There are a number of reasons why 1989 was a good year for me but the one to talk about is my trouncing of my ATC squadron for awards. As listed in this communication I won four of the awards that year.
Shooting
Bandsman
Cadet Of The Year
NCO i/c Flight Of The Year
I am very proud of these. I still have the personal trophy for Cadet of the Year.
I recently attended a meal in celebration of thirty five years of 309 squadron and it was a good bash. It was lovely to see lots of faces from the old days. The trophies were on display and although my names are no longer on the prizes given out now – there’s not enough space for the new names and so new trophies were bought – I could see the old trophies around the room along with plenty of clippings in the scrap books.
There was also a presentation on the large screen with plenty of photographs from the old days. A fair few had me in them, mind you I was involved for over ten years.
A Classic Year
The above photograph has John Trant, Lisa Slater, me, Flt Lt Andrew Passfield OC 309, Jamie Hubbard, Dean Willetts and Simon McGarry. We are the ones who won prizes in 1989.
Fife
That’s me playing the fife as the band marched down the town high street.
Being part of the cadets at work has given me some brilliant experiences and I absolutely love. I often feel like I’m just a big kid really, soaking in all the experiences and seeing some amazing things, some of which I’m not even allowed to talk about. When I went to Cyprus last year it was twenty nine years since I had last been and had those experiences. I went to Akrotiri in 1988. I went one better with a recent trip!
In 1986 October time just after I had been to my first annual camp at RAF Coltishall my squadron went to Crowborough Training Camp for a week of activities. I have a few distinct memories of being there. One evening we watched a scary movie, I think it was Alien, and we had to do this in the girls’ block as that was where the TV and VCR were. When we left it was foggy and we all ran down the hill to our billet as fast as we could.
Crowborough Training Camp
I knew that one day we were meant to be going rock climbing and abseiling at High Rocks but it was raining and instead we went to watch Top Gun in the cinema at Brighton. We were full of that film for the rest of the week.
Twisted
A memory that came back to me after looking around one of the billets this past weekend was that we had a music box near the door where the power was and we played the Top gun soundtrack a lot along with “In The Army Now” by Status Quo and also “The Final Countdown” by Europe. I loved these songs at the time and I loved the feeling of belonging and having a good time together. I can still remember my team from that Crowborough camp; Nick Filler was I/C, Charles Randall, Vanessa Payne, Gummy and me.
Gorgeous Colours
This recent visit and my first time back to Crowborough comes thirty two years later. I’m back at this place with a bunch of new recruits who are learning the skills to be good leaders and enjoying that feeling of being part of something larger than themselves. I hope they enjoy it and get as much from it as I did.
Sad Old Bird
I’m not always sure that I appreciated every moment while I was a cadet but i do look back with such fondness. So much so that I’ll be heading back to my old squadron for a meal next year to celebrate thirty five years since 309 was given squadron status.
Lisa was a friend of mine. We spent about six years going to air cadets together. And then, when I was at university she died.
Eventually I hope that some of the communications in this site are about people who influenced me. People I am proud to have known. People I remember.
Lisa and I lived in the same village. I think she was a year older than me. We didn’t socialise in the village. We met when we ended up at the same air cadet squadron. In those days the Sqn put on a minibus to collect kids from the “villages” so we could get to parade nights. Eventually, once we were older, we ended up giving each other lifts into town so we could attend cadets. We would chat a lot and discuss the latest episode of “Happy Days”. Lisa was also a campanologist. I have no idea if she was religious or not, but on Sunday’s that was her thing. Once for my birthday she bought me “Never Mind The Bollocks, Here’s The Sex Pistols” on tape. Quality.
One day when I was at university I met my dad for lunch and he told me that Lisa had died. She was playing football and collapsed. They didn’t find out what happened. I was slightly shocked at first but I accepted it. I was sad. Of course I was. The pain I felt was at the thought of losing the person I had spent quite a bit of time with. But I knew it would get better.
Lisa’s funeral was in the village. There was quite a large contingent from cadets there and the church was packed. People were sitting in the aisles. After the service her coffin was lowered into the ground outside the church. I didn’t go and look. For some reason I had a “Home And Away” quote in my head: remember them as they were, not as they are. I have no idea where it really came from but I did watch Aussie soaps at that time. That evening our group went out in Sawbridgeworth and celebrated the life of Lisa in the traditional fashion.
I have occasionally been to speak to Lisa. Once I went after the tenth anniversary meal of the cadet squadron. Rich and I left our dates at my parents house and ran down to the graveyard to speak to Lisa. I was quite drunk. I haven’t been to the grave for a long time. Life has been busy and got in the way really. I intend to visit over the Xmas period while I’m in the village. Hence this the other day:
Just had an incredible urge to go and talk to Lisa. Let her know everything that has happened since I last spoke to her.
I can’t encapsulate years of friendship in this communication. But I can at least write a little. I still think of her. All of my readers needn’t worry. I don’t go to speak to her or her “soul”. Once you are dead, that’s it. The end. Nothing more. It’s a nice idea that we live on but one that reduces our real life to a time of fear. Embrace life and accept the truth. I go to speak to Lisa (I do very little actual speaking), to remember and keep her alive in my heart.
Lisa sent me the coolest Christmas card I ever got. She used to work in the printers workshop in the village. On the front was a snowman I think with a red scarf. Inside the card read:
Wishing you a piss poor Christmas and a fucking horrible new year.
Part of the plan of this collection of communications is to be a memory bank. A written form of my consciousness and what makes me work. Some who know me will probably agree that the world isn’t ready for a completely exposed view of Ian Parish yet and so, obviously this is an edited version of me. Unlike many people on the interwebbything I am acutely aware that this is a public forum. Most of my contentious points will be backed up with arguments, whether valid or not, to give some sense of how I reached my conclusions. I try to back up statements of fact with evidence and, my opinion is just that.
I’m quite happy to say that praying to a zombie-god-son-ghost thing is crazy, but at the same time I understand why people do it. I also think that following the Chinese-whispered depraved musings of a seventh century paedophile-war-lord is nuts. But then, I’ve looked at the evidence. My rule in life is the same as the rule in my classroom:
Be nice to people
If you think I’ve not been nice to people in the previous paragraph then please be aware I have just mentioned their beliefs and not the individual. you are welcome to believe in unicorns but I will calmly explain that unicorns don’t exist. If you get angry when I question your beliefs then you should possibly examine those beliefs. Also, if little ol’ me questioning you makes your faith waver then your faith is misplaced.
These pages are clearly like buses. Wait long enough and Parish will rant about religion or stupidity or anti-science or crazy people within a communication about a quiz question [yep, that’s what this is about]. There should be a Godwin’s Law thing for me.
In the early 90s I was closely involved with two main Air Cadet squadrons. There was the good one, 309, and our neighbour, 1096 Sqn based in Bishop’s Stortford. I once attended a quiz evening at 1096 Squadron. I’ve a feeling I was probably 19 or so. I’m not sure if I had started university or was working for Cossor Electronics at that time. I am going to moan about the quiz master getting an answer wrong.
So, we nearly at the point I promise. Also, it’s not worth reading any further, but if you’ve made it this far I am impressed.
What is the speed of sound?
I answered quite quickly with the answer 330 m/s [at standard temperature and pressure]. When the answers for that round were passed around for marking the official answer was 700mph give or take 50 mph. When we got our answers back I noticed that question was marked wrong. I took our answer sheet to the quiz master and explained that 330 m/s was near-enough the same as 700mph, I even demonstrated a conversion using those odd things that are called numbers and that strange thing called mathematics.
Was the quiz master convinced? No. I wasn’t allowed to have 330 m/s the answer. Why is this still in my memory? Possibly because of mathematical ignorance but really I don’t know but it’s there with other “key” events or interactions that surface now and then.
And, finally, we come to the last section of my immortalisation of my 3822. The Air Training Corps Record of Service. This page does not list everything that should be listed in the “Other Activities” section of the blue book. All I have now is what is recorded on this page. The detail follow. Should you wish to see more of these communications then please search this site.
This list does not include the band engagements that I played. There were probably about an average of 10 a year of those. I have, also, not attempted to adjust the list at all. What you see is how it is recorded in the 3822. Because of this some of the dates are in the wrong order and there’s a vague reference to an airshow in June 89. I doubt this was a month long airshow but the details are now lost in time.
I doubt this is the last communication on my Air Cadet journey and there are probably going to be more of my CCF journey. Enjoy!
It’s been a while, but you could catch up on all these in a single session by searching Fooyah.net for a list of 3822 communications! What follows is a list of the gliding experiences I had as an Air Cadet a long time ago. These were my formative years and this community influenced me a lot, enough to still get involved.
As a Squadron we would go to RAF Wethersfield in Essex and go gliding with 614 VGS a squadron of volunteer pilots.
Here follows my log:
As you can see the 21 July 1990 was a bumper day for gliding. Most flights tended to be a short hop as the glider is winched up to about 1000ft and then does a single circuit as it returns to land. On the 21st it was a sunny day and there were plenty of thermals. I can remember parts of my 35 minute flight, I almost got bored, which is a terrible thing to say about flying!! I could see the other gliders in the air at the time and had a great view of Wethersfield.
I also remember that Lisa was having a flight and coming around to land when her glider traded altitude for velocity and sped up greatly while heading towards the ground, from my view the glider even dropped below the tree line and I was slightly worried but a couple of seconds later the glider popped up from below the tree line and landed successfully.
I always felt that gliding was a poor cousin to powered flying but I think I would appreciate its beauty a little more now. Don’t get me wrong, any chance to go flying and experience these things was great, but given the choice, I’d go powered flying first.
This continues the dissection of my Form 3822, my record of service book for my time in the Air Cadets. To see others communications in this thread click here.
Attendance At Annual Camps
26 July to 2 August 1986 RAF Coltishall
22 August to 29 August 1987 RAF Brize Norton
7 April to 18 April 1988 RAF Akrotiri
23 July to 30 July 1988 RAF Coningsby
12 August to 19 August 1989 RAF Swanton Morely
4 August to 11 August 1991 RAF Waddington
I missed the 1990 camp at RAF Odium because I was on a pre-booked holiday. I missed a flight in a Chinook that year. Although I was in the cadets in 1985 I was not allowed on the camp that year as I hadn’t completed my basic training. I left as a cadet towards the end of 1991.
RAF Coltishall 1986
RAF Coltishall (above): I’m in the back row and on the right. This was my first annual camp and this is a photograph of just the 309 contingent of the camp.
For some reason I don’t have the photograph from RAF Brize Norton to hand. I will keep looking to see if I can find it.
RAF Akrotiri 1988
RAF Akrotiri (above): I think this was just the East Essex Wing contingent of the Cyprus camp that year. I’m in the back row, five from the left.
RAF Coningsby 1988
RAF Coningsby (above): This was the 309 contingent at this camp although we also had one cadet from 414 (Epping) Squadron with us. I’m front and left.
RAF Swanton Morely 1989
RAF Swanton Morley (above): There are a few tales to tell about this camp. I shall dedicate a future communication to my memories from all these camps. I’m in the middle row of cadets just left of the flag pole.
RAF Waddington 1991
RAF Waddington: My last annual camp and my first in proper billets. I’m on the steps, number six from the left.
These are all the official photographs that I have. I am going to put more photographs on this site over time. If you are unsure about the aims of this website then please read the homepage. It’s about me you see.
This is a communication giving details of my time in the Air Cadets. See other pages here. Here I deal with the Awards section of my service.
Shooting – ATC Marksmanship Badge
22 May 1987
29 July 1987
29 April 1988
22 July 1988
29 December 1989
23 October 1990
18 December 1990
17 March 1991
The criteria for an ATC Marksmanship Badge was five shots within a 2p grouping over 25 yards.
Shooting – RAF Markmanship Badge
15 August 1989
17 March 1990
I don’t recall the criteria for a RAF Marksmanship Badge. I know I was happy to get mine, especially as I found target shooting enjoyable and I was good at it.
Swimming – RAF Proficiency Certificate
28 July 1986
Other Awards
16 March 1987 Squadron Model Competition
January 1989 Cadet Of The Month
May 1989 Cadet Of The Month
June 1989 Cadet Of The Month
18 August 1989 Inter-Flight Competition RAF Swanton Morley Annual Camp
October 1989 Cadet Of The Month
November 1989 Cadet Of The Month
1989 Mark Sykes Shooting Trophy
1989 Cadet Of The Year
1989 Harry Filler Bandsman Trophy
1989 Mustang Flight Trophy
1990 Inter-Flight Trophy
Being awarded Cadet of the Year by the Commandant Air Cadets
This is the first communication about my Record Of Service document. Over a few communications I will detail here my accomplishments within the Air Training Corps in my formative years. Starting from the first entries I give you:
Promotions
Entry to cadets: June 1985
Cadet Corporal: 12th January 1987
Cadet Sergeant: 4th January 1988
Cadet Flight Sergeant: 5th February 1991
Classifications
1st Class Cadet: 10th February 1986
Leading Cadet: 2nd February 1987
Senior Cadet: 14th March 1988
Staff Cadet: 13th July 1990
Rank Slides
I found that the best fun rank to be was a Sergeant. You were sandwiched in the middle of the rank structure and so had separation from the cadets and staff. While at RAF Swanton Morely summer camp one of the flights was given three Sergeants to be in charge while the other two had Flight Sergeants. I was one of the three and we had a whale of a time, being just serious enough to have a great grouping of cadets but also good fun.
Recently I have volunteered to help with the cadet organisation at work. The RAF section of the CCF needed some staff and I felt it was time to get involved. I will occasionally write about my experiences on these pages but joining and entering the world of cadets for a second time made me reminisce about my time as a teenager in the Air Training Corps.
I spent a few hours recently searching the crap in my loft trying to find my Record Of Service book. I kept it and it records everything I did in the Cadets. Having found it I will use it to create some communications within this site and then package it safely and store it somewhere. It’s a little A6 cardboard backed booklet that has seen some busy times. It is now falling apart and has to be handled with care. Within the pages I found my Sargent and Flight Sargent rank slides that I used to wear. In the same box I also found some memorabilia that I shall write about another time. The booklet is called a RAF Form 3822.
I can remember being about twelve years old and chatting to my best friend of the time, Nick. We decided we wanted something to do in the evenings. Something like a club or sport. Actually it probably wasn’t sport as I wasn’t a sporty child. We were already involved with an amateur dramatics society after all that’s how we knew each other, our parents were heavily involved with pantomimes and plays in Hatfield Heath.
One lovely sunny summer’s day [all the days of my youth are sunny, I don’t remember it raining before 1990] we were wandering around the village festival and saw a stand for the local Air Training Squadron. We chatted to them and Nick decided he would join. I had to wait until I was 13. A bit later when walking past the stand again they called me over [I’m making this bit up, I can’t remember what really happened] and asked me to join the band only [as I could play the clarinet] and then later, when I was old enough I could join the Squadron properly. This was the summer of 1984.
309 (Sawbridgeworth) Sqn Air Training Corps was formed at the end of January (I think) of 1984. Before that they had been a Detached Flight of 2317 (Harlow) Sqn.
309 Squadron Badge
On Friday evenings I now went to Church House in Sawbridgeworth and practised with the band of 309. I was given a uniform and I had to learn how to play a fife.
5 Keyed Bb Flute
We didn’t wear uniform, we had a laugh and we learnt how to play our instruments and how to perform band drill. I remember my first real band engagement was a Wing Field day at Southend Airport. Nine hundred cadets on parade and the Commander of the ATC at the podium. I couldn’t march and I couldn’t play much. I just had to concentrate on marching and being in step. They placed me on the side furthest from the Commandant for the march past so I had less chance of being seen. It was probably the scariest experience of my cadet career. I was twelve and a half.
Once I passed 13 I had been involved with the cadets for about nine months and it was time to join up properly. The rest of the squadron paraded on Monday nights and so I attended twice a week. I was at a slight advantage within the squadron as I knew a lot of the cadets already and could, by now, march and understand the mechanics of marching and static drill.
My 3822
My Record Of Service book is an RAF Form 3822. This one was kept in my back trouser pocket throughout my entire ATC career and so I am surely forgiven for it looking a little “worn”. The earliest date in my 3822 is 23 June 1985. That is the date signed by my commanding officer on the parental consent page. My parents had obviously signed form 3822A. My formal enrolment into the Air Traning Corps is dated the 17 Dec 1985. I think this is when I would have completed my basic training and have taken my Cadet’s Promise in front of the squadron and the squadron’s Padre. It would appear that I promised loyalty to my unit and the ATC and also:
I further promise to be a good citizen and to do my duty to God and the Queen, my country and my flag.
I left the cadets as a cadet in Sept 1991. This was when I went to university. I then spend a couple of years with 309 as a Civilian Instructor helping out with lessons and the musical aspects of the band. On a few occasions I put uniform back on and joined the ranks for a major band parade. I once marched down The Mall as part of 309 band which was an excellent experience.
I returned to 309 in 1999 as a CI while I worked at a school in Brentwood. I had been part of 25 (Parkwood) Sqn for a short while before that, helping out with lessons. I transferred back to 309 when I moved jobs. My loyalty in Essex Wing belongs to 309 Sqn, which is based in Hertfordshire. Another couple of years as CI and I eventually moved back down to Kent and left the Air Training Corps, maybe for the last time.
I am still in contact with my old squadron and I feel a massive sense of loyalty to them. I spent a great deal of time during my teenage years with the ATC and had an excellent time. I experienced many things of which I will write about over the next while using my 3822 as a guide.
I have returned to 309 recently to celebrate some anniversaries. I attended the 25th Squadron Anniversary dinner in 2009 held at Great Hadham Golf Club and this year, 2014, I attended the 30th celebrations held at the Cricket Club in Sawbridgeworth. To give you an idea of what 309 does have a watch of the video below.
I make appearances in the video at 3:54 [charity walk], 6:03 [RAF Coningsby], 6:08 [RAF Coltishall], 6:24 [Crowborough], 6:54 [The Mall], 7:06 [Hatfield Heath Festival], 7:40 [First Aid, Church House], 8:19 [A Rock, Snowdonia].
I have now joined Maidstone Grammar School Combined Cadet Force as a member of staff. I am a member of the Royal Air Force unit within the contingent. It is a little different to the ATC but the similarities are enough that all my knowledge and experience is coming back from the depths of my brain. I am looking forward to paying back to the system, again.
So, for many years I was involved with the Air Cadets. I joined the band of 309 (Sawbridgeworth) Sqn when I was twelve and a half and then joined the squadron properly when I was thirteen and a half. I left when I went to university when I was 19, although I did two stints as a Civilian Instructor. I look back fondly on my time in the cadets and had so many great experiences that I think it really changed my outlook on life during my formative years. I’ll do another more comprehensive post about my cadet career another time but this post is just to list the official annual camps I attended.
1986 RAF Coltishall
1987 RAF Brize Norton
1988 RAF Coningsby
1989 RAF Swanton Morley
1991 RAF Waddington
1993 RAF Manston (attended as a CI)
Also in 1988 I attended a two week camp at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus.
