Situated in the heart of the Vale of the White Horse, 1861 (Wantage) Squadron has been serving the towns of Wantage, Faringdon and the surrounding villages with opportunities and activities for aviation interested young people since 1941.
One of the highlights of the wing sporting calendar saw 130 cadets take part in the Wing Swimming Championships at Temple Cowley Swimming Pool on Saturday, 7th September. Cadets arrived in high spirits ready to swim likes fishes and gain points for their squadrons to try and take home the combined trophy from the day.
As the first races started it was clear there was some excellent swimmers within the wing and the competition was going to be tough. Continue reading
Chocks away as Air Expereice Flights (AEF) resume at 6 AEF based at RAF Benson following a period of inactivity for the Grob Tutor fleet from October 2013. Squadrons from next week will start to see allocations re-appear on notice boards to offer cadets the chance to complete their Air Experience Flights with 6 AEF, further supporting cadet’s studies into aviation.
Air Experience flying is a big part of the cadet experience and alongside gliding is a key element that makes the Air Training Corps stand out from the rest. By been able to offer again cadets the chance for their sortie in the Grob Tutor cadets will be able to add another tick against their ‘Are You On Target’ achievements. Continue reading
Annual summer camps provide cadets with a great opportunity to experience life on an RAF station and the chance to take part in activities otherwise not available to them at squadron or wing levels. A number of cadets this year for summer camp within Thames Valley wing headed to RAF Shawbury across 2 weeks in August to see what happens at the base
RAF Shawbury provides for the RAF the Defence Helicopter Flying School, training aircrew for all three military services, and the Central Flying School (Helicopter), delivering the next generation of helicopter instructors. The Central Air Traffic Control School, more quietly but with equal energy, deliver the next generation of controllers, prepare those already for operations and train selected individuals as instructors. Continue reading
14 cadets and 1 staff member from Burghfield, Aldermaston, Wantage, Wallingford, Henley and Reading Squadrons attended the BCU 1 and 2 star courses at Adventure Dolphin in Pangbourne.
The majority of the Cadets worked towards and passed their BCU 1 Star certificate in an Open Canoe, the remaining Cadets and Staff progressed towards their 2 star or did refresher training. Continue reading
Thames Valley Wing of the Air Training Corps are in celebratory mood after their A Team won the best air cadet team award at the recent Royal Air Force Walking and Road Marching Association 2 day march held at Defence College of Aeronautical Engineering.
The Wing are no strangers to this achievement as it is the third time Thames Valley have picked up this award under the guidance of their coach and leader; Flight Lieutenant Karl Kisley. Continue reading
The best of the best from the Thames Valley area have come up trumps in the annual South West Region activities held this year at MOD Boscombe Down.
With activities ranging from Drill and presentational skills through to aero modelling and media communications, the battle was on to see which of the 6 Wings that form South West Region could come away with the silverware. It is fair to say that the competition was fierce but friendly throughout the whole days activities whilst the support provided by the staff, either directly to their own teams or in running the day as a whole was truly amazing. Continue reading
In a surprise result, the cadets of 2211 (Bracknell) Squadron have won the Thames Valley Wing Activity Day held at Edward Brooks Barrack from a strong field of 287 cadets from right across the Thames Valley.
Bracknell secured the win by a strong performance across all the categories – Foot Drill, Banner Drill, Aviation Art, Aeromodelling, Photography, Media Skills, Aircraft Recognition, Flights of Fancy and Map Making. Runners up were 1996 (Earley) Squadron followed by 211 (Newbury) Squadron and 381 (Reading) Squadron. The overall drill winners were favourites 1116 (Wodley) Squadron who now go forward to the Regional Activity Day. Continue reading
The annual Inter Squadron Swimming Competition was held recently at Temple Cowley Pool and saw 21 Squadrons from across Oxfordshire and Berkshire in fierce battle for the awards on offer.
The competition itself was spread across four classes (Junior Boys, Senior Boys, Junior Girls and Senior Girls) and comprised both individual and team events in all four main disciplines, namely Backstroke, Breaststroke, Butterfly and Freestyle. In addition there were further categories including the individual medley, one cadet completing all four strokes in one race, the medley relay (4 cadets 4 strokes) and the freestyle relay (4 cadets any stroke). Continue reading
Thames Valley Air Cadets from Windsor, Didcot, Wantage and Abingdon Squadrons have just returned from taking part in the 66th Annual Airborne “Wandeltocht” or March in Arnhem.
Each year around 35 thousand people from all backgrounds honour the men of the UK 1st Airborne Division who lost their lives during Operation Market Garden in September 1944. Continue reading
What do you get if you take 100 Air Cadets, a confidence course, the RAF Outreach Team and a choice of field craft training areas – well you get the most successful greens camp offered by Thames Valley Wing to date!
The camp, now in its third year at Pirbright Camp in Surrey, was aimed at the Wing’s younger cadets with a three day “Blue Phase” which was followed by a two day “Green Phase” field craft exercise. Also in the mix were a VIP engagement day and a myriad of evening social activity. Continue reading