Cadets from 2495 (Totton) DF have spent a lot of their spare time this summer volunteering in the local community and taking part in activites organised by their staff.

Firstly, in June, the cadets manned a recruitment stand at Totton Family Fun Day, where they enjoyed showing off what they do and explaining it to the public. Although a falconry display, a dog agility display and dances also kept the public entertained, many of the cadets enjoyed the mini assault course organised by the Royal Logistics Corp.

Also in June, three members of staff took some cadets to Tankfest 2009, held at the Tank Museum in Dorset. The displays had "The World’s best display of moving armour", as well as explosive live displays, mock battles and living history from The Tank Museum’s unique collection. There were also displays of both modern British Army and rare WWII tanks in action. All of the cadets who attended thouroughly enjoyed the day, with Cadet Debue said “It was a great day watching all the military vehicles on display and not just static in the museum”, while Cadet Corporal Stanswood commented that he wished he had more money to spend on all the military stalls!

In March, Totton Cadets joined up with cadets from 2495 (Hythe) Squadron to have lessons in snow boarding at Southampton Alpine Centre, organised by Instructor Cadet Flight Sergeant Bouazouzi. After having been issued with boots, boards and wrist protectors the cadets were ready to fall over a lot! During the one-hour lesson, taken by an ex-Cadet, the cadets were shown the basic controls and how to move and balancing. Again, this was an activity which the cadets enjoyed, with Cadet Pickard commenting "We where rolling backwards down hills, it was great!". Cadet Flight Sergeant Bouazouzi also had fun, saying "We had great fun, I managed to get to the point where I can go back any time and snowboard without any more lessons”.

In a more traditional ATC activity, Totton Cadets travelled up to London with cadets from Hythe and Romsey to visit the RAF Museum at Hendon, organised by Cadet Corporal Sayce, who commented "We had a great time, taking in all the aircraft, taking lots of pictures and spending lots of money in the gift shop!". Meanwhile, Cadet White said "I learnt a lot of interesting things about aircraft and the history of the RAF" and Cadet Sergeant Asciak added "I have been there a few times, it changes constantly, I see something different each time I go. The exhibitions are good, and the ‘hands on’ science section at the end is very intuitive"

Cadets have also been putting their fieldcraft skills into action, undertaking a joint exercise with Totton Army Cadet Force for the second time this year. Flight Sergeant Mattingly and Sergeant Molyneux organised the day with staff from both units attending. The cadets were organised into mixed teams of Army and Air Cadets, and after applying camouflage cream, took part in various activies, including

• Radio reminder – Basic Techniques and a game of radio battleships
• Duties of a sentry practice & Section Formations and Field Signals
• Patrols & Ambush techniques
• Team building Radio Ex

All the cadets also got a go on flight simulators and the RADAR searching for information online on the aircraft flying overhead. The day culminated with a friendly ATC v ACF tug of war. The ATC won the duel for a second consecutive time!

Finally, on a slightly more serious note, Flight Sergeant Mattingly wore her uniform to work for Armed Forces Day which took place on Saturday 27 June 2009. The aim of the Armed Forces Day was to increase the public support for, and appreciation of, all those who serve and have served in HM Armed Forces. Speaking about her decisions to wear her uniform, Flight Sergeant Mattingley said "I decided to do this sponsored to raise funds for the DF and managed to raise over £200 towards new radio batteries and the running of the minibus we are getting. I work where lots of ex-forces do so I was very proud to wear my uniform, and they were glad I did to recognise the day."