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I have a better idea....
warning this opinion is infantry centric and may shred a few shibboleths
Somehow, we became convinced that part-time soldiers MUST be trained to the same standard as their full-time brethren (notwithstanding that this is, of course, completely impossible for the obvious reason that a part-time soldier is....part-time). We collectively decided that in order for 10% of the Militia to be able to deploy on operations, we need to train 100% of the people to the 100% standard.
This is where the heresy sets in....
The ONLY operational output we expect from the Militia is A) Domestic Response Companies (in a TBG structure), B) individual augmentees for Roto 1 of a LOO3 mission, and C) in F2013, a FP Coy on R1 of LOO 3.
Given the relative lead times for option A (now) and options B and C (7 months from now, and an eleventeen month road to war), how about we train 100% of the Militia to the standard required to meet op task A, and then train only those who will deploy to the standard required for B and C?
That would mean that MCpls in the Bugtussle Fusiliers would actually get a chance to do something other than run BMQ - like, say, command a section on a cool challenging exercise. It would also mean that we do not need to stand down our 3 Reg F Bdes every summer in order to train Militia soldiers to an unjustifiably high standard that is completely divorced from any operational requirement.
As Infanteer said, the problem, as always (and it is worse on the Reg F side of the fence) is that the IT / CT balance is completely out of whack.
So, what would that look like? Rct Snuffy makes it through the ludicrously Byzantine recruiting system (a topic for another rant) and reports at Depot Coy on 1 May (a Tuesday night) at aforementioned BT Fus. He gets kitted up, and gets yelled at by the happy MCpl. 3-5 weeks later, he shows up at a Training Center (Area, Bde, Unit - I care not). He spends a summer learning to be the best darn BT Fus since D Day - and finishes the summer as a bonafide Fus, capable of being a productive member of a DRC, and an apprentice infanteer learning the other stuff on exercise, as opposed to a course, led by the cheerful MCpl. Two years later, he volunteers for R15 of OP SISYPHUS. He receives his 18-24 month contract, gets time off of work due to a kind employer, and reports to the leading mounting area Battle School (name chosen deliberately). He receives 2-3 months of "Delta Training", reports to the Battalion for Road to War, does 4 months of that bumf, deploys, kills MFers That Need Killing, comes back for reintegration, and rejoins his unit.
Simple? Yes. Simplistic? Not at all.
We need to rethink this entire construct. We cannot continue to fuck over the summer of every single man-jack in the Army to maintain an artificially high standard that is divorced from any sort of reasonable and reasoned Force Employment concept.
Let the flames begin. Please don't bother with the picayune details such as 2 months versus 4 of Delta Trg, or whether or not we need Job Protection Legislation, the impact that this would have on the fabled "mobilization base" etc. I am however quite interested in feedback about the complete disconnect between training standards and FE concept.
warning this opinion is infantry centric and may shred a few shibboleths
Somehow, we became convinced that part-time soldiers MUST be trained to the same standard as their full-time brethren (notwithstanding that this is, of course, completely impossible for the obvious reason that a part-time soldier is....part-time). We collectively decided that in order for 10% of the Militia to be able to deploy on operations, we need to train 100% of the people to the 100% standard.
This is where the heresy sets in....
The ONLY operational output we expect from the Militia is A) Domestic Response Companies (in a TBG structure), B) individual augmentees for Roto 1 of a LOO3 mission, and C) in F2013, a FP Coy on R1 of LOO 3.
Given the relative lead times for option A (now) and options B and C (7 months from now, and an eleventeen month road to war), how about we train 100% of the Militia to the standard required to meet op task A, and then train only those who will deploy to the standard required for B and C?
That would mean that MCpls in the Bugtussle Fusiliers would actually get a chance to do something other than run BMQ - like, say, command a section on a cool challenging exercise. It would also mean that we do not need to stand down our 3 Reg F Bdes every summer in order to train Militia soldiers to an unjustifiably high standard that is completely divorced from any operational requirement.
As Infanteer said, the problem, as always (and it is worse on the Reg F side of the fence) is that the IT / CT balance is completely out of whack.
So, what would that look like? Rct Snuffy makes it through the ludicrously Byzantine recruiting system (a topic for another rant) and reports at Depot Coy on 1 May (a Tuesday night) at aforementioned BT Fus. He gets kitted up, and gets yelled at by the happy MCpl. 3-5 weeks later, he shows up at a Training Center (Area, Bde, Unit - I care not). He spends a summer learning to be the best darn BT Fus since D Day - and finishes the summer as a bonafide Fus, capable of being a productive member of a DRC, and an apprentice infanteer learning the other stuff on exercise, as opposed to a course, led by the cheerful MCpl. Two years later, he volunteers for R15 of OP SISYPHUS. He receives his 18-24 month contract, gets time off of work due to a kind employer, and reports to the leading mounting area Battle School (name chosen deliberately). He receives 2-3 months of "Delta Training", reports to the Battalion for Road to War, does 4 months of that bumf, deploys, kills MFers That Need Killing, comes back for reintegration, and rejoins his unit.
Simple? Yes. Simplistic? Not at all.
We need to rethink this entire construct. We cannot continue to fuck over the summer of every single man-jack in the Army to maintain an artificially high standard that is divorced from any sort of reasonable and reasoned Force Employment concept.
Let the flames begin. Please don't bother with the picayune details such as 2 months versus 4 of Delta Trg, or whether or not we need Job Protection Legislation, the impact that this would have on the fabled "mobilization base" etc. I am however quite interested in feedback about the complete disconnect between training standards and FE concept.
Bugtussle is just down the road from Petticoat Junction. 
