First Line Reserve

[yellowjacket]

What's the current state of play with the First Line Reserve?

Is it currently inactive? What way are they leaning with it and RDF reorganisation?

[ollie]

i am a member of the first line reserve now for nearly 4 years and from my exp it is completley moribound . i would love to join the fca but am not allowed. from buds still in the pdf the re is ongoing discussion about our future role with the main stumbling block being the gratuity paid to us each year plus a means of identifying us from (pdf words) only fca

[Frank Aiken]

We have had a few ex PDF transfer straight into our Bn. Don't know how they did that. But they did.

[Truck Driver]

Ollie, have u had a look at the DFR's posted on www.rdfra.ie?

I' m sure there's a section in there which deals with conditions for enlistment, etc.

[trellheim]

Ollie you should be able to join us. Is it the wife ?

[Ex-soldier]

Once you complete your sevice in the PDF, you are either discharged or transferred to the First Line Reserve. If you are transferred into the reserve, then you become a member of the reserve strength of a particular unit and would not be eligable to join the FCA. Similarly, if you are a serving member of the FCA, you cannot join the Garda Siochana or the PDF without first being discharged from the FCA. If a person really wants to join the FCA, it is not a difficult process at all. Simply contact Army Headquarters and get yourself discharged from the reserve. They will normally do this by purchase for a very small fee. I got it done for the sum of five pounds within 24 hours. You are now free to join the FCA just like any other citizen. The only time a problem may arise would be if you are too old to be considered for enlistment. In this case, you would probably have already served the required amount of PDF service and would not be automatically transferred into the first line reserve and would therefore qualify for transfer into the second line reserve namely the FCA. This is my understanding of the process and I hope it explains why some older guys do transfer directly into the FCA and some other guys have difficulty doing so.

[JAG]

It sounds a little insane that there are all the above obstacles in front of former PDF joing the FCA.

I would have thought the military authorities would be delighted to have experienced men & women taking an active part int he reserve, instead of being a theorhetical reserve force, as I understand they currently are.

[ollie]

i left the pdf when my 5 years were up so i still had 7 years to complete in the reserve . 4 down 3 to go at the mo .i am still shown on the strength of my parent unit and am not permitted to join the fca till my service is over. a mate told me that next years budget for the first line res has been rolled into the fca's so things may be about to change. how true this is or if its an admin change i dont know

[The Joker]

Do members of the first line reserve parade like normal active units of the PDF, or are they more like the RDF. I have heard very little about them. How will they be affected with the amalgamition (Spelling)?

[Ex-soldier]

Ollie:

As I stated above....contact AHQ and request a discharge by purchase. You will be given the discharge quite easily and at a minimal fee. Then go join the FCA. Your problem is that you have not completed your original enlistment which was for 5 years active and 7 years reserve. If you had served 12 years active, then you would not need any reserve time and would be free to join the FCA directly upon discharge. If you read your LA89, you will see on page 6 that you were transferred to the reserve of your original unit and not actually discharged. Once you contact AHQ, they will complete page 7 which is the actual discharge from the Defence Forces. In addition, if you had any previous service in the FCA prior to joining the PDF, that information should be on page 11 as a seperate military enlistment with it's own enlistment and discharge dates in addition to your rank and service number information.

[ollie]

ex soldier ,thanks i ve already tried that route but was told to wait .since the first line and the fca are due to amalgamate shortly although the way things r going it isnt likely to be any time soon.

[Ex-soldier]

Don't tell them what you are up to just get the discharge and then enlist in the FCA. They have no reason not to give you a discharge and no reason not to accept your enlistment. Of course, once they know what you are really doing they will see extra paperwork for themselves and they will not want to do it. The bottom line is....Don't tell them!!!

[DeV]

When the contracts (5/12 years etc) came in was the first line reserve requirement removed?

[ltsmarty]

Cosantoir 1989 Reserve Forces Article

According to the said article mentioned in another thread, the authorities suspended FLR training in 1988, due to financial reasons.
Subsequently, they never trained since. It must have been decided that the FLR was capable of being mobilised with limited training, or were of limited use: the article quotes

"the FLR has not clearly developed to the extent that an adequate and rapid expansion of the PDF could occur in the event of belligerency. It is difficuly to understand why such little progress has been made"

Or they use the £184000 elsewhere (1987 costs), and decided that they were never going to utilise the FLR !

The FCA at that time had 63,000 mandays, allowing 9000 to FTT, or which around 16000 were effective.

So, cost cutting was rife then.

[apod]

When the contracts (5/12 years etc) came in was the first line reserve requirement removed?

No.If i was to go on my ticket tomorrow i have to do seven years in the FLR as part of my contract.