Army being scalped of Apache pilots

Military insiders say that many of the small number of army pilots qualified to fly the aircraft have either quit or plan to leave in coming months.

Some have been lured to the private sector where their skills command much higher wages than those paid by the army.

Others say they are frustrated by rigid military career structures that force them out of the cockpit and into an office. Even frontline pilots complain that they spend too little time actually flying.

After a lengthy and complex procurement process, 67 Apaches were declared "ready for operations" last year.

The Apache is arguably the most sophisticated combat aircraft in the world, packed with weapons systems and advanced sensor packages that provide pilots with a deluge of information about their surroundings.

In all, training an Apache pilot to combat readiness takes six months and costs the MoD more than 1 million.

At least four Apache pilots are believed to have resigned in recent weeks. Army rumours suggest that several more could shortly join them, possibly as many as 11 in all.

If true, several of the Apaches, which cost about 30 million each, could effectively be grounded for lack of a qualified pilot. The Apache fleet already has suffered teething troubles in the form of mechanical and technical failures.

Such is the complexity of its systems, anything between a fifth and a half of the helicopters are grounded for maintenance at any one time. Military insiders say a shortage of qualified engineers exacerbates the situation.

While pilots are hugely enthusiastic about actually flying the Apache, the mechanical difficulty of getting the aircraft into the air and the inflexibility of the army career structure are said to have left many pilots frustrated.

One reason the Apache-qualified pilots are leaving is money. Several private companies pay generously for army-trained pilots who are then effectively hired back to the military through Private Finance Initiative training contracts.

"Now why would some of the highest calibre pilots be leaving the army? The sum of 60,000 a year springs to mind," said one military insider.

The fresh fears for the Apache are being discussed widely by Army Air Corps members on unofficial service internet forums. "A lot of these [qualified pilots] have a great deal of experience that we should not be losing before we have even finished fielding Apache," said one poster.

Other insiders blame the Army Air Corps' career profile that obliges pilots to move on from operational flying after a three-year posting. "As long as the men who fly Apache have to adhere to the career profile there will be waste," said one pilot.

But the Ministry of Defence said there could be flexibility. "Apache crews may serve for longer than three years if their careers allow, and may of course return to flying after experiencing other roles," said a spokeswoman.