CADETS WAVE FLAG FOR RAF CONCERTS
More than 170 Air Cadets from across the country supported the hugely successful 2010 concert tour by the bands of the RAF. The tour was one of the last official events commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain and remembered Britain's 'finest hour'.
The tour, organised in support of the Royal Air Force Charitable Trust, visited 13 venues where Cadet Squadrons from each region helped to sell programmes and Union flags to the public.
At each concert, Air Cadets were paired together to sell programmes to guests in a competition to become the top salesperson of the evening. Then, during the interval, they sold flags in preparation for the Vera Lynn classic We'll Meet Again and Land of Hope and Glory.
Focusing on the London concert, held at The Barbican on Wednesday, November 24, the top sellers were Cadet Gabriella Salazar and Cadet Paulo Garcia from 291 (Westminster and Chelsea) Squadron. Both keen to join the RAF and become pilots in the future, Gabriella and Paulo sold £263 worth of programmes and each received a special goody bag. As a bonus Paulo had the honour of handing a flag to the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton. At the Barbican, the Central Band of the RAF was also joined on stage by three Air Cadets, Cadet Flight Sergeant Andrea Snape from 2050 (Leyland) Sqn on alto sax, Cadet Warrant Officer Andrew Theobold from 2236 (Stanmore) Sqn on tenor trombone and Cadet Corporal Jessica Garrod from 452 (Hornchurch) Sqn on flute. In the audience were five veterans from the Battle of Britain: Wg Cdr Tom Neil, Wg Cdr Robert Foster Flt Lt Owen Burns, Flt Lt Keith Lawrence and Sqn Ldr Geoffrey Wellum, who received a standing ovation.
Concert organiser Philippa Hayday-Brown said: "The Air Cadets help makes a huge difference to the concert tour and we appreciate everything that the Cadet Squadrons and their Commanders do for us. They always work extremely hard and are very welcoming to our guests. I think the public enjoy seeing the Cadets because they are so enthusiastic and because, in many cases, they represent the future of the Royal Air Force."
The Squadrons and Wings involved in the tour were: 1313 (Whickham) Sqn, 58 (Harrogate) Sqn, 163 (Coventry) Sqn, East Cheshire & South Manchester ATC Wing, 231 (Norwich) Sqn, 2442 (Westbury on Trym) Sqn, 291 (Westminster & Chelsea) Sqn, 443 (Basingstoke) Sqn, 1312 (Southend-on-Sea) Sqn, Norfolk/Suffolk Wing, 188 (Ipswich) Sqn, 1359 (Beeston) Sqn, 2391 (Parkstone) Sqn and 54 (Eastbourne) Sqn.
The concert held at the Royal Concert Hall in Nottingham on Thursday, December 2 also featured trumpeter Cadet Flight Sergeant David Warman from 1082 (Brimington and District).
