Well said Kaiser. I am currently instructing on a Recruit course and I am very aware that when my "Trainees" (as we have to call them now) get out into ops they may very well struggle to get the kind of training that we used to have due to the demands of PDFs and home fire safety checks etc.
I place great emphasis on traditional Firemanship and teamwork in all the training I do and I offer no apologies for that.
There will be plenty of time for researching stuff on the net once they are on station so lets get the hang of putting ladders up and remembering how to set in to open water first.
The new lads have an incredible amount of stuff to get to grips with which on the whole they approach with good humor and enthusiam. Those who berate the youngsters should stop and have a look at what is demanded of a trainee nowadays. I for one am painfully aware that an old git like me wouldnt stand a cat in hells chance of coping with the IT stuff on top of the practical
