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Royal Air Force Air Cadets

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Royal Air Force Air Cadets
ActiveSince 5 February 1941[1]
Country United Kingdom
Branch Royal Air Force
TypeVolunteer Military Youth Organisation
HeadquartersRAF Cranwell
PatronThe Princess of Wales
Websitewww.raf.mod.uk/aircadets/ Edit this at Wikidata
Commanders
Commandant Air CadetsAir Cdre Al Lewis[2]
RAFAC WOWO Donna Hall RAFAC
Honorary Ambassadors
  • Wg Cdr Emma Wolstenholme RAFAC
RAF Air Cadets marching in a parade

The Royal Air Force Air Cadets (RAFAC) is the combined volunteer-military youth organisation sponsored by the Royal Air Force, which is formed by both the Air Training Corps and RAF Sections of the Combined Cadet Force.[3] The organisation is headed by a former serving RAF officer, Commandant Air Cadets. The current commandant is Air Commodore Al Lewis.[2]

Prior to 1 October 2017, the RAFAC was called the Air Cadet Organisation (ACO).[4] As of 1 April 2023, the RAFAC had a strength of 42,190 cadets and 10,070 cadet force adult volunteers.[5] Cadets are aged between 12 and 17 on entry to the organisation, and can remain until they are 18, or with special permission, until they are 20.[6]

Organisation

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The RAFAC's infrastructure consists of:

  • Headquarters RAF Air Cadets (HQRAFAC) at RAF Cranwell
  • 6 Regional Headquarters
  • 34 Wing Headquarters
  • Two National Air Cadet Adventure Training Centres
  • Over 900 Air Training Corps Squadrons in the UK and overseas[7]
  • Around 200 RAF contingents of the Combined Cadet Force[7]

Regions

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Main article: Air Training Corps § Structure and organisation

The six regions consist of:

  1. London and South East Region (LaSER)
  2. South West Region (SW)
  3. Wales and West Region (W&W)
  4. Central and East Region (C&E)
  5. North Region
  6. Scotland and Northern Ireland Region (S&NI)

Each Region is commanded by a "Regional Commandant" (RC), who holds the rank of group captain, and is usually retired regular RAF. The Region is further staffed by a number of cadet forces adult volunteers (CFAV) who maintain the day-to-day operations of each of the regions.[8] Examples of these CFAV posts include Region Staff Officer, Region Training Officer, and Region STEM Officer.[9]

RAFAC Sections of the CCF

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Air Cadet sections within the Combined Cadet Force usually follow their own chain of command within their school's unit. Above their school unit, they diverge into the same chain of command as the Air Training Corps, which is usually their Wing, or Region.

Activities

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Air Cadet activities vary vastly, however some of the most common to take place include:

  • First aid
  • Radio
  • NavEx (Navigational Exercise)
  • Physical activities
  • Drill and Discipline
  • Band and Music

There are also more rare, but enriching activities that take place also. Examples include:

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "RAFAC timeline: 1941". RAFAC.
  2. ^ a b "New Commandant Royal Air Force Air Cadets announced". Royal Air Force Air Cadets. 15 August 2024. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  3. ^ "Who we are". RAF Air Cadets. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  4. ^ "HM The Queen Approves New Commission For Cadet Force Volunteers". Air Cadet. Bourne: Warners Midlands plc. Winter 2017. p. 4. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  5. ^ "MOD sponsored cadet forces statistics: 2023". GOV.UK. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  6. ^ "Join as a cadet". RAF Air Cadets. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  7. ^ a b "ATC & CCF (RAF)". RAF Air Cadets. Archived from the original on 5 July 2017. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  8. ^ "About Us". Central & East Region Air Cadets. Archived from the original on 25 January 2024. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  9. ^ "Region Staff". Central & East Region Air Cadets. Archived from the original on 25 January 2024. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
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