Nine cadets from 1st Battalion the Highlanders took part in the ACF national STEM camp ‘Exercise Science in Action’, held at Salisbury Plain Army Training Estate in Wiltshire.
The camp, now in its third year and going from strength to strength, hosted almost 200 Army and CCF cadets from across the UK during the October holidays. The camp consisted of a series of activities, short lessons and practical demonstrations, on how the Army makes use of the wide range of technology it has at its disposal and how the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) subjects the cadets learn in school can be applied to that.
Taking part were Aviemore Detachment cadets Cpl Katie Wallace (14), LCpl Adam Ferenc (13), LCpl Alejandro Trolese (14), LCpl Lorna Robertson (13), Cdt Rachael Blair (13), Benbecula Detachment cadet LCpl Asher Kuzma (14), Elgin Detachment cadets LCpl Ben Hayllar (14), Cdt Curtis Dickson (13), and Tain Detachment cadet Cdt Ryan Saunders (13), along with Aviemore Detachment Commander 2Lt Debra Ennis (52) and Alness Detachment Commander 2Lt Lorraine Wright (46) as Adult Support for the camp.
2Lt Wright with former 1 Highlander cadet WO1 McNab, now with the REME and running the Corp’s stand at Ex Science at Action.
Throughout the week the cadets were split into four different companies, doing a round robin visiting a different Army unit learning about how STEM is applied by each.
The cadets received visits from six different units: the Royal Signals where they were shown a range of communications equipment and the latest cybersecurity initiatives, the Royal Artillery where they were shown Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for battlefield surveillance and information gathering as well as a practical session operating drones, the Royal Logistics Corps where they were shown how the Army is sustained in the field from munitions to fuels, the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers where they were shown how modern equipment is recovered and repaired, the Royal Engineers where they were shown how military engineering keeps the Army mobile – which saw the cadets build a small bridge – and the Army Air Corps where they discussed rotary wing flight – including a walk round and a sit in their various aircraft such as an Apache Attack Helicopter.
Cpl Katie Wallace is all set for take-off during her visit to the Army Air Corps.
Although the cadets were at the other end of the country some of the stands were led by former cadets from the Battalion, with the REME stand being conducted by WO1 Andy McNab who was a former Elgin Detachment cadet.
The week started with all 200 cadets watching an assault on Salisbury Plain led by eight Challenger 2 Main Battle Tanks, from the King’s Royal Hussar’s, accompanied by the Royal Welsh Regiment in Warrior Infantry Fighting Vehicles on a village in the training area that had been ‘invaded’ by an ‘enemy force’.
LCpl Hayllar ready to take a tank out for a spin!
Enjoying a close-up look at some of the equipment on offer.
