Royal Air Force Air Cadets

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Royal Air Force Air Cadets
RAFAC.jpg
ActiveSince 5 February 1941 [1]
CountryFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
BranchEnsign of the Royal Air Force.svg  Royal Air Force
TypeVolunteer Military Youth Organisation
Headquarters RAF Cranwell
Patron The Princess of Wales
Website www.raf.mod.uk/aircadets/ OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Commanders
Commandant Air Cadets Air Cdre Al Lewis [2]
RAFAC WO WO Donna Hall RAFAC
Honorary Ambassadors
  • Wg Cdr Emma Wolstenholme RAFAC
RAF Air Cadets marching in a parade "Lord Mayor's Show" London 2006 (295241544).jpg
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]

Contents

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

The RAFAC's infrastructure consists of:

Regions

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

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

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

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

See also

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References

  1. "RAFAC timeline: 1941". RAFAC.
  2. 1 2 "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. 1 2 "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.