Chronicle April 2016

21 ST EDWARD’S CHRONICLE

CCF FieldWeekend

Army The Army Section of the CCF had a busy and varied 48-hour exercise, practising live firing on the range for the very first time and rehearsing section attacks using blank ammunition (left). In addition, the Fifth Form cadre braved the frost and cold to gather intelligence, conduct a night ambush against the enemy and plan a dawn attack on their compound; a fitting and successful end to a demanding exercise. Left to right: Annabel MacDonald-Smith ( Farleigh ), Ilana Cope ( Cherwell ), Iona Anderson ( Windlesham House ), Ella Mival ( Godstowe Prep ), Lucy Hope ( Dragon ) and Octavia Hamilton ( Packwood Haugh ) Brigadier Rob Thomson, the Rifleman for Oxfordshire, visited the School in March to present CCF Contingent Commander Nick Coram-Wright with our refurbished Sword of Honour. Brigadier Thomson also took the opportunity to talk to our cadets about leadership, focusing on his role as the senior British officer to oversee the withdrawal of UK troops from Helmand, Afghanistan, in 2014.

Navy The Navy section visited Portsmouth for the February Field Weekend. On the first day we were given a tour of HMS Victory. We then crossed the harbour in a small craft and visited the Submarine Museum at Gosport, the highlight of which was being shown around HMS Alliance by a veteran submariner who served during the Cold War. In the evening we stayed aboard HMS Bristol on Whale Island. The following day, half the section went sailing aboard a 38-foot yacht in the Solent, breaking for lunch at Wootton Creek on the Isle of Wight; the remaining cadets were given training aboard a Navy powerboat in the Solent and explored Cowes before heading back to HMS Bristol in the afternoon.

RAF Following their visit to the Imperial War Museum London on the first day of the Field Weekend, the RAF Section spent the second day at RAF Halton. Known as the ‘Gateway to the Royal Air Force of the 21st Century’ the base is now a centre for basic recruit and trade training. The cadets were given a number of practical challenges to emphasise the importance of teamwork and communication; several budding engineers successfully designed their own aircraft! After lunch in the Junior Ranks’ Mess they visited the Trenchard Museum, named in honour of the founder of the RAF and where items related to the history of RAF Halton are preserved and displayed. The lucky few were able to sit in the cockpit of a Red Arrows jet or try out the flight simulators.

Casper Sunley

Zoey Flynn ( Dragon ) and Reha Soni ( Danes Hill ) at the Trenchard Museum sitting in a Folland Gnat, a jet trainer from the 1960s

Cadets Joyce Yao ( YK Pao School, Shanghai ), Anton Frieser ( German School, London ) sailing past a Type 45 destroyer