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16th Oct 2013

Commando Cross

Crossing a river commando style was the order of the day for Air Cadets from 134 (Bedford) Squadron as they kicked off October with an adventure training day.

On Sunday 6th October 2013, cadets and staff from the Squadron built a rope bridge across Harrowden Brook, Bedford, using ropes and pine poles.

Pioneering is an important part of the unit's adventure training syllabus and the day’s training was aimed at revising and building on the existing skills of the cadets and staff.

Working in two teams, one on each bank of the brook, the cadets constructed tripods which supported the main rope that was tensioned using a pulley system. Cadets took turns in crossing the stream under the ever watchful eyes of the staff. Again for many of the Cadets present this was the first time they had undertaken a river crossing of this type and whilst nervous at the start their confidence grew as they hauled themselves across the brook, some Cadets even went again!

Cadet Rhys Barton (14 yrs) Said "This has to be one of the best activities I have done so far with Cadets! I really enjoyed crossing the bridge."

On conclusion of the day the activity was thoroughly debriefed to ensure that everyone’s experiences and observations were recorded.

Sergeant James Tye who organised the day said, "We have had a very busy operational programme for the Squadron in 2013 and have not been able to make our famous bridge in quite some time, it was nice to see our skills have not been lost. Pioneering is certainly something different and building a bridge requires our cadets to work in teams and for everyone to play a part in the construction effort."