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2175 (Rolls-Royce)
Squadron
Air Training Corps |
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2175 (Rolls-Royce)
Squadron
Air Training Corps |
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March / April 2006 By CWO Bobby Hastie
The Purdie Sword is annually awarded to the best cadet in Scotland and Northern Ireland Region. After almost nine years in the Air Training Corps I was delighted to discover that the winner for this year was me. Over the course of my ATC career I have been lucky enough to be involved in all sorts of different courses from the expected flying, shooting and gliding, picking up a flying scholarship, an RAF marksman badge, and a gliding scholarship, but I have also been put forward for other, not so expected courses, like canoeing, rock climbing, and Basic Expedition Leaders Award (BELA). All of this was taken into consideration, by both wing and region, and so after wing nominated me, region decided, and I was notified only a few weeks ago. This is the first time a cadet from 2175 (Rolls-Royce) Squadron has won the award, and I am immensely proud to represent my squadron in this way. I am saving the Oscar speech for when I am presented with the sword, at the regional drill competition in September, but I believe that I must thank a few people. Mostly my squadron staff over the last few years, in particular my sister Paula (a Civilian instructor with the squadron) as well as Pilot Officer Callan, and the ex-CI Sim, who have worked tirelessly for the squadron for many years. At some level all I did was go to a great number of courses, which they organised for me. I have also represented my wing and region at a number of sporting events, and had great fun doing all of them. There is also a female equivalent, the Andrew’s Sash of Honour, which my older sister won, just a few years ago. This, I feel, evens the score a bit, and is very welcome news, as I am due to leave the squadron in June, on my 22nd birthday. I have been fortunate enough to do a great number of things with the ATC, and I have benefited from almost all of my experiences. As the winner of the competition, I have entered as the Scotland and Northern Ireland representative in the Corps wide event to find the best male cadet. This in itself is a great honour, and I am proud to be considered among the top in the organisation, but I am always looking at bettering my squadron and with my imminent departure, I will be assisting my squadron staff in training the next generation of cadets. Maybe one day, one of them will be in this position. Thain Trophy
Sgt Andrew McLellan has been awarded the Thain trophy for 2006. The trophy is awarded annually to the cadet who has achieved the highest total score in their Leading, Senior and Staff cadet exams. He won this year with a score of 153. This is the third time this century a (Rolls-Royce) cadet has won the award. It was previously won by Pilot Officer Callan in 2000 and by Cpl Yuill in 2002. Clearly, A testament to the high quality of our cadets and to the dedication of our instructors. Gliding Scholarship
By Cpl Neil Finnie As you may have noticed I wasn't attending the squadron on Friday nights for about three months. That’s because I was up at RAF Kirknewton doing my gliding scholarship. Gliding scholarships are available to all cadets over the age of 16 as long as you have consent to fly, are declared medically fit and are recommended by your squadron as one of their most dedicated, committed and enthusiastic cadets. There are two types of courses available for cadets to do. There is a weeks long course usually held in the summer where you go to a gliding squadron and finish your course within a week. The other course available is a weekend course which I did. This is where you up to your local gliding squadron every weekend until your course is finished. This could take a long time because if there isn't good weather you don't get to fly and also this type of course requires more commitment as you are expected to attend every weekend until you are complete There are two types of gliders that are used to train cadets to fly. They are the Viking glider and the vigilant glider. There is one main difference between the Viking and the vigilant. The vigilant has its own engine which it uses to take off with. Once in the air the engine is switched off and you glide back down to land. The Viking glider uses a winch to get off of the ground. This is because it does not have its own engine. A cable is attached to the bottom of the aircraft and the wings are brought level. After it is checked that it is all clear above and behind the command "take up slack" is given. The signal is given to the winch which funnily enough takes up the slack in the cable. Once the cable is tight the command "all out" is given by the pilot. The cable is then wound in at high speed which pulls the glider up into the air. Once at the desired height the cable is released and you glide back down and land. On your course you are taught how to co-ordinate the controls by using rudder and ailerons at the same time, you are taught how to prevent stalls, take-off, land, how to control launch failures and land safely, how to recover from a balloon landing, turning onto headings, circuits and a lot more. It is a lot to take in but it all comes to you in the end and comes together at the right time. I finished my course on the eighth weekend but due to bad weather and other factors I did not get my solo until week twelve. This was rather annoying you only had to do one more thing to complete the course but you couldn't do it due to bad luck. When I was finally told I was going to do my pre-solo checks I was over the moon. You have to do three launches with an A category instructor (the best there is) to make sure you are capable of taking off, flying the circuit and landing. On one of the three flights a launch failure will be pulled on you which you have to handle because it could happen on your solo flight. After I completed my three launches the chief flying instructor (CFI), who I was flying with went to check to see if the weather was O.K. for me to go solo in but unfortunately it was too windy so they couldn't let me go up myself. I did however do a ghosted solo with the CFI present which entitles me to wear the silver wings which I was really happy about. I cannot stress enough how fun the course was to go on and I would recommend it to anyone who is eligible to apply for it as it was the best thing I have ever had the chance to do with the cadets. By Cpl Steven Smith
On the 26th of March several cadets got the chance to go skiing in Aviemore. The day began at 4:45am (well for me anyway). We met up at the squadron at 6:00am where we met the officers. At 6:30 the bus arrived and we were on our way to Aviemore. On the way we watched Harry Potter but actually we slept. When we arrived we collected our kit and headed up to the ski resort. Once there we headed for the train which would take us up the mountain so we could ski down it. It was my first time skiing so it took me several attempts to not fall and then to try and get up again. Later Cpl Finnie and I decided to try the professional part of the mountain. Unfortunately we got stuck and had to try and climb around the mountain. About half an hour of walking and falling we got back to the bus for lunch. Exhausted we got stuck into our lunch. Since it was cold, I brought a flask of soup with me to drink. When I opened it, it sort of exploded on me because of the pressure. I had to use my scarf to clean up the mess because there were no paper towels. About twenty minutes later the rest of the group started to arrive. Once everyone was finished we headed back up the mountain for more skiing. This time I knew what to do and was also more confident. One thing to remember at Aviemore is that the chairlifts are impossible to use because one minute your stationary and then your moved from 0-60 in two seconds. He trip was a great success and everyone should put there name up next year to go because I will.
By Cdt Peter Hastie
On the 18th and 19th of March at Wing HQ, Hawkhead Road, Paisley, 14 air cadets from Glasgow & West of Scotland Wing were taking part in a Young Lifesaver course. They started at 8.45am and finished at 5.00pm so it was longer than a full school day but the idea of having First Aid qualifications kept us going. On the first day I arrived at Wing HQ at 8.30am I was the first in my Squadron but the other Squadrons were already there. On the first day we learned all the techniques necessary for the exam the following day. We learned things like how to make a 999 call in an emergency, how to put an unconscious person into the recovery position, how to apply a dressing to a gash or open fracture. We also learned what to do with an asthmatic having an attack, an epileptic person having a fit, a diabetic having a hypoglycaemic, how to do CPR, the Heimlich manoeuvre and much more all in preparation for the test the next day. On the second day not only were we sitting exams but the Wing Admin Officer Squadron Leader Iain Low RAF VR(T) and several Flight Lieutenants were interviewing officer candidates, the tension could have been cut with a knife. There was three parts to our exam; first a written exam, which accounted for around 20% of the mark, then a practice exam on the dummy testing CPR, which accounted for around 40% of the mark and last but most challenging of all the a practice test on a live person with a fake injury. We weren’t told what the injury was or how to deal with it. We had to be tested individually so while one cadet was being tested we had to wait our turn in a small room in silence - for 3 hours. Finally it was my turn. I had to deal with a conscious patient with an open fracture on his hand and a broken leg whilst he was going in to shock I knew exactly what to do and made no mistakes. In the end we all passed and were told that we were going to be presented with our badges and certificates some time in April. First Aid Presentation Evening
Cadets Kayani Z, Kayani A, Hastie P and Kelly were presented with their awards on Thursday the 27th of April. The presentation took place at the Strathclyde Regional Fire HQ in Hamilton. Classification Training Results The results are in! Partial Pass means that the cadet has passed that subject but still needs to sit another exam to complete that classification. Cadets need to score 52 % to pass, 72% to pass with credit and 92% to pass with distinction. Staff Cpl McGregor - 22/25 Partial Pass
Cpl Smith -36/50 Pass Senior
Cdt McLean - 22/25 - Partial Pass Leading
Cdt Skelly - 13/25 - Partial Pass Canadian Two Star Course By CWO Bobby Hastie Last summer five cadets from 2175 (Rolls-Royce) Squadron, attended Llanbedr outward bound course, in Wales. At this week long course, Cadets Skelly, Frew, Lynch, Holmes, and myself were awarded a 1 star certificate for canoeing. Now, 8 months on, we have been invited to a follow up course to gain our 2 star qualification. Cadet Jenny Lynch, Elizabeth Holmes, and I were part of the second group to go on a weekend’s course at Castle Semple, Lochwinnoch, to be trained and tested in more advanced areas of the canoeing. The group before us, who attended the same centre two weeks before, all managed to pass, and had a great time, so our expectations were high. Our previous experience with the canoes had been four days with some RAF officers on sunny summer days in Wales. An early spring month in Scotland however, presents different challenges. A cold, windy Saturday in April and the three of us were to meet the team at the water sports centre. Once we had been fitted with our safety equipment we brought the canoes onto the water, and our instructor Willie began to show us some of the more advanced techniques. We had been introduced to these in Wales, but our experience was limited. The water, and wind, provided a challenge we were not used to. The first day was finished with promises of better weather on the Sunday, this was not to be the case. The wind on Sunday was stronger still. Although we tried our best in the water before lunch it was clear that conditions were worsening. Our instructor decided, and we agreed, it was hardly the type of weather to be canoeing in, never mind being assessed. So we reconvened two weeks later, only to find that the wind was stronger. We are now just waiting for the conditions to improve, and our assessment to be complete. Watch this space for more information. Upcoming Activities
5th May Roll of Honour Purdie Sword CWO Bobby Hastie Thain Trophy Sgt Andrew McLellan RAFA Flying Scholarship Sgt Andrew McLellan Gliding Scholarship (Solo) Cpl Neil Finnie Promotion to Corporal Cpl Grant McGregor Promotion to Sergeant Sgt Andrew McLellan Young Lifesavers Cdt Kayani Z Cdt Kayani A Cdt Kelly Cdt Hastie P Cadet of the Month – March Cdt Jennifer Lynch Cadet of the Month – April Cdt Dominic Hastie |
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