Two weeks ago, 12 RAF and three Royal Navy CCF cadets attended the RAF Section Summer Camp, which took place from Tuesday 10th August to Thursday 12th August at multiple destinations across Surrey and Sussex.
Tuesday at the Royal Russel School
Tuesday was spent at the Royal Russel School in Croydon, hosted by the CCF South East Training Evaluation and Support Team. The day began with Arrow Tag. Two teams were pitted against each other in various games, including Battleships and Bulldog, followed by the Air Rifle Shooting and Target Archery. After lunch was swiftly consumed, the cadets spent the afternoon paintballing before heading back to Hurst. The day was rounded off with a barbecue in the gardens of Eagle house and a film evening.
Wednesday with the 1015 Horsham Squadron
On the Wednesday, cadets ventured up to the 1015 Horsham Squadron Air training corps (ATC), where focus was placed on Initial weapons training, weapons handling tests (WHT) and live fire marksmanship training, delivered by instructors from the Sussex Wing ATC. The cadets focused hard in the morning, taking in the information that came their way, and applied efficiently during their WHT, which everyone passed first time.
After a quick lunch, it was straight onto the range. Each cadet was individually coached in best practice marksmanship principles to improve their groupings on the target. With only two cadets allowed on the firing point at any one time, the others took part in a variety of background leadership activities, team games and brain teasers. By the end of the day, each cadet had performed to a sufficiently high standard to be awarded their L144 Trained Shot badge for their brassard. Once back at the college and following dinner, the cadets enjoyed watching the sunset from Jack and Jill Windmills – a relaxing end to a very busy day.
Thursday at Ardingly Reservoir
Thursday saw the cadets travel to Ardingly Reservoir Activity Centre to enjoy a day of water sports. After donning wet suits, the cadets were taught the basics of sailing and, after rigging their boats, were released onto the open water. For a group with collectively little sailing experience, they demonstrated a firm grasp of the basic sailing principles. After lunch, the cadets swapped dagger boards and booms for paddleboards and kayaks. Two hours on the water passed very quickly with much enjoyment had by all. After a quick ice cream break, they headed back to Hurst for final room inspections and an informal award ceremony.
It was a fantastic camp and the cadets worked extremely hard. Over the last 17 months they have lost out on valuable training experiences, but they demonstrated huge levels of enthusiasm and commitment throughout the week.
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