Morning all,
I realise there was a thread about this a while ago, but with new times, I thought it was important to ask.
I am aiming to teach lesson 2C from the TAM, and for it, I need ration packs for my cadets, one per/one between 2. How do I go about securing them for a bog standard parade night, instead of a Deployed Ex?
Ta in advance
There isn’t a formal way to do this other than buying them really or keeping some over from an exercise.
Really? Thats surprising!
Is there any good way to buy them cheaply, eg. through the RAF?
I tend to keep a load from exercise as I don’t need daily 4000 cal. Sometimes there are packs left over and I will purchase a couple for ~£2.50 per pack.
I’d also keep an out-of-date pack to show typical contents, then split an in-date pack or two among cadets for feeding in the field (on squadron) lessons. Most of the fun for cadets is ‘cooking’ food and tasting it. They don’t really need one pack each or between two.
Processes vary but you should be able to order either directly with parent stores or via WHQ at the daily messing rate. Stores may request an exercise personnel nominal roll but I’ve never known any kind of due diligence to check!
As mentioned, you can order them directly and pay the daily messing rate usually.
Quick note, it might not be stores on the parent station that hold them, at COS it’s somewhere else and they have their own people that deal with them so might mean going round the houses to get the right contact. Wing/Region FCO should be able to help though.
You shouldn’t be able to order them at the DMR other than for a properly authorised exercise - otherwise, who is paying the considerable difference in cost between the rat pack, and the DMR?
No idea, I would guess it is ending up on someones bill from the station as part of the parenting agreement. Would have to check with the station as to what they would allow.
We’ve had real issues before with Stations deciding that our exercise wasn’t long enough to get what we needed to cover the appropriate meals.
We can’t get 2 each for 0900 Saturday to 1700 Sunday if that’s what you mean?
Did anyone ever try the 12hr rat pack? Didn’t last for long!
Surely someone somewhere has a notional allocation of cadet annual entitlement, too. (CCF(RAF) are ‘entitled’ to 2 x 24hrs per year, for example, and Bde get shirty if you try to get more.)
@daws1159 sadly that’s true, but the solution we’ve gone with is packed lunch (school packed meal in our case but cadets could bring their own) for lunch on day 1, then 24hr rations for the remainder.
That’s common around here as well. Packed lunch until first dinner, then rat packs for the rest.
If you write a full annual training plan for FT with an EASP.
You can use that in conjunction with a nominal roll, to order a notional number of 24hr packs for training on parade evenings.
Bribe cough i mean gift stores with biscuits and you’ll be surprised what you can get ahold of
Not anywhere near me.
That all ended years ago.
Also avoids issues with the packed lunch food spoiling before it’s used, if you have it for the first meal. Though it’s rarely above 4 degrees on exercise if you’re doing it right…