Want to be the best at football and hockey, Thames Valley Air Cadets is the place to be as their performance in both these areas has proven to be of the highest standard.

An unusually warm October Saturday morning in Tidworth, Wiltshire saw the 21 member junior football and hockey teams from Thames Valley Wing pitting themselves against the best cadets from across the South West of England. Continue reading →

RAF Benson in Oxfordshire was the location of top quality marching drill when some of the best cadets from across Oxfordshire and Berkshire attended the latest Supplementary Drill Course to be run by Thames Valley Wing Air Cadets.

Led by the Wing Warrant Officer, WO Jon Lambert ATC, a cadre of 7 instructors took 41 senior cadets under their wing and taught them everything from the intricacies of banner and ceremonial drill through to the skills required to pass that knowledge on to younger cadets on their own Squadrons. Continue reading →

In a nail biting finish the cadets of 381 (Reading) Squadron proved they were the best by winning the recent Wing Activities Day held at Edward Brooks Barracks near Abingdon.

Against the back drop of a deep blue sky and bright sunshine, 21 teams from across the Wing started the day in contention with a testing set of competitions ahead of them. This included Field Craft, Public Speaking, Adventure Training, First Aid, Aircraft Recognition, Foot Drill, Media Skills, Aviation Art, Photography, Website construction and Aero modelling. Continue reading →

Cadets from Thames Valley Wing took part in the Annual Formal Inspection of the Air Cadet Organisation whilst on summer camp at RAF Cosford.

Twelve cadets nick named “The Dirty Dozen” joined Air Vice Marshal Mark Green, AOC 22 (Training) Group and Air Commodore Barbara Cooper Commandant Air Cadet Organisation for an early morning PT session.  Continue reading →

Fourteen cadets and six members of staff from 966 (Wallingford) Squadron attended the annual North Moreton Air Pageant organised by Polly Vacher who is also the Squadron’s Honorary President.

This year, courtesy of Wing Commander Jason Appleton, who commands 28 (AC) Squadron at RAF Benson, the cadets and staff were transported from RAF Benson in the Merlin helicopter which was scheduled to be part of the event.  Continue reading →

A number of cadets from 966 (Wallingford) Sqn attended the Royal British Legion Awards at the Masonic Hall in Wallingford on Thursday 26 May. Having been thoroughly grilled by members of the British Legion a few weeks previously, FS Ewers and Cpl Godfrey were aware that they were contenders for Cadet of the Year. However, in the end, because of the high standard, the judges couldn’t decide which cadet should get the award, so it was decided to present the award jointly to them both for their services to the community and to their squadron. Various other awards were presented to members of the Legion and the Army Cadet Force. Congratulations to both FS Ewers and Cpl Godfrey for an outstanding performance! Continue reading →

The teams from 2267 (Brize Norton) Squadron dominated the Thames Valley Wing 5-a-Side Competition held at RAF Benson. Both the male and female teams edged there way confidently through the early rounds before being place against formidable opposition in the finals.

In the key games of the day the Brize Girls team faced against a confident team from 2507 (Bicester) Squadron only for the game to end in a penalty shoot out. The boys faced a similar final against 1116 (Woodley) Squadron with the deciding goal being awarded being a highly contensious shot from the penalty spot. Continue reading →

With the sun out and temperatures in the 20’s, over 100 cadets and staff from across the Thames Valley enjoyed and uncharacteristically warm weekend at Bramley Training Area during the first Wing Tactical Leadership Camp of the year.

Splitting into three groups, first time cadets learnt the basic principles of fieldcraft and living in the field, an Intermediate group brushed up on existing skills whilst learning how to lead and the most advanced cadets were given an intensive weekend where they were tested to the maximum including a demanding stretcher carry. Continue reading →

Air Cadets from across Thames Valley Wing, came together at 211 (Newbury) Squadron’s Cadet Forces Centre to take part in a joint weapons training event.  The Cadets from Newbury, Wallingford, Wantage, Abingdon & Burghfield Squadrons undertook a comprehensive training package covering safety around the range, as well as specific training on one of two rifles according to their age and experience. Continue reading →

After a weekend swinging from ropes, navigating wire courses and crossing rope bridges Instructors from across the Thames Valley are now ready and qualified to work with cadets on Low Ropes Courses. The European Ropes Course Association accredited training was delivered by Vertex Training near Corfe Castle in Dorset.

The weekend started with the vital skill of safe operation before moving through some of different types of exercises and the positive methods of reviewing teams. The weekend concluded  with written and practical assessments of all of the course members by Vertex Training in order to qualify for the industry standard ERCA accreditation. Continue reading →