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Last updated 23 April 2007Description of duty position and work environmentDuty Experimental Test Pilot at Rotary Wing Test Squadron (RWTS), MoD Boscombe Down. Responsible for planning, flying and reporting on critical airworthiness, performance, and specification requirements of developmental aircraft and systems of the Royal Air Force, Royal Navy and Army Air Corps. Actual testing involves flight test techniques similar to those taught at USNTPS, to include performance, flying qualities, systems, and ADS-33E. Duty is similar to that performed at the U.S. Army Aviation Technical Test Center; however, it is rotary-wing specific. Additional duties are varied, depending on squadron needs, and may include Squadron Safety Officer, ADS-33 SME, NVG Instructor, Instrument Rating Examiner (IRE), and others. OER Duty Description Experimental test pilot at Rotary Wing Test Squadron (RWTS), Boscombe Down, UK Ministry of Defence. Perform the duties of Trials Officer; planning, executing, and reporting on flight test trials for the Royal Air Force, Royal Navy and Army Air Corps. Safely conduct trials to define performance, flying qualities, airworthiness, effects of aircraft modifications, and to evaluate new systems. Supervise civilian and military trials personnel and manage project budget at local and remote sites. Supervise and participate in reporting of trials results. Prepare and present trials briefings to government and civilian authorities. As an Exchange Officer, responsible for the coordination between U.S. Army Developmental Test Command and UK Air Test and Evaluation Center. Represent the U.S. Army and RWTS at meetings, symposia, conventions, and functions. Your Rater will be the RWTS Commander and your Senior Rater will be the U.S. Army Attaché in the Embassy. Uniform The duty uniform is the UK flying suit and all flight gear is UK issue (U.S. flight suits and equipment are not authorized for flight in UK aircraft at Boscombe Down). I wear the ATEC unit patch on the left sleeve, a U.S. flag insignia on the right sleeve, and rank insignia on the epaulets. The BDU may be worn to duty if you're not on the flight schedule. Class A and B’s are routinely used for industry and IPT Program Manager briefings. Generally, military uniforms are not worn off the installation or during TDY travel. Suit and tie are also routinely used for meetings and during many symposia and training events. I recommend at least blue and grey suits with multiple long-sleeve shirts and ties. There are numerous social functions throughout the year, on average one per month. Appropriate dress varies at these but the norm is either Dress Mess Blues or a tuxedo. If you don't own these you will need both for this assignment. NOTE: Civilian clothing allowance is NOT authorized. Squadron There are three aircraft Test & Evaluation (T&E) squadrons at Boscombe Down: Rotary Wing Test Squadron (RWTS); Fast Jet Test Squadron (FJTS); and Heavy Aircraft Test Squadron (HATS). The Empire Test Pilot School (ETPS), Handling Squadron (responsible for producing aircraft manuals and other publications), and Air Trials Squadron (responsilble for testing parachute and aerial delivery systems) also reside here. RWTS is comprised of test pilots, personnel, and equipment from all branches of the UK military. Current test pilot staffing is 4 Royal Navy, 4 British Army, 3 Royal Air Force, 1 U.S. Army, and 1 contractor (retired military). Consequently, you will be immersed in new terminology, new flight procedures, new rank structure and uniforms, etc. Each of the services has slightly different aircraft and of course they operate them differently due to their missions. All operate overwater, so you will most likely fly overwater or to ships at some point during your tour. The RWTS aircraft fleet includes the Westland Apache AH Mk1, Sea King, Merlin, Chinook, Lynx, and Gazelle. You will be qualified in 3 or 4 of these as Captain (similar to PC), and able to fly trials in the others as Second Pilot (similar to PI or CP). There are occasional opportunities for qual evals at RWTS, the other squadrons, and at the Empire Test Pilot School (ETPS). Qualifications Specific qualifications for this assignment are as follows:
Desirable qualifications for this assignment are as follows:
In-processing Inprocessing begins at the MPEP office at the Embassy where you will sign in from leave, settle your travel voucher, and turn-in your finance and personnel records. This will take most of the morning to settle. Upon completion at the Embassy you will depart for Boscombe Down. In-processing at Boscombe Down is fairly simple. I arranged to meet the housing Customer Care Officer (CCO) at our house upon arrival. We walked throught the house, signed for it, and took the keys. For entry on Boscombe Down, you will need to go to the main gate and get a temporary pass. If you have arranged with a RWTS sponsor prior to your arrival, the pass office should have all your details. At RWTS you will get a checklist to follow which is pretty straightforward. For a sample RWTS inprocessing checklist click here. As a pilot flying with the British military, you will be required to maintain a logbook. Each flight is entered into the logbook. These are submitted to the flight commander for monthly and quarterly reviews. Some other items that you will need to do that aren't covered at the Embassy or the RWTS checklist are vehicle registration (at Boscombe Down and U.S. facilities), APO setup, and ration card issue. More details on these are covered in the appropriate sections below. Training Upon arrival you will be required to attend the UK Orientation Course (UKOC) at RAF Shawbury. This course lasts about two weeks and is comprised of academics and 15 hours or so of flight time in the AS-350 Squirrel. The UKOC is designed to get you used to flying in UK airspace, interacting with UK ATC agencies, and planning flights in the UK system. Although the course has a syllabus, it is customizable depending on your experience and needs. If there is something you want to do or see, make sure you ask. You will learn here that the British military operate their aircraft quite a bit differently than the U.S. Army. There is quite a bit more freedom and a less structured briefing and authorization process than you will be used to. Flight regulations are less stringent as well; for example, it is legal and common to fly IFR in uncontrolled airspace. There are different levels of radar and flight information service and the decision of which to use normally rests with the pilot. Other required training will include the Dunker, Short-Term Air Supply System (STASS), dinghy pool drills, and wet winch drills in open water. Aircraft conversions may include the Sea King, Merlin, Lynx, or Gazelle, and differences courses in the Apache and Chinook. Typically, Sea King and Merlin courses will be done TDY, while conversion into the other types may be done at Boscombe Down. Conversion (differences) into the UK Apache and/or Chinook may be done locally. In addition to learning to fly new types of aircraft in a new environment, you will need to learn many new terms and procedures. I have provided some of the more common and useful terms in the following links: Fitness and Physical Training PT is mainly self directed. The base has a fairly well equipped gym with weights and aerobic machines as well as courts for volleyball, badminton, squash, and tennis. The gym is free for military personnel and dependents and is available 24/7. The squadron does have organized PT once per week, each Thursday, which usually consists of some warm-ups followed by some team sport. There is a running trail about 11 miles long inside the perimeter of the base and there are several routes of various lengths outside the base. Military swimming pools are located nearby at the Army camps at Bulford and Tidworth. There are two "leisure centers" (public sports centers) nearby as well that offer full gym facilities and pools. These can be joined as an annual membership or you can pay as you use. There is no other organized PT at RWTS but it can be done either before work or even during the duty day as long as you deconflict with your duties. Many people ride bicylces or even run to work (around the base perimeter and in the back gate) and some get together for a run or ride at lunch. PT testing can be done with the squadron (RAF Operational Fitness Test) or you could coordinate with other exchange officers and do the APFT. Location MoD Boscombe Down is located about 85 miles WSW of London, in Amesbury, Wiltshire. The nearest city is Salisbury. The unit address is:
For a map of the location, click here, on the thumbnail on the photo page, or use multimap.com. QinetiQ MoD Boscombe Down is run and managed by QinetiQ (http://www.QinetiQ.com). Under a 25 year Long Term Partnering Agreement (LTPA), QinetiQ is responsible for developmental test & evaluation in the British Ministry of Defence (MoD). QinetiQ operates several test facilities throughout Great Britain, and Boscombe Down is where aviation testing is conducted. However, military personnel work with, not for, QinetiQ, and among other things, are responsible for the flight portion of aircraft trials. QinetiQ is a publically traded corporation and has expanded its business into the US by buying defense companies like Westar and Foster-Miller.
Description of housingLocation The married quarters (here called “The Patch”) are located just outside the Boscombe Down main gate, which is convenient for Mess functions as well as socializing. In addition, there are a few other officers’ patches at various bases in the local area; it is possible to move in to one of these if one is available. Rental price with all utilities runs about £500 per month. Current OHA Rates and COLA rates are found at the DFAS website (use UK518 as the region code). It is possible to live in non-military housing as well but rental prices on the economy make living on the patch very attractive. Although the housing is only about 200 meters from the main gate, and about 2 km from RWTS, you must either drive or ride a bicycle to work; the road to the squadron crosses an active runway and walking across the runway is not authorized.
Description Our house is single family detached, with four bedrooms and approximately 1000 square feet. Two of the bedrooms are decent sized and the other two are pretty small (most UK houses are much smaller than a typical U.S. house). Overall, the house is about the size of base housing at Utilities and Appliances The quarters use standard British 220V/50Hz electricity. The USAF will provide two 2000W transformers to allow you to use your U.S. 110V/60hz appliances and electronics. Additional transformers may be able to be purchased used from other MPEP personnel or at U.S. military thrift shops. Some U.S. electronic equipment is dual voltage and will not require a transformer; most computer equipment is this way, some TV and stereo equipment is as well. Home appliances are provided by the USAF as well; this includes either UK appliances are typically smaller than U.S. appliances. Both compartments of the fridge/freezer are relatively small. The USAF or Navy is supposed to have stand-alone deep freezers available, but apparently they only have a few because I can't get one. I bought a second hand fridge/freezer and keep it in the garage. It helps in storing frozen goods and beer; since the commissary is so far away we make few trips there but buy in bulk. The washer and dryer are fairly small as well. It takes a while (about 1-1/2 hours or so) to do a load of wash, but the washer is a front-loader and does an excellent job cleaning. The quarters contain a gas boiler to heat the water. The heated water is stored in a large tank in the house. The storage tank supplies hot water to all of the fixtures (except the shower) and the radiators. Although the bath tub is supplied from this tank, the shower is uses an electrically heated, point-of-use fixture. The shower temperature is adjustable from cold to way too hot, and as long as water is running, you can not run out of hot water. The water here is relatively hard. You will need to add "salt" to the dishwasher, and the shower head needs to be removed and cleaned of scale deposits monthly. If you use a coffee maker or tea kettle, you will need to descale these pretty often as well. Television UK television signals are broadcast in the PAL format, therefore if you want to watch TV options include terrestrial broadcasts (5 UHF stations only), cable and satellite. In addition, it is possible to buy or rent an AFN decoder and receive AFN signals (NTSC standard). AFN currently broadcasts about 5 channels. More info on this can be found by clicking the AFRTS website here. Whether you receive terrestrial, cable, or satellite TV, you must pay an annual TV tax. This is about £125 annually for a color TV or £75 for B&W TV. Internet Many cable companies offer Broadband internet access. The cost is typically a bit more than U.S. prices, but isn't unreasonable. I consider broadband a necessity; we use the internet for banking and financial services, mail-order clothing and other items (J.C. Penney, Sears, Lands End, AAFES), schooling, etc. There are several companies around but we use NTL for cable, phone, and internet. The service has been good and the package price is reasonable. Many DOD web sites (DFAS, HRC, DAU, etc.) will not allow you to log in from a foreign based IP address. When I need to use one of these sites, I VPN to ATTC which seems to have solved this problem. Key: bring an ATTC computer and make sure you are set up to VPN. Mobile Phones There are several mobile phone companies with various plans available. I find that mobile phones are quite a bit more expensive to use here than in the U.S. Although they only charge for out-going calls, the per-minute charges are higher than in the U.S. There are usually reduced charges for calling a number on the same network, but there are no "free nights and weekends" like in the States. There seems to be a bit of competition here so it wouldn't surprise me if prices come down and better services are offered. There are basically two methods of using mobile phones. With the "pay-as-you-talk" method, you "top-up" your phone at an ATM or at many retail stores and use it until you need to "top-up" again. With a contract plan, you will pay a monthly charge and get a specified number of minutes per month. I use Vodafone but there are many other reputable services available. General Detailed photos of the interior and exterior of the house are available on request. Email me for photos, a floor plan, or other housing information.
Medical and Dental CareThere are various options for medical care: Station Medical Facility There is a medical and dental station on Boscombe Down that is authorized for service member use only. Here you may take care of the more routine things, as well as clearance for flight. They will normally accept a U.S. Army Flight Physical and consider you “fit to fly”. The dental clinic will take care of routine dental care. The medical and dental facility is open during normal duty hours. National Health System Your dependents (and you) may register with the National Health Service (NHS) and use one of the local “surgeries” (clinics). This is the local, convenient option and for us has been fairly easy to use. With the NHS, you will have a Primary Care Manager who will see you on an appointment basis, free of charge. Prescriptions, which are filled at the local chemist, are free for children under 16, and £6 for anyone over 16. The prescription cost is reimbursable through Tricare. Tricare Since the duty is more than 50 miles from a U.S. Medical Facilities Appointments may also be booked at any If needed, medical TDY can be arranged through the U.S. Embassy. The process requires advance notification to the Embassy MPEP Office and can be used for specialty care visits to RAF Lakenheath and to NHS hospitals. Dental Care Active Duty dental care can be taken care of at the Boscombe Down medical center. Alternatively, you may try U.S. military dental facilities who will see you on a space available basis. You may also use TGRO for dental care (servicemember only). Dependents may use NHS facilities, Tricare Dental program (United Concordia), or U.S. military facilities (space available). We have been able to have all of our dental requirements met at Lakenheath, but we are reminded every time that it is space available.
Description of Military Post Office, Commissary and PX FacilitiesU.S. Administrative Support Administrative support for all MPEP personnel is through the Embassy in London. The MPEP NCO there offers excellent support and handles all finance, leave, OER, and other issues. The MPEP office also hosts an annual MPEP conference in the summer which provides a great opportunity to receive and disseminate information and meet up with the other MPEP personnel. Military Post Office There are currently three
You should be able to set up a mail account before arriving by co-ordination and copies of orders to the postmaster there. I can help with this if necessary. PX and Commissary Facilities We try to make a trip to a commissary about twice a month and stock up on groceries, particularly meats and frozen goods. RAF Fairford is the closest commissary/BX facility and is about 50 miles north of Boscombe Down. The commissary is pretty well equipped and is a very nice facility. The BX, however, is very small and almost useless. Other facilities at Fairford include a bowling alley, theater, community center, gas station, gym, barber shop, and education center. On a good day, you can drive to Fairford (on mostly two-lane roads) in about 1:10. RAF Croughton is the next closest U.S. facility (north of Oxford, about 90 miles) with services similar to those at Fairford. The drive to Croughton is almost completely on dual carriageway so it takes about 1:30 to get there. NOTE: As noted below in the POV section, driving times in the UK are variable. On two-lane roads ("single carriageways") you can easily get stuck behind a truck (lorry) or tractor, severely slowing progress. Motorways and 4-lane divided highways ("dual carriageways") are usually a bit better, but even on these there can be construction and I have seen many unexplained traffic jams (queues). The above facilities have small but decent Commissaries. However, the only BX worth making a trip to is at RAF Lakenheath or Mildenhall. These two bases are very near each other, but are about 170 miles (3+ hour drive) away. We find them worth going to periodically, if for no other reason than to be on a U.S. style base. The commissary and BX are easily equal to any I have ever seen, and there are a slew of other facilities there such as bowling, theater, etc. that are common to USAF bases. Click here for a map of nearby U.S. facilities. Note: This is map gives only general locations and comes from public information found on the web. Other Shopping Alternatives The commissary/BX is not always the best deal around (mainly due to the time and expense involved in driving). Sometimes, during sales, local purchases can be made for less, especially at some of the local chain stores such as Lidl and Aldi. Warehouse stores such as COSTCO are also available and will accept U.S. membership. The nearest COSTCO is located at Reading which is about an hour drive. Of course it is very easy to order things online or from catalogs such as J.C. Penney, Sears, Lands End, etc. However, there are some downfalls when ordering this way: Some mail order and on-line stores will not ship to APO addresses; it may be difficult to get the proper size clothing; and it takes a while by the time the stuff gets to the APO and you have a chance to pick it up (sometimes up to 3 weeks). One company tried to ship a package to our APO address via UPS. UPS had to call us and ask for our civilian address, adding several days to the shipping time and required filling out some forms to avoid paying tax. Some On-line Shopping Links: Local religious servicesBaptist, Catholic, Church of England, Methodist, and Christian non-denominational religious services are available locally. Others are not as common, but can also be found in the nearby communities or within a short commute. Although there is no chapel on Boscombe Down, there is one located at Bulford Camp (Army) about 3 miles away. Boscombe Down has a Christian Fellowship group that meets weekly. The base Chaplain is also the pastor at the
BankingThere are several local banks available. We opened an account at HSBC in Amesbury to use for paying rent, utilities, mess bill, etc. All of the local bills must be paid in £ (Great Britain Pounds (GBP)). We use USAA as our U.S. bank and we periodically withdraw funds from the ATM and deposit it into our HSBC account. Credit and debit cards are accepted almost everywhere; for most purchases we use our USAA debit card. USAA debits the account at the daily bank exchange rate. Using a U.S. credit card usually involves some type of foreign transaction charge so we avoid this option as much as possible. Your military travel allowances at RWTS will be electronically deposited into your GBP account. Nearly every periodic bill can be auto-drafted form your GBP account for no fee. Links to some of the local banks:
SchoolsSchooling options are varied and largely depend on children’s ages and your personal preferences: Overview of the British School System According to the Status of Forces Agreement, American families are welcome to use British state (public) schools, and, in doing so, are bound by the same rules that govern the British. Education in the Nursery school is the British term for pre-school. Since April 1998, the British government has agreed to provide a certain amount of free nursery education for four-year-olds. The government department known as OFSTED - the Office for Standards in Education - regularly inspects all nursery schools, whether private or state run. Those reaching the required standard are said to be 'OFSTED validated'. The government will pay for any four-year-old attending those particular schools to have five free half-day sessions of nursery education each week. The Early Years Adviser in each of the county education offices keeps records of nursery schools that come within the scheme. Alternatively you can make direct contact with any nursery school you like the look of, in which case your first question should be "Are you OFSTED validated?" Your child can, of course, attend more than five half-day sessions if the school has the space, but you must pay for the extra sessions yourself. The British school year is divided into three terms, autumn, spring and summer. The longest holiday (vacation) is the six-week summer break. The children go back to school for the start of the new academic year around Sept. 3 for three months. They then have a three-week Christmas break. They then return to school for three months until the three-week Easter break, then go back into school for the final term, which ends in the long summer break. In addition, each term is broken in the middle by a week's “half-term” holiday. It sounds complicated, but works out in practice as six weeks in school, one week out, six weeks in, three weeks out, and so on until the summer six-week break. The school day typically begins at Most British primary schools take children for full-time regular schooling at the beginning of the term (semester) in which they become 5 years old. Primary schools no longer insist on the strict uniform regulations of yesteryear, but they do like a certain uniformity of dress, so they may ask for children to wear, for example, grey skirts or pants and perhaps a white sweatshirt, or T-shirt in the summer, with the school badge printed on it, obtainable at a small cost from the school. The local school system (Wiltshire) is divided into a two-tier system: the primary (first) schools for pupils aged 5 to 11 years; and secondary schools for 11 to 18 year olds. Most schools maintained by the Wiltshire Education Authority are comprehensive and mixed (boys and girls in the same school), but there are a couple of single-sex schools. There is no statutory requirement to provide education for those children under the age of 5. A few nursery classes are attached to primary schools in the area but there are seldom enough places to go around. There are, however, several privately run nursery schools and informal pre-school playgroups. There are several state schools (like U.S. public schools) and independent schools (like U.S. private schools) available locally. Children are eligible to attend the state schools free of charge, whereas the independent schools charge tuition and fees. Schooling and the curriculum here are very different from the Many of the MPEP personnel I have spoken with tend to put their younger children into British primary (elementary) schools, while some send their older children to the
Non-DoDDS School Program The Department of Defense Dependents Schools (DoDDS) has a program (the "Non-DoDDS" School program) for MPEP personnel which allows attendance at an independent school. We use this program and our children go to an independent school in London Central High School You may have heard about the U.S. boarding school (London Central High School). Unfortunately, the school and the installation it is on are closing in June 2007. LCHS will not be available as an option. American Curriculum High Schools There are three British independent schools in southern England which teach an American curriculum and also offer an International Baccalaurete (IB) program. I will get more information on these soon. Check their websites: ACS Cobham, Marymount, and TASIS. Post-secondary Education There are many opportunities for post-secondary education while posted in the UK. Education centers on RAF Fairford, Croughton, Mildenhall, and Lakenheath offer courses through the University of Maryland-University College, Embry-Riddle, City Colleges of Chicago, Central Texas College, University of Oklahoma, and University of Phoenix (this list is not all-inclusive). Courses with these institutions are available in the classroom, via video, or online. The closest US military education center is located at RAF Fairford. It is also possible to take courses at British universities and colleges. Salisbury College is a local school that offers full and part-time curricula in many vocational and educational areas. Southampton University is the closest University level institution. It may also be possible to take courses at Oxford, Cambridge, or Cranfield. Cranfield has a program leading to an MS for Test Pilot School graduates (more detailed information to follow). General Education Information The latest DoDDS MPEP brief can be found on the MPEP Useful Links page or by clicking here. For more detailed questions about schooling contact me or see the links below:
POV informationModifications and MOT Inspection Your POV will require some minor modifications to pass an MOT (Ministry of Transport) inspection. These modifications and the MOT can be done at RAF Lakenheath or Croughton or at local auto repair shops. The modifications involve mainly the lighting and it is possible to do them prior to shipping your car. What is an MOT? The MOT is a bumper-to-bumper safety test. It is very involved and complex and is not an easy test to pass. The MOT test itself takes about 45 minutes and the cost is about £40 or its dollar equivalent at the going rate. The MOT applies to all vehicles more than 3 years old. The MOT certificate is good for 12 months and then your car must be retested. Your car must have passed an MOT test in order to drive it on British roads.What guidelines should you use when deciding whether or not to bring an older vehicle to the UK? The general rule is if you don't think your car will pass this test, it might be a good idea to consider the cost and length of time it would take to get the parts to repair it (generally from the States). A good rule of thumb is any car 10 years or older, unless a classic, may be best left in the States. The lighting requirements for the MOT are fairly extensive. All vehicles built after 1 April 1981 must have a fog light, mounted at the rear of the vehicle, centered to the right hand side of the vehicle. I had my right reverse light shaded with red transparent plastic and wired to a separate switch. Also, the light control switch must light up when the fog light is on and must be seen from the drivers seat. Parking lights must be white, not amber. The headlights in the UK are angled differently than in the States because of driving on the other side of the road. You will probably want to wait to have the re-aiming of your lights be done when you arrive in the UK. I am looking for a stick-on lens that will do the re-aiming; if I find one I will post the information here. All vehicles built after 1 April 1986 must have a side repeater. A side repeater is a separate turn signal in the fender that can be seen from the driver side door. This may be done by drilling holes in the fender of approximately3/index.htm4inch diameter, or by using stick-on repeaters. Wraparound lights may substitute for the side repeater in some models. All rear turn signals must flash amber, and must not adversely affect any other light (brake light, parking light). Very few American vehicles meet the standards for light requirements in the UK. Depending on the car, the modifications may run as high as £200-£300.
Registration, Tax, and Insurance Once you have your car converted and have an MOT inspection, you will need to fill out some paperwork at a U.S. military vehicle registration office. A few days later you will get a form in the mail allowing you to go to a local garage or to the garage on the U.S. base and get registration tags. These cost me about £10 locally in Amesbury. Road tax is free for your first year (for U.S. military personnel) and then about approximately £165 for each year thereafter (may be more or less depending on engine size). Plan on paying more for insurance. My rates went up about 30% or so. Since you will be crossing an active runway, you may want to check with your insurance company to make sure you are covered "airside". USAA does business in the UK and can issue a policy over a phone call that will also cover your vehicle during shipment. Driving Regulations British driving regulations are outlined in the Highway Code, which is available for purchase at U.S. Shoppettes, the British Post Office, or local bookstores. The majority of British traffic signs are made to the international standard and as such are similar to those in Germany. In the UK, you will drive on the left and pass on the right, even on US installations. Seat belt use is mandatory by all occupants. Unless otherwise posted, speed limits are 30mph in built-up areas, 60mph on single carriageways (two-lane roads), and 70mph on dual carriageways (multi-lane divided highways) and motorways ("interstates"). When approaching a roundabout, traffic already in the roundabout (approaching from your right) has the right of way. The Motorway system contains about 1,700 miles of roads that link the major cities. Motorways are colored blue on road maps, have blue road signs, and are numbered with the prefix "M". Trunk roads (A-roads) link principal towns and cities and will take you to more remote parts of the country. Although many of these roads are dual carriageway for at least a portion, they are mostly single carriageway. These are marked red on maps. Minor roads (B-roads) form an intricate web of communication between every small town and village and are marked brown or yellow on maps. You will end up traveling on A and B-roads quite a bit because: 1) there is no convenient motorway, and 2) motorways get jammed up with "queueing" traffic. Of course, the smaller roads suffer queues as well, so good planning can sure reduce driving times. Maintenance and General Information We shipped a Honda Odyssey, and although some folks bring larger vehicles, I wouldn’t recommend anything much larger. We have had no real problems driving left-hand drive cars on British roads. It does make it a bit difficult to pass on some of the two-lane roads (single carriageways), but it also seems to make it a bit easier missing the hedges on the left when driving down some (of the numerous) very narrow roads. Expect multiple minor damages from narrow roads (often with no shoulders), narrow parking lots ("car parks") and greater tire damage and higher tire wear as compared to driving in the U.S. Local garages will do typical maintenance for prices that are about double what you would expect to pay in the states. There is a motor club on Boscombe Down which costs £10 per year and has bays and a lift where you can do your own routine maintenance. Since you can't walk to work, you may find it convenient to buy a second hand car. These are readily available and can run from very inexpensive to the sky's the limit. Around December of each year, the graduating ETPS class normally has several cars available. Obviously, each car will need its own MOT and road tax disc. However, these are transferrable; so if it has been paid by the previous owner, you are OK until they expire.
MiscellaneousPre-PCS VERY IMPORTANT: Prior to traveling to the UK, your family members will need visas for the length of your tour. These should be obtained at the travel office at the same time you get your official and no-fee passports. The United Kingdom has enacted new immigration regulations that require those people intending to stay for more than six (6) months to obtain early clearance prior to traveling to the UK. As of the 13th of January, 2004, the new early clearance rules are under full implementation by officials of the UK Immigration and Nationality Directorate. The new rules state "that anyone attempting to enter the UK without the proper entry clearance will be denied entry." While the new rules exempt active duty military personnel, they do apply to military dependents, as well as civilian personnel, contractors, and their dependents. The form you will need to fill out is the Non-Settlement Form (VAF1 2003). Make sure this is done prior to your departure. If you have a problem getting this done, see the Office of the SJA. Although these Visas may be obtained after your arrival here, it requires filling out a 20-page form, a all day trip to the UK Immigration Office (waiting in lines), and an up-front payment of £500 (which is re-imbursible). We didn't know about this requirement until we arrived at Heathrow and were questioned by Immigration. They let us in, but it was a hassle. Take it from me, it is much easier to do this before leaving the U.S. The visas not only allow your dependents to remain in the country for an extended period, it also allows them to seek employment if desired. If you plan on traveling outside the UK, you will also need to get tourist passports; the official and no-fee passports are strictly for official travel. To ease the transition, you may want to consider the following actions prior to leaving:
Traveling There are many nearby attractions which include the Salisbury Cathedral, with one of the highest spires in the world, and
Useful Links
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