Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average time is between completing the Weapon Systems Operator lead-in course and beginning the ISTAR operational conversion unit.

The Royal Air Force does not have a Weapon System Operator (WSOp) lead-in course. A pre-requisite for the WSOp role is completion of the Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) Foundation course. The average time taken from completion of the ISR Foundation course to starting the Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) Operational Conversion Unit during the past 12 months is 60 Weeks.