Cadet Activities

We are involved in lots of different activities during every period of the year, from Rememberance Sunday Parade, to Witham Carnival and the Chelmsford Spectactuar. Also, we take part in many annual camps and training weekends. Below are details of past events that we have attended and camps that have been taken part in. The list below contains just some of the acivities you can do. In each section, there is a description of what that activity entails.

Flying

Cadets are periodically offered opportunities to fly in light aircraft as part of their Air Experiance Flight. There are plenty of opportunities open to cadets when flying, from aerobatics in the new Grob Tutor to practicing stalls in a Grob Viking glider. Some Cadets who stand out from the rest may also get the opportunity to fly on a civil airliner or go on an overseas flight in an RAF Tri-Star, VC10 or Hercules. A few cadets have also had the opportunity to fly in a variety of other aircraft including fast jets and the Red Arrows. There are also exciting opportunities for cadets to learn how to fly, with scholarships for both powered flight and gliding. In general, every cadet will be given opportunities to fly during their time as an active member of an ATC squadron.

Gliding

The Starting point for your gliding experience will be at a Volunteer Gliding School (VGS) which will fly either Vigilant motor gliders or Viking winch launch gliders. You will begin by being taught the Gliding Induction Course (GIC). The GIC has been designed to give you a taste for Air Cadet Gliding and consists of 3 different levels of instruction. You will be shown various aspects of aerodynamics that you will have been taught in the classroom before being taught the "effects of controls" in the air. You will have the opportunity to take control and practice what you have learned. On your first visit you will be taught the GIC 1 and your subsequent visits you will progress to GIC 2 and 3. After you have completed the course, you will be awarded a GIC certificate.

Sports

There are three levels at which you can compete at Cadets. The first is Inter-Squadron. This is self-explanatory. If you are successful at this level, you'll go on to the Inter-Wing competitions. This is the next level up, and you compete with other cadets from various Wings in our Region (London And South-East). The next stage is competing for your region. The final hurdle is to run for the Corps against other organisations. We have one Cadet in the unit that has run for the Corps in Edinburgh against other clubs.

The ATC are involved in a variety of competitive sports, ranging from football to hockey. The range of sports that we take part in is listed below. More details on each of the sports can be found on the Air Cadet Website Sports Page by clicking here.

Chelmsford Spectacular


Every year, cadets from many units around Chelmsford volunteer to help the staff at oen of Chelmsford's biggest annual events, the Chelmsford Spectacular. 2003 was no exception with cadets from many units taking part. The weekend involved arriving at your chosen time, then going on a shift-style system, rotating from car parking in the main car park, to "rest and recuperation", to "rapid response". A bonus is that you get to see the evening concerts for free!

Rememberance Day Parades & Poppy Collecting


Each year on Rememberence Sunday, there is a compulsory Rememberance Day Parade for all cadets at the unit. We parade through the town centre to the Memorial Garden. A member of the unit is chosen to lay a poppy wreath at the foot of the Memorial Statue. On the Saturday, we are out in Witham Town Centre selling poppies to the public for the Royal British Legion.

Duke Of Edinburgh's Award

The Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme is a voluntary, non-competitive programme of practical, cultural and adventurous activities for young people aged 14-25. The Award programme consists of three levels, Bronze, Silver and Gold. Each have differing criteria for entry and the level of achievement necessary to complete each award. All Cadets who meet the age criteria can join the award scheme. Each award is broken down into 4 areas (5 for gold) which participants must complete successfully to receive their award. These are:-

Award Area

Brief Description

Service

Helping others in the local community.

Expeditions

Training for, and planning of a journey.

Skills

Demonstrate ability in almost any hobby, skill or interest.

Physical Recreation

Sport, dance and fitness.

Residential Project (Gold Award only)

A purposeful enterprise with young people not previously known to the participant.


The Award is widely recognised by employers as it helps demonstrate that award holders are keen to take on new challenges, have a higher level of self confidence than their counterparts, have leadership qualities with the added experience of teamwork.