E d i t o r / C h a i r m a n
From the EDITOR
A A
s the mornings become noticeably colder and the nights draw in, we turn our attention to the
Winter Season and all it has to offer. But while the children count down the days to Christmas others have their focus elsewhere.
For those who will be apart at Christmas, especially those on ops we
give thought. The padres have initiated a new scheme, Prayerline, which may provide comfort for many. There is also an opportunity for the children (and adults!) to send messages using Santa on page 22. Once received, we will place these on our Federation website for all to read.
Enjoy the Season and Good Reading The Editor
From the Chairman
s I write, we are busy planning our 1st anniversary celebration and we remain hopeful that the Minister for the
Armed Forces and the Air Member for Personnel will attend this milestone event. The Federation team can’t believe where the first year has gone – it’s been a whirlwind of activity but hugely rewarding and we like to think we have established ourselves as a credible witness on your behalf.
We are in the process of planning our visit programme for 2009 and we hope to visit some of the smaller units that slipped
through the net last year as well as meeting some of the ‘diaspora’ (see separate article). The success of our remuneration survey in capturing the mood of families on pay- related issues exceeded our expectations and certainly created a mountain of work for poor Jenny and Colin who had the unenviable task of analysing the results. You can read the outcome of that work and our report to the Armed Forces Pay Review Body in this issue.
If you are one of the families we have helped this year in resolving an issue or you have completed a survey, thank you for the evidence that provided. Every issue tells a story and we are keen to capture as much evidence as possible. If you have a view on
RAF family life, we want to hear it and, whilst our official strap-line remains “Providing an Independent Voice”, our unofficial one “We Whinge on Your Behalf” seems to strike a chord!!
The RAF FF takes this opportunity to wish everyone in the RAF Family a Happy Christmas and a Prosperous New Year (credit crunch and 2009 pay award notwithstanding!).
CHRISTMAS MESSAGE from I
Air Chief Marshal Sir Glenn Torpy RAF
am delighted to have been invited, in this Winter issue of Envoy, to send my Christmas greetings to all our Royal Air Force families and the wider RAF community. As we look back on this year – the 90th since the RAF’s foundation, and the first of the RAF Families Federation – we can all be justifiably proud of the magnificent achievements of the men and women of the Service. Those delivering so consistently and bravely on operations and at home can only do so due to the support of a vast number of people, including colleagues, but most directly, their families. Inevitably, operational commitments will mean that many families are separated from their loved ones over the Christmas period. To those families I offer special thanks – without your steadfast support our personnel would not be able to contribute so successfully to our many tasks at home and abroad. We all look forward to you being safely and happily reunited with your loved ones. In the meantime, no matter where you are for the festive season, could I thank you for your tremendous efforts over the past year, and wish you a very happy and peaceful Christmas.
2 Winter 2008
www.raf-families-federation.org.uk
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