King's Bruton CCF Cadets showed teamwork, communication & proficiency at HMS Raleigh...

CCF Cadets led by SLt Brown and Lt Moran arrived at HMS Raleigh early evening on Tuesday, and settled into the accommodation. A large cool box with bag meals and cold drinks had been put out for the group, so following a quick food stop, the cadets  had game of football on the astroturf with all being back in their mess decks for lights out at 2200.

An early start to Wednesday, with the first wake up call at 0555. Cadets were smartly turned out in correct uniform and in formation, ready to march to the galley for our breakfast slot at 0700. The training itself began at 0830 with a classroom lesson followed by practical demonstrations. HAVOC was unusable due to broken hydraulics so the cadets were spilt into two groups and given the HMS Chaos damage limitation task. The expected time for novices is around 20 minutes, with a 12 minute target for the professionals. Anything between 10 and 12 minutes is deemed very good practice.  Both team performed really well, completing in under 10 minutes. Team Dolphin in 9:48, Team Crown, led by Cadet Waller, in 8:18 - this earned respect from the instructors as this was the fastest recorded time in over 5 years. The instructors commented on the level of team work and communication demonstrated to be more proficient than any other team they had dealt with recently, including teams of senior officers.

Everyone dried off, and it was back to the classroom before a break for lunch. Despite the hot weather, all cadets happily participated in the practical training and were tested on the their ability to control the fire, and then fight the fire, choosing the appropriate fire extinguishers. Using the high pressure hoses proved to be most fun, with cadets providing protection for each other behind walls of water.

My thanks go to the training teams at HMS Raleigh for providing a very worthwhile experience.

Kirsty Moran - Section Commander CCF RN