Blog

In April, Merchant Taylors’ School in Crosby welcomed a Royal Navy Wildcat helicopter to its playing fields. They were celebrating their 103rd annual Combined Cadet Force (CCF) Inspection Day. Merchant Taylors’ Combined Cadet’s Force was founded in 1915, just a year after the outbreak of World War 1 and is one of the largest contingents in the country. The special...

Local Major Attends HQ Relaunch Event 2260 (Waterlooville) Sqn Air Cadets hosted a special event to celebrate the completion of the refurbishment works on their headquarters. Local mayor Elaine Shimbart was invited to the special event to see how the air cadets had used the money collected from various fundraising activities. 2260 Waterlooville) Squadron Air Cadets The air cadets were...

Can you pass our latest military skills challenge? This competition is now closed, however you can still have a go for fun. The aim of camouflage and concealment is 'to see but not be seen'. In the image below a concealed enemy sniper is observing you. Can you locate him? If you can, you could win a brand new Viper...

Air cadets from Sussex Wing ATC have just completed the trip of a lifetime! A NASA expedition, funded by the RAF Charitable Trust, has been run as part of the RAF100 celebrations. This enabled individuals from Air Cadet squadrons to travel to the Johnson Space Centre, Houston and undertake STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) activities. The trip was part...

An Air Cadet has quite literally thrown herself into raising money for the Royal Air Force Association by jumping out of a perfectly good aeroplane!    RAF Charity Supported by Air Cadet 18 year old Cadet Warrant Officer Rebekah Oldknow, who is based at 209 (West Bridgford) Squadron, Air Training Corps, has been busy raising money for this important charity...

Another British Army Boot at Cadet Direct The Bates Ultra Light Patrol Boot, one of a current range of British army boots,  has been specifically developed for the UK military. They meet the official MoD specification for “Boots Patrol (BP)”. This specifies that the BP is “primarily for use where the combat threat is medium to low and patrol pack...

After extensive trials involving UK forces personnel, the British Army has announced it will be adopting the AKU Pilgrim as it's newest high liability combat boot. High liability means the boot will be worn by front line operational troops in combat zones around the world. The AKU Pilgrim has many qualities which makes it well suited to this role. AKU...

On Saturday 21st April 1414 (Crowborough) Air Cadet Squadron will meet at Barnsgate Manor Crowborough for their annual dinner. They will be celebrating their wonderful year where 12 new cadets joined 1414. The heart of the evening will be celebrating 100 years of the RAF, of which part is inspiring the next generation and where better to start than with...

C.I. Sue Hobbs, Squadron Adjutant from 1414 (Crowborough) Sqn invited Cadet Direct to visit and put on a polishing and bulling workshop for the Air Cadets. We were asked to demonstrate how to give parade shoes that all important mirror finish - an important requirement for parades such as Remembrance Sunday. The idea was to demonstrate that when equipped with the...

Quite a surprise last week when Cadet Direct staff received an urgent order from the organisers of the ITV show 'Dancing on Ice'. The customer required a full FAD (Future Army Dress) suit, No.2 Dress shirt, tie plus all the accoutrements for contestant Anthony Cotton, better known as Sean Tully from Coronation Street. Anthony was born and raised in Manchester...