Over the summer many squadrons take the opportunity to provide expeditions to support their cadets through the ‘Duke of Edinburgh’s Award’ expedition section. Whether this is at Bronze, Silver or Gold level, by foot, canoe or bikes cadets work hard to prepare their route cards, kit and meal plans to ensure a successful expedition.

On Saturday, 3^rd August 7 cadets headed off to the Chiltern Hills, Oxfordshire to take part in a practice expedition. Fg Off Jane Wicks from 2410 (Didcot) Squadron organised the weekend to enable cadets from the central sector of Thames Valley Wing to put their expedition training into practice under remote supervision of staff from within the sector. 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 →

On Sunday 25 August seventeen cadets and four members of staff from 966 (Wallingford) Squadron ATC attended the North Moreton Air Pageant organised by Peter and Polly Vacher at Melhuish Farm.

This year, courtesy of 28 (AC) Squadron, RAF Benson, the cadets and staff were transported from Benson in the Merlin helicopter which was scheduled to be part of the event.  The short flight which started out on a grey and drizzly day was the first time many of the cadets had flown in a Merlin. 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 →

With summer finally here, cadets & staff from Thames Valley Wing took to the water & climbing wall at Adventure Dolphin in Pangbourne for the Wing’s Multiactivity Adventure Training Day. 12 cadets and 4 staff members from across the Thames Valley attended the event, with all enjoying the warm weather and sunshine!

Following an introduction into what the day would involve, the cadets were split into two groups to tackle morning’s respective challenges. The first being a taxing “throw the shoe” warm up lead by CI Ollie Holman of 2402 squadron. Following this, the flights went their separate ways – an introduction to Paddlesport in open canoes or tackling 9 challenging climbing routes on the climbing wall. Continue reading →

Every year cadets from 966 (Wallingford) Sqn compete with the Wallingford detachment of the Army Cadet Force for two awards presented by the local Branch of the Royal British Legion.  This year, on 30 May, the squadron pulled off a hat-trick by winning both the awards.  Following an interview of the nominated cadets from both organisations by the Wallingford RBL, it was decided to present the ‘Cadet of the Year Award 2013’ to FS Sally Evans and the ‘Tony Smith Memorial Shield Award 2013’ to Sgt Tamara Simmons.  Continue reading →

Easter 2013 had a new twist for a number of members of staff and cadets from across Thames valley Wing as they enjoyed the hospitality of RAF High Wycombe during their Easter Camp.

Despite the snow, frost and freezing temperatures the camp enjoyed a whole host of activities including trips to the RAF Museum at Hendon, a visit to RAF Halton, Hell Fire Caves and the C17 and C130 fleets at RAF Brize Norton. 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 →

Waking up at 6am isn’t the usual Sunday morning for a teenager, but the cadets from Slough squadron were up for the challenge of Wing Activities Day. Ready to compete, we arrived at Edward Brooks Barracks prepared to engage in the competitive spirit of Thames Valley Wing. As Slough squadron’s team captain, Sergeant Pusey was already motivating the cadets: “This is a great opportunity to boost the confidence of three of our new cadets.” The new cadets at Slough squadron had been preparing and training for this opportunity to demonstrate how much they have improved over recent months, and were excited to participate. 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 →