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Last Sunday, 6 Newbury Air Cadets spent a day learning what it's like to be an NCO on squadron...

Over the course of the day, the 6 cadets learnt how to command a squad in drill, were shown how to conduct uniform inspections and duties and underwent a series of exercises aimed at demonstrating their potential for promotion.

Included in the day was a chance to be the first cadets on the squadron to use the new drill manual, Air Publication 818, which is the RAF drill manual that Air Cadets across the country are now using. This included some tricky re-learning of movements they had been doing for years, but by the end of the day they had it mastered.

The cadets were also introduced to SMEAC, a briefing tool used by the military, and then put it to use in a series of command tasks, which were scored according to some tough criteria.

Pilot Officer Luke Pepperell who was running the course had this to say about the day:

"Today wasn't an easy day by any means - the cadets were learning lots of new things and having to put them into practice while under pressure to perform, and they all did really well and gave the staff team food for thought."

Attendance at the course doesn't guarantee promotion for the cadets, but it serves as a useful insight in to how they would perform if they were to become corporals.