CONFIDENTIAL
3RD DRAFT
PROLONGATION AND WASTAGE
The Royal Navy and Royal Marines
16.
Despite some loss of personnel to civilian life in their early
years of service, the numbers choosing to prolong their service in the
Royal Navy and Royal Marines remains encouraging. At the nine year
point, some 55 per cent of Royal Navy and 45 per cent of koyal Marines
personnel prolonged their engagements in the first six months of 1974-75.
Army
17.
Prolongation rates except at the three year point have not changed
appreciably in the Army. The decline in the three year rate results
mainly from the wastage of young entrants who exercised the option
to shorten their engagement at the age of 18. A steady rise in the
proportion of recruits choosing the minimum commitment of three years'
service and the high rates of recruit and trained soldier wastage
give cause for concern.
Royal Air Force
18. The planned reduction in trained manpower mentioned in Chapter V
of the Statement on the Defence Estimates 1973 (Cmnd 5231) was
achieved by normal wastage and a small voluntary redundancy scheme.
The rate of prolongation of non-pensionable engagements has shown
little change and has been satisfactory in most ground trades.
The objective is to limit the recruiting and training task
by prolonging the average length of service; the re-introduction of
the 15-year engagement has proved a useful addition to the range of
non-pensionable engagements open to ground tradesmen. To maintain
an acceptable age and rank pattern in the ground trades, pensionable
engagements continue to be controlled.
V-7
CONFIDENTIAL.