Great peer encouragement and personal climbing skills progression as 8 cadets from 1368 Sqn experienced Warwick University's indoor climbing and bouldering walls on a Thursday evening. Good evening of personal and peer-led challenges, a nice sense of comradery and support.

Alas, the water fight was put on hold, which is a shame for the grass, but a nice chilled evening was had by all at 1368 this week. An engaging initiative exercise was run outside involving rebuilding a Lego shape without being able to see it, was run by Cpl M with lots of competitive spirit and enthusiasm from all ages, followed by collegiate game of rounders. Well done to Cpl M, nice work!

Nope, not a picture of the Happy Mondays from 1990, it's the Happy Sunday's from RIAT 2022, or at least the lucky cadets from 1368 that got to spend Sunday July 17 at the Royal International Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford on an Air Cadet trip arranged in conjunction with 2286 Sqn. RIAT is one of the biggest Air Shows in the world and tailored made for an air cadet. A super hot day hanging out with super cool planes and flying machines.  

Well done to Sgt G and Sgt C from 1368 (Warwick and Royal Leamington Spa) Sqn on their successful road marching campaign both part of the Road Marching Team for Warwickshire and Birmingham Wing, Royal Air Force Air Cadets and whom are representing the Wing on the Nijmegen Walks.  A massive fitness test but also one about camaraderie, smart uniform, having fun, teamwork and, above all, bad singing.

Squadron has been asked not to parade this Monday due to the heat. We will resume as normal on next parade night. Apologies.

1368 did another Sports night recently to keep cadets occupied while Gold DofE group did final kit checks. Great work by Sgt P and Cpl N on coordinating and inciting the interest. We periodically do Sports nights with the idea to make them accessible and team-based games. One of the most popular events is a 1368 Capture the Flag game.  Checkout the above YouTube video. It gives a great description and also provides a link through to other games that are good fun in a large youth group context.

Well done to Cpl N, Cdt W and Cdt R on being the latest to pass their Leading Cadet classifications. Took a while to finish off exams but ultimately it's nice to get badges and certificates come through, and special mention to Cdt W on taking initiative and being the first to complete (a while ago). Leading cadet classification comes after First Class and is focused on learning 3 core subjects: Principles of Flight, Basic Navigation with Map and Compass, and Airmanship Knowledge. Training builds on what a cadet learnt during their First Class Cadet training and provides progression to Senior Cadet. All 3 subjects are mandatory and are part of the BTEC Level 2 Diploma in Aviation Studies. Airmanship Knowledge Learning Objectives (LO's) include: LO1: Know types of airfield operations used for the control of aircraft LO2: Know the Rules of the Air LO3: Know how to identify military aircraft Principles of Flight Learning Objectives (LO's) include: LO1: Understand the principles...

COVID took opportunities away from some of our older cadets to experience their Gold Duke  of Edinburgh expeditions before they left for University. Those left have finally had the opportunity of the unique team-based challenge of multiple unaccompanied Silver expeditions in Derbyshire 2021 and Shropshire 2022. To go one step further 1368 just did a Gold practice expedition in Snowdonia, July 2022; Walking in remote environments with wild-country navigation (no footpaths) topped off with a wild camp next to a lake (TOPL approved). A fantastic opportunity to better equip 1368 cadets to finalize their own 4 day routes in "Wild Country" later in the year. Following this one, a few have been lobbying for The Fens.

Well done to all the cadets for successfully climbing Cadair Idris (893m) in Wales taking the horseshoe route. Cpl M, even got to watch 4 F-15's flying through the valley about 600m below. A day to remember; the first in a 4 day training camp run by 1368 Sqn to support their Gold DofE Expedition preparation (assuming we can find an assessor that won't cost us £500!).  Adventure training is one of the pillars of 1368 training programme. Done well, it builds teamwork, resilience, and self confidence, creating memories that will last a lifetime, and raises many questions in life like "Why do people walk up mountains?", "Is this supposed to be the footpath?", and "Why did I put my water filter in the other bag?"  Some interestingly Etymology from Wikipedia: The basic meaning of the word cadair is 'seat, chair' (borrowed from the Greek cathedra 'chair'). In place names cadair can mean 'stronghold, fort, fortress' or 'mountain...