Cadet Newsletter 2012
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Transcript of Cadet Newsletter 2012
It all started by chance, I was drinking in my local back in 1974 when my mate Paul said “Dave you’ve got guns, would you do a talk at the local ATC unit?” (1475 Squadron in Forest Hill South East London). At the time I was a Fire Arms Certificate holder and had been shooting pistols and rifles since I was 19. A date was set and I went to the unit taking my six pistols, my 7.62 SLR rifle and my old 303 Enfield. The evening was a great success the cadets and staff all had a good look and afterwards the CO asked if I would consider joining as staff. I did and soon became a Warrant Officer which was good for about three years until the first wife gave me the “me or the Corps” speech. I chose her and left the Corps however after about six months she left me for an Army Air Corps Corporal and took our daughters Rachel and Victoria. I married Lesley 1985 and had two children Peter and Joanna. A mutual friend’s daughter was in the ATC at 19 Squadron Crawley and when Peter was 14 in 2000 I took him down to join. The CO Flt Lt Andy Skinner had found out that I had been in the ATC before and asked me to rejoin at the ripe old age of 49. Well I was surprised at this but I was sucked in and was a CI in three months, WO in the first year, commissioned and CO within three years. Three courses at the Adult Training Facility in RAF Cranwell which went well apart from the marching, I had to work at that. While I was at 19 Squadron I started the Nijmegen four day march training with Andy Skinner, Alan Shave and Gordon Lambert. I eventually completed 5 marches and one day, as in 2006 it was cancelled due to the heat where eight civilian people died. To undertake Nijmegen you had to qualify at the RAF Cosford two day march. Six times I completed Cosford and three times the Spitfire one day 26 mile march in Folkston Kent. In 2007 I left 19 Squadron and took over at 2530 Uckfield Squadron and had two good years as CO. In 2009 I was back at 19 as a squadron officer until taking over at 172 Squadron in March 2012. This was a challenge as the cadet numbers were very low but the staff and cadets there were very receptive to my style of leadership. I delegated as much responsibility as possible to staff and cadets alike and the transformation was fantastic. Now some nine months later the cadet numbers are over fifty and we welcomed two very able new to the ACO staff who I know will go far. For many years I wanted to go to the Normandy Beaches and march over them. The Invasion off mainland Europe in 1944 was a subject I was very interested in so in 2008/2009 a plan was hatched. A group of us marched from Honfleur to almost Cherbourg some 120 miles with a support team, minibus and sailing yacht if your feet wanted a rest. Only two of the group marching managed or wanted to go sailing the rest of us marched the whole way over six days. This was a great feet as we did not undertake any training except a few of us who were still Nijmegen training just for the hell of it. This has turned into the Overlord March and is going from strength to strength now some 50 to 60 staff and cadets participate and I am looking forward to 2013.
Flt Lt Dave Thompson
Squadron announces new Commanding Officer
172 Haywards Heath Squadron
Special points of interest:
• New Commanding
Officer joins 172
• 7th at Sussex Wing Field
Day
• Squadron grows to 54
Cadets
• Cadets represent Sussex
Wing
• Cadets attend RAF Shawbury for Annual
Camp
• Flt Sgt Kraus achieves
Virgin Apprenticeship
Included
RAF Camp 2
Flying / Gliding 2
Wing Field 3
Cadet Joins Virgin 3
Sport 5
Upcoming Events 5
Squadron Shop 6
Our 2012 Year December 2012
Flt Lt Dave Thompson
Our 2012 Year
This year CWO Laura Ferguson and Flt Sgt
Henry Kraus were fortunate enough to gain
places on the summer camp trip to RAF
Shawbury. RAF Shawbury is the home of the
Tri-Service central defence flying school. So it
is the primary station for the RAF, Royal Navy
and the Army Air corps to train all personnel
to fly rotary aircraft. It is also the station where
Prince William (Flt Lt RAF) and Prince Harry
(Captain Army Air Corps) both trained to
become military pilots.
During the week stay at Shawbury everyone
partook in activities ranging from traffic stops
and searching vehicles, to flying in the Grob
Tutors at RAF Cosford, getting simulator flights
in a Griffin Helicopter and flying in a Squirrel
Helicopter, for a select few. In addition they
shot the L98 A2 service rifle and the No.8
Rifle. They also participated in drill practice
with a drill competition at the end of the week,
many various sporting activities, with a day trip
out to a local water sports facility for canoeing,
rowing, and ‘swimming’ for those unfortunate
enough to have fallen into the river.
Because of the nature of the station it didn’t
have any room in the general quarters for the
cadets to stay in, but did offer Sussex Wing an
old aircraft hangar which had been transformed
into a modern sports facility to use for
accommodation. This meant that all cadets
who attended slept in 12x12 canvas tents
inside the hall, which made it a more unique
experience than usual camps.
Some of the more senior cadets who attended
the camp were able to fly in the training
helicopters, the Squirrel, at 705 NAS (Naval
Air Squadron). The selected 12 cadets, who
included both CWO Ferguson and SGT Kraus,
were taken up in 3 groups of 4 with the RAF
Pilot who trained Prince William for a year and
a half to become the pilot he is today.
All in all this was a very memorable and
successful camp for the two 172 SQN cadets
who attended and for Sussex Wing as a whole.
September 2012
Cadet Alex Harfield - Corporal
Corporal Sam Sanders - Sergeant
Sargeant Andy Rice - Flight Sergeant
Sargeant Henry Kraus - Flight Sergeant
Flight Sergeant John Burton-Gow - Cadet Warrant Officer
February 2012
Flight Sergeant Laura Ferguson - Cadet Warrant Officer
March 2012
Cdt Jonathan Hall - Corporal
Cdt Christian Orchin - Corporal
Cdt Rose Sargent - Corporal
Cdt Lucy Sargent - Corporal
Corporal Andy Rice - Sergeant
Corporal Henry Kraus - Sergeant
Sergeant John Burton-Gow - Flight Sergeant
RAF Shawbury
“Adventure, fun,
incredible experiences
and making new
friends”
Page 2
Cadet Promotions
Our 2012 Year
Wing and Region Field Days 2012
Adventure Training
Remembrance Parade
As the most important event of the year we were
pleased to see a good turn out to the 2012
remembrance Parade. With the newest Cadets
applying themselves excellently and the more
experienced Cadets maintaining their excellent
presentation, the Parade was a definite success
parallel to previous years and setting a standard for all
in the ATC and other organisations besides to follow.
The event is an important date in the Air Training
Corps year with Cadets across the country coming
out to pay their respects to those affected by and
involved in combat across the globe and history. As a
squadron we encourage the Cadets to get involved
and represent the organisation at this highly regarded
Parade.
172 squadron is proud to have such motivated
individuals actively engaging with the Remembrance
Parade and presenting themselves with the level of
dedication as benefiting the Parade.
At 172 great emphasis is put on teaching transferable life skills such as pride in
appearance and communication but, most of all, leadership and team working. We
regularly use Adventure training and field craft activities to instruct and demonstrate
these abilities. In 2012 this culminated in taking an Adventure Training team of 7
inexperienced cadets and 3 NCOs to Wing Field weekend to compete over 10
activities including raft building and chasm crossing.
Under the leadership and Instruction of Flight Sergeant Rice, the team achieved 5th
place out of 20 (beating last year’s performance
by three places) despite competing against teams
comprising of more senior and experienced
cadets from other squadrons. This is a
tremendous accomplishment which reflects the
high standard of all cadets at 172.
This past year has been one 18 year old
Cadet Flight Sergeant Henry Kraus will
never forget. He applied as one of 600
applicants for an engineering
apprenticeship for Virgin Atlantic Airways.
He was informed in mid-April that he had
been successful in the initial stage and had
been invited back to sit some
examinations, consisting of a maths paper,
some timed psychometric tests, and a
short essay on an engineering based
subject of his choice. It came as a big
shock to Henry when he found out he had
made it into the top 32 applicants based
on the examination results out of all 350
applicants, and he had been invited back
for an interview with the apprentice
manager and the lead instructor. After the
2 hour interview Henry said he was
amazed he’d gotten as far as he did but
said there was no way he could’ve gained
one of the 12 places that were on offer.
In July Henry received an email from the
recruitment department at VAA, and he
was expecting the worst; he read it and
read it and read it again, but it stayed the
same, and it said we’d like to invite you to
start the job in September 2012.
Since starting Henry has completed 8
EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency)
modular examinations and had completed
4 weeks of practical hand skills at
Northbrook College in Shoreham. Henry
will finish his apprenticeship in September
2015 and we wish him the very best of
luck with his work, and his very
promising future career.
Page 3
“Develop the
qualities of
leadership and
good citizenship.”
2012 was a record breaking year across the board for 172 Squadron at wing field
weekend. Cadet Warrant Officer Ferguson led the drill team to 7th place and
achieved 6th place for her performance as drill commander in spite of having to
direct the squad during a hailstorm. The Adventure Training team, led by Flight
Sergeant Rice, came 5th and Corporal Harfield’s Aircraft recognition team came
7th Finally, the First Aid team achieved 2nd place under the guidance of Cadet
Warrant Officer Burton Gow.
This entitled us to send a team to represent all of Sussex Wing at region field
weekend at RAF Northolt where Cadet Warrant Officer Burton Gow, Flight
Sergeant Rice, Flight Sergeant Kraus and Corporal Orchin competed against the
best teams from London and the South East and ultimately came 5th. All in all, a
fantastic performance from all who attended wing field weekend which resulted in
172 coming 7th out of 20 squadrons overall – the best in 172 recent history!
Cadet Achieves Apprenticeship with Virgin
Classifications and Courses Passed Our 2012 Year
“The Ultimate
Challenge for
young people”
NIJMEGEN MARCH (13TH JULY 2012 – 22ND JULY 2012)
Nijmegen is a 100 mile road march across Holland in 4 days. It is an
annual march which takes place in and around the City of Nijmegen
in East Holland, near the border to Germany in the summer.
Nijmegen is believed to be the oldest city in Holland, celebrating its
2000th birthday in 2005. The march is the largest march in the world,
where civilians and teams of military personnel all partake in a 30km,
a 40km or a 50Km route each day for 4 consecutive days.
My journey for this epic challenge started in September 2011, with
my first 15 mile practice march, which was held in Crawley. Then
once a month we practiced once or twice a month either in
Worthing, Crawley or Uckfield, in order to be able to bond as a
team and also get used to the distances we’d be travelling in Holland.
Before we were allowed to go out to Holland my team and I along
with every other military team had to complete a practice march at
RAF Cosford. This was a 50 mile march over a weekend in early
April 2012. Sussex wing took 2 teams of 10 cadets along with 2
marching staff per team. The start for Cosford on both days was
roughly 4:00Am both mornings, which would allow us to travel the
25 miles by foot, and also prepare us for the wake-up times of
3:30-5:00 am which we’d have to adhere to in Holland.
After I had completed the RAF WARMA (Royal Air Force Walking
and Road Marching Association) 2 day march at Cosford, I was
selected to travel to Holland to take part in the 100 mile challenge
with 9 other cadets and 2 adult staff. We travelled out to Holland by
coach from RAF Northolt at 00:00 on Friday 13th July, in order to get
to Holland Saturday Evening to register our team for the March on
the Tuesday.
We spent the Saturday evening , Sunday and Monday exploring the
city, and we visited an old war museum showing a very detailed story
of the Battle of Arnhem in WWII. As this is the largest event of its
kind in the world, Nijmegen city was bursting with life and frivolities
in build up to the marching days.
After the march had ended we packed up and
departed for England at 07:00Am on the 22nd
July, which was the day I should have been
attending camp, but being in the wrong
country meant I wouldn’t have made the
connection, so I had arrange prior for myself
and CWO Ferguson to travel up on the day
after.
Page 4
Passing First Class First Class to Leading Cadet
July:
Cpl Hall
Leading to Senior Cadet
October:
Cpl Sargent L
Subjects Passed:
Basic Navigation
Principles of Flight
Airmanship II
October:
Cdt Fitzpatrick
Subjects Passed:
Propulsion
Aircraft Handling
Junior First Aid Course
Crowborough Training Camp, in October, Cadet Jarvis and
Clarke from 172 squadron attended the youth first aid course
run by St. Johns. The first day consisted of learning the theory
from videos, demonstrations and power points. The last of part
of day one was spent putting what we had learnt into practice.
After an early start on the second day we started with more
practical training, in preparation for our practical assessments.
We practiced CPR and spent lots of time patching each other up
with bandages. After lunch came the assessments. The skills we
had learnt from the theory and practical parts of the course
meant both the squadron cadet who attended the course passed.
Passing MOI
October:
CWO Burton-Gow
Method Of Instruction:
Learning how to and
Preparing a lesson which
was delivered to a group
of students, whilst being
accessed.
April:
Cdt McPhee
June:
Cdt Lunt
Cdt Bailey
July:
Cdt Houlton
September:
Cdt H Robinson
Cdt Plowright
November:
Cdt Clarke
Cdt Dean
Cdt Hacker
Cdt Knight
Cdt Javis
Cdt Myres
Cdt Trehearne
December:
Cdt Peckham
Cdt J Robinson
Subjects Passed:
The ATC
The RAF
Initial Expedition Training
Map Reading
History of Flight
Airmanship I
Basic Radio Communications
Squadron Sporting Cadets
This year, not only has Great Britain as a whole excelled and shown the world what we're made of with the home Olympics being a success, but our cadets have also. They have been digging deep and the effort and enthusiasm never seems to end; I should know because I am part of the NCO team who are constantly pushing them that bit further and harder and they never fail to deliver. The Cadets have been achieving exceedingly high standards in their sports both at the Squadron and on further-afield visits. Many cadets took part in wing sports such as hockey and some persevered to outperform many others and follow through to region level (the equivalent of playing for south east in civilian teams). On top of such gains, our squadron has grown so much and with growth comes a bigger and better competitiveness which is an admirable trait that has blossomed with these cadets. I take my hat off to the cadets and my fellow NCOs at 172 for they have proven their worth and Haywards Heath squadron will rise above the rest with new year just beginning, providing plenty of time to show the rest of the Corps what we have in store. A salute to our cadets for demonstrating the true grit and determination of a great British citizen and most importantly, a
member of the Air Training Corps.
Our 2012 Year
Upcoming for 2013
January 2013
13th - Inter Wing Cross County (Stubbers Adventure Park)
20th - Air Experience Flying (RAF Station)
19th-20th - YFA/Heartstart Instructor Training Course
20th - Junior Hockey & Soccer, Netball & Rugby Trials
February 2013
03rd - ATC Service of thanksgiving and dedication
(RAF Church, St Clement Danes, London)
March 2013
10th - Inter-wing Junior Netball and Rugby (Guildford)
24th - Inter Squadron 5-a-side (Broadbridge Heath)
April 2013
Easter Camp
06th-13th - Llanbeda Adventure Training Weeks (Wales)
09th-18th - Cyrus Easter Camp
May 2013
12th - Inter Squadron Athletics (K2 Crawley)
25th-1st April - Exercise Overload March 2013 (Normandy, France)
25th-1st April - Field Skills Week
20th - Junior Hockey & Soccer, Netball & Rugby Trials
June 2013
02nd - Inter Wing Athletics (K2 Crawley)
July 2013
Summer Camp
06th - Exercise Green Guardian (Charlton Forest)
August 2013
Cyrus Summer Camp
23rd-26th - Edenbridge and Oxsted Show
30th-01st September - Shoreham Air Show
September 2013
04th-08th - Excercise Clog Dance IV ( Netherlands)
20th-22th - Wing Field Weekend (Crowbrough)
October 2013
05th - Region Field Day (RAF Northolt)
26th-02nd November - Wing Aerospace Skill Week (Crowbrough)
Inter Wing (Representing 172 squadron):
Inter Region (Representing Susses Wing):
Inter Core (Representing London and South East Region):
CWO L Ferguson:
Hockey
Flt Sgt H Kraus:
Senior Soccer
Cpl L Sargent:
Hockey
Cpl R Sargent:
Hockey
Netball
Cdt Watson:
Discus (1st)
Shot-put (4th)
First Aid Team:
CWO Burton-Gow
Flt Sgt Kraus
Flt Sgt Rice
Cpl Orchin
Cdt H Robinson:
Discus
Shot-put
Cdt Watson:
Discus (2nd)
200m (1st)
Cdt T John:
Cross County
Cdt A John:
Cross County
Cdt Vestdam-Crowe:
Cross County
CWO L Ferguson:
5-a-side Football
Flt Sgt Kraus:
4x100m Relay (2nd)
5-a-side Football
Long Jump (5th)
100m Sprit (4th)
Flt Sgt Rice:
5-a-side Football
800m (2nd)
4x100m Relay (2nd)
1500m (3rd)
400m (6th)
Cpl L Sargent:
4x100m Relay (2nd)
5-a-side Football
High Jump (3rd)
Cpl R Sargent:
200m (6th)
4x100m Relay (2nd)
Discus (2nd)
Cdt Bailey:
5-a-side Football
400m (1st)
1500m
Page 5
Cdt Watson - Discus (5th)
172 Squadron Stores Shop
95 Pattern Trousers
£16.00
New - Please Order
• Lightweight
• Poly-Cotton Mix
• DPM Camo
• Drawstring Waist & Bottoms
Rip Stop Combat Jacket
£30.00
New - In Stock
• 100% Ripstop Cotton
• 4 Pockets
• DPM Camo
• Large Toggle Buttons
Bush Hat
£6.00
New - In Stock
• 100% Cotton
• DPM Camouflage
• Air Vents
Parade Shoes
From £10.00
New and Grade 1
Limited Stock
• Leather Upper
• Leather Toecap
• DMS Sole
• 5 Eyelet Lace System
Kiwi Black Polish
£1.00
Sylvet Cloth
£6.00
Boots
Various Boots
Various Sizes
Various Prices
New and Grade 1
In Stock and Please Order
Camouflage Cream
£5.00
Emergency Whistle
£2.00
Bungees
£1.50
Assault Vest
Various vests
Various Size
Various Prices
• Lightweight
• Easy to use
• Water resistant
• Velcro patches
“Grade 1
means the
item has had
light use and
still has many
years service
left in it.”
Shemagh
£5.00
Grade 1—In Stock
• Protection from sun
• Protection from sand
• Protection from wind
• Useful as winter headgear
• Field towel
Page 6
172 Squadron Stores Shop
172 Squadron Stores Shop
58 Pattern Water bottle
£8.00
58 Pattern Cup
£2.50
Grade 1 - In Stock
• Fits in 58 pattern water
bottle pouch
• 1L Capacity
• 500ml cup
Knife, Fork and Spoon
£4.50
New - In Stock
• A military styled Knife
Fork Spoon set with an
added feature of a bottle
and can opener
Mess Tins
£8.00
Grade 1 - In Stock
• Lightweight
• Made from aluminium
• Sit neatly inside each
other
Spork
£2.00
New - In Stock
• Heat resistant material
• Teflon-friendly
• Machine washable
• Weight: 16g
Survival Bag
£3.00
New - In Stock
• Single Survival Bag
• helps to keep a victim
warm
• Acting as a shelter
Sewing Kits
From £5.00
New - In Stock
Contains:
• Buttons
• Thread
• Needles
• Scissors
First Aid Kits
£14.00
New - In Stock
• Small and compact
• Fits easily into a pocket
• Vertical and horizontal
belt loops
• Easily identifiable
We aim to keep the price of items stocked cheaper than any of the local suppliers.
All money made from the stores will be used to purchase further equipment for cadet use.
For Enquiries about any of the products please e-mail your orders to [email protected]
Or Speak to Flt Sgt Hewson, Flt Sgt Martin or CWO Burton-Gow
Page 7
The Cadet Centre
Eastern Road
Haywards Heath
West Sussex
RH16 3NQ
Phone: 01444 441 072
E-mail: [email protected]
172 (Haywards Heath) Squadron
Air Training Corps
Page 8
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The 172 Squadron Committee
Chairman - Mr Kelvin Booth
Treasurer - Mrs Debbie Robus
Secretary - Mrs Tammy Booth
Member - Mr Vic Sherwood
The committee are always looking for new members to come into the
squadron.
Squadron Program
January 2013
1st - Squadron Stand Down
3rd - Working Blues
8th - Wedgewood Blues
10th - Working Blues
15th - Sports Kit
17th - Combats
22nd - Combats
24th - Combats
29th - Working Blues
31st - Working Blues
Squadron announces new Commanding Officer from 2013
In September 2012 my work took a turn and I have to work all over the country and at very short notice. This makes it impractical for me to be CO so I have stood down but will be continuing as a Squadron Officer for the foreseeable future.. Flt Lt J. Pelling is taking over as CO and I wish her all the best as the boss and I am convinced that the staff and cadets will give her their full support. To some of the friends, colleagues and family without whom a lot of the things I attempt would not be possible, I offer my sincere thanks. Their
help and commitment is greatly appreciated by the cadets and I.
Family:
CI Lesley Thompson
CI Peter Thompson
Sgt Joanna Thompson
Friends:
CI Cheryl Mason
CI John Mason
CI Barbra Buss
CI Ray Buss
Colleagues:
Sqd Ldr Kevin Tucker
Flt Lt Sally Rattle
Flt Lt Helen Duddly
Debbie Robus
Flt Lt Dave Thompson
As a squadron we also support the Royal British Legion and RAFA. British Legion - Poppy Appeal RAFA - Wings Appeal
Written by:
CWO J. Burton-Gow, CWO L. Ferguson, F/Sgt Rice, F/Sgt H. Kraus, Sgt S. Sanders, Cpl C. Orchin, Cdt J. Clarke