Cadets from 1460 (Banbury) and 150 (City of Oxford) Squadrons have just returned from a Junior Cadet training weekend with a difference. Instead of just teaching them the theory, their staff had organised for them to have a real practical experience of what it means to be an Air Cadet!
During the weekend the cadets learnt all about Initial expedition training, Navigation, History of the RAF and flight and radio communications basing themselves at Rhydd Covert Scout Camp site next to the West Midlands Safari Park.
After being woken up by the Hippos, the cadets walked along the banks of the River Severn as part of their navigation training before taking The Severn Valley Railway back to Kidderminster to visit the local pool. In the evening the party cooked a meal (expedition style) before taking to the airwaves during radio training.
After a good nights sleep, the cadets and staff visited the RAF Museum at Cosford to learn about the history of the RAF and Flight as well as finding out how aircraft fly.
Flying Officer Matt Lodge takes up the story “We were lucky enough to arrive at the museum on their Battle of Britain Weekend. The Cadets and Staff quickly took advantage of this by joining a Q&A session with two Battle of Britain RAFVR pilots; Fg Off Wilkinson (of 616, 19, 72, 234 and 165 Sqns) and Sqn Ldr Tony Pickering (501, 601 and 131 Sqns)”. The cadets listened intently to their very interesting tales of life in the RAFVR around the time of BoB and their exploits during this time.
At the end of the weekend the cadets agreed that this was a great way to learn new skills and was far more fun than sitting in a classroom!
