The first weekend in March saw our 1 Star Fieldcraft training exercise take place, with Army Cadets joined by a number of Navy Cadets. For many, this marked their first experience of living and operating in a field environment, making it an important milestone in their cadet journey.
Throughout the weekend, cadets were introduced to the fundamentals of fieldcraft, including setting up and maintaining harbour areas, living in the field, and sleeping outdoors in challenging conditions. A key highlight of the exercise was their participation in a blank firing exercise, where cadets were able to apply their newly developed skills in a realistic and controlled training scenario.
Conditions across the weekend were particularly cold, testing both the physical and mental resilience of all those involved. Despite this, the cadets demonstrated excellent determination, teamwork, and a positive attitude throughout. They supported one another, adapted well to the demands of the environment, and showed a clear commitment to learning and improving.
It was particularly encouraging to see the development in confidence and capability over the course of the weekend. Cadets who may have initially found the conditions challenging quickly grew in resilience and independence, fully embracing the experience and taking pride in their achievements.
The conduct and effort displayed by all cadets was outstanding, and they should be extremely proud of how they represented both the Contingent and their school. The experience has left them motivated and enthusiastic, and they are already looking forward to building on these skills at their next camp.
“This was a challenging introduction to fieldcraft for our 1 Star cadets, and they rose to it exceptionally well. Their resilience, teamwork, and willingness to learn in difficult conditions was outstanding. They should be very proud of what they have achieved over the weekend.” – OC Army, Captain J McGinn
