LATEST NEWS
MAY
WINDERMERE 08
AFTER WEEKS OF ROUTE PLANNING, KIT CHECKS, AND BRIEFINGS, CADETS FROM 1483 (BRENTWOOD) SQUADRON TOOK PART IN THE ANNUAL ESSEX WING LAKE DISTRICT ADVENTURE TRAINING COURSE FROM 24TH TO 31ST MAY 2008.
30 CADETS AND 8 STAFF MADE THEIR WAY TO THE NATIONAL AIR CADET ADVENTURE TRAINING CENTRE (NACATC) IN WINDERMERE FOR A WEEK PACKED FULL OF ACTIVITIES.
THE COACH LEFT ESSEX IN PERFECT TIME ON SATURDAY 24TH MAY, WITH CADETS FROM BRENTWOOD, CHELMSFORD, GRAYS, HUTTON, AND THUNDERSLEY SQUADRONS IN ATTENDANCE.
AFTER A 6 HOUR JOURNEY, THE ARRIVAL AT WINDERMERE GAVE A TASTE OF WHAT WAS TO COME IN THE WEEK AHEAD, WITH AN INITIAL WELCOME BY THE COURSE COMMANDANT FLT. LT. STUART DESMOND FOLLOWED BY A NON-STOP EVENING OF BRIEFINGS AND ROUTE PLANNING AHEAD OF THE FOLLOWING DAY’S DUKE OF EDINBURGH AWARD EXPEDITIONS.
CATERING WAS SUPPLIED BY GERRI & PETE JAKOBSSON OF BRENTWOOD SQUADRON, WHO HAD THEIR WORK CUT OUT PROVIDING 3 MEALS A DAY TO 40 HUNGRY PEOPLE – THAT’S 840 MEALS SUPPLIED IN ONE WEEK!
THE FOLLOWING MORNING BREAKFAST WAS SERVED AT 7AM, THEN IT WAS ONTO THE MINI-BUSSES AND OUT TO GRASMERE, THE START POINT OF THE SILVER DofE ROUTE AND LOUGHRIGG FELL FOR A FAMILIARISATION EXERCISE FOR THE REMAINING CADETS. AS THE SILVER DofE GROUP MADE THEIR WAY THROUGH THE EXPEDITION ROUTE THE SUN SHONE, AND FOR ONCE SUNBURN BECAME MORE OF A CONCERN THAN HYPOTHERMIA!
THAT EVENING, AS THE SILVER D OF E GROUP PITCHED THEIR TENTS AND COOKED THEIR OWN DINNERS, THE REMAINING CADETS WHO HAD ENJOYED A DAY ON LOUGHRIGG FELL MADE THEIR WAY BACK TO THE NACATC FOR A GOOD MEAL AND A COMFY BED.
THEIR LUXURY WAS SHORT-LIVED, SINCE AFTER A HEARTY BREAKFAST ON MONDAY MORNING THEY WERE TRANSPORTED OUT TO THE START POINT OF THEIR TWO DAY BRONZE DUKE OF EDINBURGH’S EXPEDITION.
AFTER A FULL DAY’S WALKING, BOTH THE BRONZE & SILVER DofE GROUPS ARRIVED FROM THEIR RESPECTIVE ROUTES TO A CAMPSITE IN THE LANGDALE VALLEY. THE CADETS ENJOYED A RELAXING EVENING AND ONCE AGAIN COOKED THEIR OWN DINNER BEFORE A NIGHT UNDER CANVAS.
THE FOLLOWING MORNING DAWNED BRIGHTLY, AND ALL THE DofE GROUPS SPENT THE DAY COMPLETING THEIR FINAL DAY OF EXPEDITION WALKING – IN TOTAL THE CAMP SAW 9 SILVER AND 17 BRONZE DofE EXPEDITIONS COMPLETED AS WELL AS 4 GOLD DofE RESIDENTIAL PASSES.
THE REST OF THE WEEK WAS JUST AS TIRING WITH A DAY OF MOUNTAIN BIKING & GO-APE TREE WALKING IN GRIZEDALE FOREST FOLLOWED BY A FANTASTIC VISIT TO AMBLESIDE MOUNTAIN RESCUE POST ON WEDNESDAY. THURSDAY WAS FILLED WITH A DAY CANOEING AND A VISIT TO AMBLESIDE, AND THE WEEK WAS FINISHING OFF WITH CLIMBING, ABSEILING AND A GHYLL SCRAMBLE ON FRIDAY.
ON FRIDAY EVENING, AFTER RETURNING FROM THE FINAL TIRING DAY OF ACTIVITIES, IT WAS ALL HANDS ON DECK TO CLEAN EVERY INCH OF THE CENTRE, RETURN KIT AND TIDY LIVING AREAS BEFORE HANDING THE NACATC BACK TO THE RESIDENT STAFF.
THE WEEK FLEW PAST, AND BY SATURDAY MORNING NO ONE QUITE BELIEVED THAT A FULL WEEK HAD GONE BY, EVEN THE STAFF WHO HAD BEEN WORKING 18 HOUR DAY’S TO ENSURE ALL ELEMENTS OF THE COURSE RAN SMOOTHLY.
MUCH WAS ACHIEVED DURING THE WEEK BY ALL WHO TOOK PART, AND PLANNING IS ALREADY UNDERWAY FOR NEXT YEAR! SEE THE PHOTO GALLERY FOR MORE DETAILS OF THE WEEK’S ACTIVITIES…..
Find out more about the volunteers of Langdale/Ambleside mountain rescue team, follow the link
APRIL
MOUNTAIN BIKING
BRENTWOOD AIR CADETS TOOK TO THEIR MOUNTAIN BIKES ON SUNDAY 27TH APRIL AS PART OF THE SUMMER ADVENTURE TRAINING PROGRAMME.
TEN CADETS WERE ACCOMPANIED BY THREE MEMBERS OF STAFF TO THE NATIONAL PINETUM AT BEDGEBURY IN KENT, WHICH AS WELL AS BEING HOME TO ONE OF THE FINEST COLLECTIONS OF CONIFERS IN THE WORLD, ALSO HAS SOME OF SOUTH EAST ENGLAND’S MOST CHALLENGING SINGLE TRACK MOUNTAIN BIKING.
THE DAY STARTED EARLY WITH AN 8AM DEPARTURE FROM BRENTWOOD IN THE SQUADRON MINIBUS DOWN TO BEDGEBURY. AFTER AN INITIAL BRIEFING CADETS WERE FITTED TO SUITABLY SIZED BIKES AND HELMETS, WITH BIKE HIRE SUPPLIED BY THE ON SITE CYCLE SHOP. THEN, AFTER A SAFETY BRIEFING AND BIKE CHECK, EVERYONE MADE THEIR WAY OUT AND UP THE FIRST OF MANY HILLS FOR A WARM UP, FOLLOWED BY SOME BASIC BIKE SKILLS TRAINING IN A LARGE CLEARING IN THE FOREST.
THE BIKE SKILLS SESSION COVERED THE MAIN ASPECTS OF MOUNTAIN BIKE CONTROL, TO ALLOW CADETS TO LEARN THE COMPETENCIES REQUIRED TO SAFELY NAVIGATE THEIR WAY THROUGH THE COURSE.
ONCE EVERYONE HAD BECOME FAMILIAR WITH THEIR BIKES, AND LEARNT TO USE THEIR BRAKES AND GEARS EFFECTIVELY IT WAS TIME TO START AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SINGLE TRACK COURSE. THE TRACK WAS QUITE CHALLENGING WITH STRETCHES OF UPHILL, DOWNHILL, AND SOME JUMPS, PLUS A LOT OF MUD! AFTER 12KM OF CYCLING THROUGH 2000 ACRES OF FOREST IT WAS TIME TO MAKE A MUDDY TRAIL HOME - TAKE A LOOK AT THE GALLERY TO SEE HOW WE GOT ON…
MARCH
BTEC EXAMS
THIS MONTH SAW THE END TO A LONG PERIOD OF STUDY FOR THE CADETS AT BRENTWOOD SQN WHEN THEY SAT THEY'RE EXAMS AT EACH OF THE LEADING, SENIOR AND STAFF CADETS EXAM LEVELS. THE ACADEMIC PERIOD RUNS THROUGHOUT THE WINTER WITH WEEKLY LESSONS AND FINISHES IN MARCH WITH A MULTIPLE CHOICE EXAM. THE LEADING, SENIOR AND STAFF CADET CLASSIFICATIONS EXAMS ULTIMATELY RESULT IN GAINING THE BTEC IN AVIATION STUDIES WHICH EQUATES TO TWO GCSE'S. ALL PARTICIPANTS FROM BRENTWOOD SQN PASSED THE EXAMS WITH MANY OF THE RESULTS REFLECTING PASSES WITH CREDIT.
FEBRUARY
BASIC ADVENTURE TRAINING
OVER THE WEEKEND OF 2/3 FEB 08, 1483 (BRENTWOOD) SQUADRON CADETS TOOK PART IN A BASIC ADVENTURE TRAINING WEEKEND. IN TOTAL 17 CADETS ATTENDED THE WEEKEND, WHICH INVOLVED BOTH CLASSROOM AND PRACTICAL ACTIVITIES. THE AIM OF THE WEEKEND WAS TO INTRODUCE THE CADETS TO THE SKILLS REQUIRED TO TAKE PART IN THE VAST RANGE OF ADVENTURE TRAINING ACTIVITIES OFFERED BY THE AIR CADET ORGANISATION.
CADETS LEARNED ABOUT SUITABLE CLOTHING & EQUIPMENT FOR THE OUTSIDE ENVIRONMENT, AND ENJOYED PRACTICAL SESSIONS LEARNING HOW TO TAKE COMPASS BEARINGS AND THE CORRECT PROCEDURE FOR ERECTING AND DISMANTLING THE SQUADRON’S RANGE OF EXPEDITION TENTS. AFTER COOKING THEIR OWN EVENING MEALS ON THE SQUADRON’S TRANGIA STOVES, CADETS PLANNED A ROUTE TO WALK THE FOLLOWING DAY THEN ROUNDED OFF THE EVENING WITH A DISCUSSION AND DEBRIEF OF THE DAY’S ACTIVITIES AROUND A CAMPFIRE.
DESPITE BEING A COLD NIGHT, CADETS AWOKE EARLY AND COOKED THEIR BREAKFASTS, BEFORE DISMANTLING THEIR TENTS AND EMBARKING ON THE NAVIGATION EXERCISE THAT HAD BEEN PLANNED THE PREVIOUS EVENING. STAFF WALKED WITH EACH GROUP, HELPING CADETS SPEND TIME PAYING SPECIAL ATTENTION TO MAP READING AND APPLYING THE THEORETICAL KNOWLEDGE THEY HAD GAINED WITH PRACTICAL NAVIGATION SKILLS. THE WEEKEND WAS THOROUGHLY SUCCESSFUL AND ENJOYED BY ALL ATTENDEES.
JANUARY 08
NEW CADETS JOIN
PARENTS AND CADETS GATHERED ON THURSDAY 31 JAN 08, TO WITNESS 1483 (BRENTWOOD) AIR CADETS ENROL 16 NEW PROBATIONERS.
THE ENROLMENT TOOK PLACE AT THE SQUADRON CHURCH, CHRIST CHURCH, IN WARLEY AND WAS LED BY SQUADRON PADRE PAUL GAMBLING.
REV GAMBLING TOOK THE CADETS THROUGH THEIR PROMISE, AND PRESENTED EACH CADET WITH A FIRST CLASS CADET BADGE, A CERTIFICATE OF ENROLMENT AND THEIR FORM 3822 RECORD OF SERVICE BOOKLET.
THE PRESENTATION WAS FOLLOWED BY A SHORT SERMON BY REV. GAMBLING, DISCUSSING THE IMPORTANCE OF PROMISES AND HELPING THE NEWLY ENROLLED CADETS UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF THE AIR CADET PROMISE.
THE 16 NEWLY ENROLLED CADETS REACHED THIS POINT FOLLOWING 4 MONTH OF PROBATIONARY TRAINING INVOLVING AN INTRODUCTION TO ALL ASPECTS OF LIFE IN THE CORPS. THEIR TRAINING WAS CONCLUDED WITH AN EXAM WHICH WAS SUCCESSFULLY PASSED BY ALL, GAINING THEM FIRST CLASS STATUS.
THE EVENING WAS A HUGE SUCCESS AND THE SQUADRON LOOKS FORWARD TO FUTURE EVENTS AT THE CHURCH.
DECEMBER
CHRISTMAS PARTY
AS A FESTIVE CLOSE TO A HUGELY SUCCESSFUL YEAR, BRENTWOOD SQUADRON STAFF & CADETS HELD A “DINING IN NIGHT” ON MONDAY 17 DEC 2007.
SEVERAL MEMBERS OF STAFF SHARED THE MAMMOTH TASK OF CATERING FOR OVER 30 CADETS. THE MENU CONSISTED OF A FULL ROAST TURKEY CHRISTMAS DINNER WITH ALL OF THE TRADITIONAL TRIMMINGS. AS AN ADDED HIGHLIGHT, THE FOOD WAS SERVED BY FESTIVELY DRESSED STAFF, WHICH PROVIDED A “SLIGHTLY LESS THAN SILVER SERVICE” DINING EXPERIENCE!
THE CADETS ENJOYED THEIR FOOD IN THE MAIN PARADE HALL THAT HAD BEEN MAGICALLY TRANSFORMED INTO A TINSEL CLAD WINTER WONDERLAND.
AFTER THE MEAL, CADETS SHARED OUT SECRET SANTA PRESENTS, AND THEN TOOK PART IN A PRESENTATION OF CERTIFICATES THEY HAD PRODUCED FOR THE STAFF, PLUS A SHORT FILM OF THEIR HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE FIRST YEAR WITH THEIR NEW OC FLT. LT. DESMOND.
FINALLY, THERE WAS A SHORT SPEECH AND PRESENTATION OF CERTIFICATES TO CADETS IN RECOGNITION OF VARIOUS EVENTS THEY HAD TAKEN PART IN OVER THE YEAR, BOTH FOR REPRESENTING THE SQUADRON & SEVERAL WING BLUE AWARDS IN RECOGNITION OF CADETS THAT HAD BEEN SELECTED TO REPRESENT ESSEX WING AT REGIONAL EVENTS.
FLT. LT. DESMOND BROUGHT THE EVENING TO A CLOSE, THANKING THE STAFF FOR MAKING THE EVENING A SUCCESS, AND THE CADETS FOR WORKING SO HARD OVER THE PAST YEAR TO BUILD THE SQUADRON INTO THE SUCCESSFUL UNIT IT HAS NOW BECOME.
THE FIRST PARADE NIGHT OF 2008 WILL BE THURSDAY 3RD JANUARY.
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BRENTWOOD CADETS SEND GIFTS TO THE TROOPS
CADETS FROM 1483 HAVE WORKED HARD OVER THE LAST FEW WEEKS, PUTTING TOGETHER SHOES BOXES FOR THE SUPPORT OUR SOLDIER CAMPAIGN. THE SHOE BOXES WILL BE SENT OVER SEAS IN TIME FOR CHRISTMAS AND HOPEFULLY PROVIDE A "LITTLE BOX OF HOME" FOR OUR SERVICE MEN AND WOMEN WHO WILL BE AWAY FROM THERE FAMILIES THIS CHRISTMAS. THE STORY WAS COVERED BY THE BRENTWOOD GAZETTE WHO WERE KEEN TO ADVERTISE THE CADETS HARD WORK.
CLICK THE LINK TO READ THE ARTICLE.
FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE SUPPORT OUR SOLDIER CAMPAIGN
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RACE NIGHT A RUNAWAY SUCCESS!!
THE 1ST DECEMBER RACE NIGHT WAS, WITHOUT A DOUBT A RUNAWAY SUCCESS AND INCREDIBLY WELL SUPPORTED BY FRIENDS AND FAMILY OF ALL AT 1483 (BRENTWOOD) SQN. A TOTAL OF £1151.50 WAS RAISED DURING THE EVENT, NOT ONLY ON THE NIGHT BUT LEADING UP TO THE EVENT BY SPONSORSHIP FROM LOCAL BUSINESSES. THE FUND RAISER HELD AT WOOD FARM IN MORTON SAW IN EXCESS OF 80 PEOPLE ENJOYING THE FUN OF HORSE, DOG AND EVEN PIG RACES SHOWN ON A BIG SCREEN. THANKS TO THE EFFORTS OF ALL, WE WILL BE ABLE TO FUND THE RUNNING OF OUR MINI BUS FOR THE NEXT YEAR AND BEGIN ON OTHER PROJECTS, THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO SUPPORTED US.
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BRENTWOOD CADETS REMEMBER
NOVEMBER
THE CADETS FROM 1483 ATTENDED THE ANNUAL REMEMBRANCE PARADE IN BRENTWOOD HIGH STREET THIS MONTH ALONG WITH REPRESENTATIVES FROM ALL OTHER GROUPS FROM AROUND THE AREA INCLUDING ESSEX POLICE AND THE MAYOR OF BRENTWOOD. THE PARADE MARCHED FROM THE TOWN HALL TO THE MEMORIAL FOR THE 2 MINUTE SILENCE BEFORE MARCHING TO THE CHURCH FOR THE SERVICE. THE EVENT WAS WELL ATTENDED BY ALL CONTINGENCE MAKING FOR A VERY IMPRESSIVE PARADE.
