turns into a set of monologues, each of which tries to be presented as the only objective position without giving the opposing side an opportunity to express its point of view. In such a situation, it becomes very difficult to find grains of truth.
Graduation of officers at the Krasnodar Flight School © Vladimir Anosov. YUGA.ru
Approximately the same tendency is observed today in our country in terms of coverage of the situation with the Air Force. The press publishes materials with a fair amount of regularity that tell that the situation in the Russian Air Force is so deplorable that young pilots literally "run" from the structure in organized groups and almost in step … It is reported that young people went into the military profession of conquerors heavens to find yourself and fill wallets with large bills … And now, they say, they were all deceived, so much so that after that the only way forward for the young lieutenant is, excuse the expression, to "screw up" on the medical-flight expert commission (VLEK), receive a certificate of unsuitability and - forward - into a bright civil future with prohibitively high wages, where young, inexperienced, pilot specialists are literally kissed for joy in a variety of places.
The Izvestia newspaper in its recently published issue cites truly apocalyptic figures, which indicate that, out of 80 young lieutenants of the Air Force, as many as 60 have begun the procedure for dismissal through VLEK. Why through VLEK? Because this is supposedly the only chance to break out of this “vicious circle”, having received “liberation” from the attachment to the sky. The reason for this, it turns out, is a kind of financial hazing, when, if young people are allowed before flights, it is only to the extent that the flight rate required to cover the flight rate is not fulfilled. Allegedly, all the other hours spent in the sky at the helm of a combat vehicle are distributed among the "grandfathers" (pilots with great experience), who receive a salary of more than 100 thousand rubles. At the same time, the authors of "Izvestinsky" material, circulated by other publications, are concerned that young pilots are getting paid "only" about 50 thousand rubles, although they were promised almost two or three times more.
If you believe such numbers without checking them, then, indeed, it may seem to someone that young guys need to look for other places for self-realization. Like, well, where does that fit - a young man is paid no more than 50 thousand, and even in ruble terms … Hmm …
However, in reality, everything is, to put it mildly, not quite so.
The head of the press service of the Western Military District, Colonel Bobrun, says that over the past several years, the Western Military District has not received a single report on transfer to the reserve from young pilots. It turns out that either the 20 young lieutenants of the Air Force who are not “retired” by Izvestia are serving in the ZVO, or the authors of the above material somewhat distort the facts in relation to the situation with the Russian Air Force as a whole and the service of yesterday's cadets in the Military - the air forces of Russia in particular.
On the other hand, if we continue to analyze the arguments given in the material about the "total flight" of young pilots from the units of the Russian Air Force, it turns out that for 22-23-year-old guys who received lieutenant shoulder straps, only monetary allowance is in the first place, and not the oath that they were pleased to give as cadets of flight universities. The situation is more than strange: if young people come to the Air Force solely for money, and even make a sour face on the fact that experienced pilots spend more hours in the sky than they do, then the Air Force itself must get rid of such young lieutenants. After all, as you know, if the essence of the question for a person wearing the shoulder straps of a Russian officer rests solely on finances, then nothing good can be expected from such an officer. Apparently, even if there is a threat to the country, he will first recalculate his monetary allowance, and only then he will think: should he make a combat mission or go to the medical-flight commission as a sign of disagreement with the financial unit …
Of course, the realities of the transition to a market economy dictate their own laws, but these laws should not become decisive in such a field of activity as military service. Of course, active stimulation of young pilots is an important task, but today, at least, it is not modest to say that such stimulation by the state is not being carried out. This includes preferential mortgage lending, and payment of rental housing, and a preferential queue for children (if the young officer managed to acquire such) in kindergartens. If this does not stimulate young pilots, then of course - go ahead - to write a report …
According to the same Andrei Bobrun, young pilots already a year after receiving lieutenant shoulder straps become the owners of the qualification "Pilot of the 3rd class". This qualification allows them to independently carry out combat training tasks at the district training grounds. Daily practice of actions in emergency situations, takeoff, landing in various meteorological conditions, integration of work with the flight management group made it possible to practically level the number of hours spent in the sky at the controls of the aircraft by a young pilot and 1st class pilots. Naturally, in order to obtain a qualification, one must also pass a series of exams, which already show how much the young pilot himself is ready to fulfill the tasks assigned to him.
It is the qualification exams that often serve as a fertile ground for the appearance in the media of materials about the "mass layoffs" of young pilots from the Air Force. Only at the same time, the authors of the materials in a strange way are silent about those facts when a certain percentage of the subjects simply fail these tests. But this is a trend of the new time, when young people (and this applies not only to pilots) want to get everything at once without any dedication: they say, who needs these exams to practice the skills of controlling new combat vehicles, because we have already read about this in the textbooks … And now just give us the steering wheel, and 100-150 thousand rubles in each pocket - and we will do something in the sky … A kind of position of the mercenary soldiers - there is no other way to say. Only mercenaries usually have solid experience behind them …
Speaking about the flight rate of 100 hours per year, which is allegedly criticized again by many young pilots (they say, there is no way to fly 100 hours), it is worth citing data on the Southern Military District. Here, at the aviation base of General Kravchenko, formed in 2010, a wide range of work on flight training is being carried out. It includes group maneuvering battles, low-altitude flights, air refueling, and types of training for combat operations in difficult weather conditions. Such actions allow even a young pilot to write up to 150 hours in the flight asset per year and receive a very impressive monetary allowance. At the end of 2011, two lieutenants of the air base flew more than 200 hours each. These figures are just for those who are sure that it is simply impossible to fulfill the quota of 100 hours per year. Due to the fact that new aviation equipment is steadily arriving at the air base, young pilots have an excellent opportunity to master it, as they say, at home. And the YuVO air base is far from the only one of its kind in the Russian Air Force.
If we take into account the steady growth in the number of exercises involving the military personnel of the Air Force in Russia, then we can say with confidence: the words that young pilots in the country's modern Air Force are not attracted by anything other than the financial side are just idle speculation. And the task of these speculations is, apparently, to re-sow seeds of doubt about the future of the Russian army in general and the Air Force in particular.
But we must not forget that the Air Force of Russia (like the entire army of the country) survived the 90s, and therefore any new attacks against the Air Force look at least slightly appropriate and completely unproductive.
