On Wednesday 20 November, the CCF Royal Navy section visited HMS Raleigh to try their hand at damage repair and firefighting. The Damage Repair Instructional Unit (DRIU) called HMS Havoc lived up to its name. The simulator is designed train navy personnel to repair battle damage. After a dry run of how to use soft wooden wedges all cadets donned dry suits before facing the cold water. Plunged into total darkness, and with the simulator starting to roll, the adrenaline started to race. The two teams tackled the challenge well and, after some initial shock, worked together effectively as a team.
The afternoon involved some firefighting using a range of different hoses and extinguisher types. With loud vocal alarms now well rehearsed everyone tried their hand and most managed to stay dry.
It was an excellent 24 hours of leadership building and learning about both firefighting and damage control.
Meanwhile, the Army Section deployed to the area of Kings Tor on Dartmoor to conduct a navigation and map reading exercise. This included work on route planning, taking and marching on bearings using a compass and relating ground features to those on a map. In addition, the cadets also completed their Weapon Handling Test on the Scorpion Air Rifle in preparation to fire on the range next week.
More photographs can be found on Facebook.
