Recently cadets from 1004 squadron qualified to attend ISCRIM (inter-service cadet rifle meeting). ISCRIM is a target shooting competition where you get to compete against members of the ACF (Army Cadet Force) and SCC (Sea Cadet Corps).
The cadets began training for ISCRIM in January 2016, where they were first introduced to the L81 rifle. Throughout the training weekends the cadets widened their knowledge on how to use the rifle and gained memorable experiences along with making new friends. As each training weekend went by the cadets improved their shooting skills tremendously due to practice and guidance from their coach CI Phillips-Davies.
In July, it was finally time for the cadets to attend the competition. The competition was being held at Bisley where there were 4 days of practise on the rifle before the first of the competitions started. In the first competition at Pre-ISCRIM CDT S Goodwin was lucky enough to have come 3rd place in the ‘Air Gunners Competition’ out of 40 experienced cadets, as well as achieving a ‘wing marksman’ shooting badge on the rifle.
There were many competitions throughout ISCRIM with some of the cadets coming very close to achieving their ‘Cadet 100’ showing that they are with in the top 100 shooters of the event. Which is an excellent achievement!
The cadets which attended were, CDT John who although was too young to shoot the rifle attended the competition as a buttmarker, CPL Evans and CDT S Goodwin. The cadets were very grateful to their coach and would like to say a massive thank you for guiding and supporting them throughout the competition.
The Qualified Aerospace Instructors Course (QAIC) is the top aerospace course in the Air Training Corps, and is run at a Corps (national) level. This week, CWO Roberts travelled to RAF Linton-On-Ouse to complete the course, by giving a presentation to high ranking members of the RAF, ATC and civilian aerospace related industries, and earning the coveted blue lanyard.
Boscombe Down centre students in their flying suits worn for the majority of the course.
QAIC 8 started in July, with written applications needing to be sent in by a deadline in mid August. Over 200 applications were submitted and these were sorted to a selection base of 60. The course is run at two centres, one in the North (RAF Linton-On-Ouse) and the South (MOD Boscombe Down), successful applicants are split between the centres. Two candidates were selected from 1 Welsh Wing for the opportunity to attend the selection weekend, one of these was CWO Roberts.
Selection weekend is completed on the Saturday, where aptitude tests in all subject areas are taken, as are other aspects of the candidates including attitude and behaviour with others on the course. On Sunday 20 of the 30 successful candidates at each centre are given a briefing and are told what to expect in each subject for the rest of the course. Each candidate is also given a callsign, CWO Roberts was given ‘Doc’, due to his initials, D.R.
The official QAIC christmas tree.
There are then 7 training weekends, one per month between September and March. This year saw the addition of the seventh weekend for the first time, which allowed the two course centres to meet at MOD Cosford in February for assessments in leadership and teamwork. This also meant the addition of a weekend in December, where candidates were able to get into the festive spirit!
Despite the fun the candidates do try to have, the course is a very challenging one and did require a lot of commitment between weekends as well as at the training weekends themselves. Amongst the several pieces of homework and continuous assessments, students must complete a 40 minute syndicate presentation, a 1500 word essay and an ILM (Institue of Leadership and Management) level 2 qualification in their own time.
Boscombe Down centre photo in front of a 737.
Graduation week saw tests in almost every subject, both written and practical. There was also a copious amount of time to finalise presentations in preparation for the top three from each course centre to be presented in front of the whole course and VIP’s. CWO Roberts’ syndicate presentation focused on the use of air power in asymmetric warfare.
The course culminated in a presentation of certificates and patches by guest of honour Air Marshal Sir Christopher Coville. There was then a graduation dinner, where the students were given the opportunity to network with many VIP’s and experienced industry leaders, or simply get photos with the Commendant Air Cadets! The final step was for each student to be debriefed on the Thursday morning about their performance on the course, and whether they had passed or not.
CWO Roberts with the Commendant Air Cadets, Air Commadore Dawn McCafferty.
Applications for QAIC normally begin in July of each year, and candidates must be at least 16 years old and Master Cadet qualified to apply.
1004 Pontypridd was recently the first squadron in 1 Welsh Wing to participate in the new Basic Radio Operator course, part of the new Radio Communicator Syllabus. They were able to complete their first class training log book, and gain further education about the subject. The weekend included several basic modules including; internet safety, security, how to correctly look after and use a handheld radio, the basics of how the radio works, starting and ending calls and using prowords. All of the cadets enjoyed this initial experience with the handheld radio sets as this is the first time they have had the chance to use them in a professional sounding way.
After the cadets had completed their training for the weekend, they had to use everything they had learnt and put it to the test in an exercise, including a series of communications sending and deciphering grid references and their locations. These skills will be helpful for other upcoming activities such as field exercises and future communication courses.
The cadets look forward to receiving their blue badges, which will take a while to be processed due to it being a brand new course. In the meantime several of the cadets are looking ahead and are hoping for a chance to participate in the bronze badge Radio Communicator course and further their radio communicating skills.
Six cadets recently participated in a First Aid course where they learned valuable life skills. The weekend began with a series of lectures where the cadets took notes in order to complete the tasks which followed. Between each lesson the cadets put into practice what they had learnt. On the second day they were expected to demonstrate their ability to resuscitate someone and how the recovery position is carried out in a real life scenario.
The cadets undertook the challenge of using their knowledge they had gained over the period of two days to pass a comprehensive assessment. Sergeant (ATC) Hare from 30F City of Llandaf squadron taught the course throughout the weekend, for which all of the cadets are thankful. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the weekend and to top it off all cadets successfully passed the course!
Recently cadets from 1004 squadron spent the weekend participating in No.1 Welsh Wing’s drill course.
Cadet Gower and Cadet Goodwin took a further step in improving their drill by attending the Wing’s Basic drill course. This is the first of three drill courses offered by the wing, the Basic drill course, Corps drill course and Advanced drill course. It was a very physical course which mainly consisted of the cadets perfecting their drill. It was an early start each morning with the cadets arriving at the course at 8 o’clock. The weather was not particularly kind to the cadets, but the freezing temperature and misty rain but did not take away the determination of the cadets to complete the course. After a weekend of intense work Cadet Gower left the course with a hard earned pass as well as Cadet Goodwin who achieved a merit.
Drill can display how disciplined and organised you can be as an individual, remembering instructions and carrying them out accurately. More importantly, it shows your ability to work as part of a team and is a way of displaying the expected high standards of dress and behaviour across the corps.
On Wednesday the 28th of October the university of Chester held a STEM course (Science Technology Engineering & Maths) for the air training corps with several squadrons invited. We were lucky enough to have three cadets selected for the course, Sergeant Dighton, Corporal Green and Cadet Gower.
The activities included a Robotic Lego Workshop, Cyber Security Workshop, Mathematics and Computer Coding. these were testing activities and had a competitive element to them. Although the day was filled with difficult challenges and learning the cadets had an opportunity to discuss with current RAF personnel about their careers and how the cadets could go about setting their future ambitions into a career path.
“I love playing video games, and always wondered how easy it would be to create my own. The Computer Coding workshop has made it obvious how much time and dedication must be spent to develop a video game, and I’ll appreciate what I’m playing much more when I get home.” CDT Gower
All the cadets were presented with certificates of completion and some were awarded for excellence on the day. Despite it being a long and tiring day, and having faced several complex challenges the cadets and Flight Sergeant (ATC) Dawson -who drove them to Chester and back- were able to find humour in the day, and as a result we now have squadron mascot! Peppa ‘Dawson’ Pig!
“I found it to be a very long but enjoyable day. I learnt loads from the workshops, especially the Mathematic one! I’d encourage every cadet who was thinking of a future in STEM to attend the course when it’s run the next time. Not only was it a day full of valuable experiences, but also a great opportunity to speak to personnel in the RAF and help me to prepare for my future. Of course it was also delightful to be presented with my certificate in front of the whole squadron and to share my experiences with my fellow cadets.” CPL Green
Cadets from 1004 squadron recently spent their weekend participating in No. 1 Welsh Wing’s drill courses.
Cadet Green and Corporal Evans participated in the Basic drill course. This course tested their knowledge of basic drill principles and was a very physically demanding course. After several hours of hard work Corporal Evans came away with a pass, allowing her to go on to the next level of drill course. Cadet Green also passed however he achieved a merit which is a testimony to his excellently high standard of drill.
Sergeant Dighton and Flight Sergeant Roberts participated in the advanced level drill course. This course isn’t assessed, however it gives participating cadets an introduction to weapons drill, that is performed with drill purpose rifles. It is hoped that this new advanced level drill course will lead to the formation of a wing drill team who can participate in the drill and ceremonial camp next summer, for the 75th anniversary of the ATC.
Drill is an integral part of an air cadets training, and is often the very first subject any cadet is introduced to. Drill courses are an important way of increasing and standardising the level of drill across the corps.
1004 (Pontypridd) Sqn ATC 