An acknowledgment flag is a brilliant idea.
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@Paracetamol & @AlexCorbin While I don’t disagree that we will see some rationalisation over the next year, as I’ve said before cut too much and does the AIr Cadets need such a large management structure. At work we lost regional offices from the mid 90s and consolidated their functions to a couple of offices at Head Office, which itself was ‘replaced’ with a much smaller building in the early 00s. All of these changes resulted in job losses in middle and just above management (equating in our case to Regions) and a lot of clerical workers. So would there be a need for so many Gp Capts as a start?
What we really need though is the “something special” about being in the Air Cadets, which we sadly no longer have. If numbers are cut in terms of sqns, what do those remaining, have to sell the idea of being a cadet in the Air Cadets. Historically we did well from kids who’d done the junior side of Scouting and wanted something different. We’ve had a number come to intakes over the last 3-4 years and seen what we have on offer, doesn’t really look any different to what they’ve been doing and they are expected to do more. When it comes to flying, experience flights seem so much more accessible now, we’ve had cadets come to intakes who have had them as their birthday or Christmas present. Which when you consider what you can pay for a ‘gadget’, the £90+ for an experience flight is nothing really.
Also cutting sqns, ergo staff, will mean holes in the activities available, where we have to piggy-back or collaborate.
Oh you mean that age group currently doing this sort of thing for GCSEs and A Levels. I doubt the materials and resources used in schools are as poor as what’s on ultilearn.
I don’t know of any schools using pre-recorded lessons for online work. All of my 4 friends who teach secondary were just doing normal live lessons, trying to keep it as similar to the classroom as possible.
Also to add, new year 2021, looking forward to a new learning platform!
As an OC my 2021 Resolutions are;
- Attend more parade nights at my sqn than I managed in 2020 (1.5 as took over the week preceding lockdown)
- Support the application and development of my 2 Commissioning Candidates (1 CWO + CivCom Member)
- Support development of AT Qualifications of at least 1 member of Sqn Team
- Deliver L144 IWT & LFMT to Trained Shot Standard for 18 Cadets from the Sqn/Sector
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I’m.not sure if you’re setting the bar high or low…
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It’s slightly tongue-in-cheek
What an absolute rant for the sake of it.
Combining the Cadet Forces would be an absolute travesty, that would be like combining all our Forces.
As long as there is a Royal Air Force, there should be an Air Cadet organisation continuing traditions and learning of all things Air Force.
There are other youth organisations if you want ‘be prepared for life’!
Per Ardua
Would that really be a bad thing? Trim the upper echelons and cut down on the duplication and associated bureaucracy? The Navy already have a military arm (RM) and a flying arm. Other than tradition I seriously don’t see why we shouldn’t combine
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Are you an ex-Rock by any chance?
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To be fair, he’s got a valid point. It’s not as if the CCF doesn’t already exist, and that seems to do OK.
Realistically, both the ACF and ATC (and presumably the SCC) will be suffering from staff shortages, low cadet numbers, and a restriction on what activities we can offer. Amalgamation is one way we could combat those issues.
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I’m not particularly fussed about whether the orgs are formally combined - although I can certainly see a prima face argument that pretty much everything that happens above Sqn/detachment level is duplication and wasted resource - but I’d very much like to see some mechanism whereby county/wing structures could support mixed units in locations (overwhelmingly rural locations with no public transport and little else for kids to do) whose pool of potential CFAV couldn’t support single service units.
In short… yes.
All the issues you mention are challenges to say the least but should be addressed in an appropriate and clearly protracted manner, by definition bureaucracy!!
But, and it is only my humble opinion we should never dilute or worse remove who we are and where we have come from.
A cadet in the early 80s, on a squadron that still paraded in a hut used by BoB pilots, a career in the RAF and then the Police Service which I am immensely proud of I still remember my ATC days and how I was forged. Learning radio skills on a Lancaster bomber radio, flying open cockpit gliders and drill and associated activities such as being inspected were all great days.
And know I didnt become a pilot but following my parents and grandparents meant a huge amount.
If you are not interested in the RAF or flying arms of other military arms then areas such as the scouts et al may be more appropriate.
Lord Trenchard would be turning in his bed
I’m a historian and love tradition. I have a strong interest in the RAF and aviation. But I’m also a pragmatist and wouldn’t object at all to a single service, provided tradition is accommodated somewhere to remember where we came from.
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As for the other point of combining the upper levels of cadets, that works well for the CCF. We retain our individual identity as single service sections within a wider combined contingent. This makes it a lot easier for my RAF Section to go on RN and Army courses, greater staff crossover for things like DofE, shooting, AT, fieldcraft etc. whilst still able to parade in blues, go flying, and do the RAFAC syllabus.
I’m sure if this model was extended to the community cadet forces, where you have true volunteers, rather than CCF who often have staff pressganged into being a CFAV and in some contingents the kids are forced into joining for at least a year, you could get the benefits of the CCF close working with other sections whilst also getting rid of some of the bad habits (Long hair/white socks) and bringing in the many benefits the ATC has over the CCF
I can’t see any reason why an amalgamated cadet force couldn’t still focus on those aspects?
In fact, giving Air Cadets access to the AAC and FAA (is it still called that?) might do more to improve our record in getting cadets in the air…
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@EarlGrey The military has changed, evolved, amalgamated and disaggregated, over the centuries. Just thinking about the RAF how many Groups have been and gone and or been combined? Did these have traditions or whatever?
The RAF was formed as a result of the amalgamation of the RFC and RNAS and has undergone many changes since, a number of which Lord Trenchard would have been instrumental in making happen.
Traditions remain, change or become reinvented.
The most certain thing is if you don’t change or adapt, you are only going one way. I love the Air Cadets and like you have many good memories of what I did as a cadet, but I fully recognise if more youngsters are going to get similar opportunities things have to change and the best way for that is some degree of amalgamation, because as I have seen over the last few years the RAF hasn’t been up to the job and I know talking to people I know in the ACF, they feel let down by the Army,.
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Looking forward to the first real shambles - you know, one of those where everyone just falls about laughing at how badly something just went…
Might we need to focus on NCOs as key to rebuild & recruitment? Can see some Squadrons needing to have staff acting as Cadets, to give NCOs practice at marching us all into the furniture…
Looking forward to a few more gliders - maybe one per Region some time this year, then one per Wing the year after? Well, I can dream…
Pipe dream.
One for the whole Corps… ground based display model…
…
1:72 scale
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