Hello Cyclone!

Where has the time gone?  It seems like just yesterday we were wowing the crowd at our annual parade and sending everyone off for a well-deserved summer break! Well, as you should all know, we’re creeping closer and closer to the start of our training year and our first night back; the Welcome Back BBQ on Tuesday September 5th.
Before we get lost in the hustle and bustle of the new training year, I’d like to welcome back all of our returning cadets and parents. I hope you’re refreshed, recharged and ready to hit the ground running.  I’m looking forward to hear from each of you that went away from summer training; the stories and the new ideas are always my favourite!

To those of you who may be visiting our website for the first time, or considering joining our program, I say welcome! Come check us out, and see what we’re all about.  This year we’ll be hosting an Open House on Tuesday September 12th. The Open House is an opportunity for the entire community to come get a sneak peek at what happens on our regular training nights.  There will be tours, displays, speakers and the opportunity for new cadets to register.  More information will be posted on our Facebook Page and the Event Calendar

So, how about that summer training?  For those of you active on our Facebook page, you’ll see we were cleaning up across the country with various promotions, awards and qualifications.  Below are just a few of the pictures that surfaced.

Now that we’re about to round the corner on September, we have a number of exciting opportunities to look forward to, starting with the Russell Fair on the weekend of 9-10 September. This is one of our biggest recruiting drives, so the staff will be looking for some excellent senior cadet, effective speakers, to help us pitch the program! The following weekend (15-17 September) will be our annual Senior NCO Course at MackSkimming.  This training weekend will be open to cadets Sergeant and up and will focus on leadership, team building and activity planning.  That same weekend we’ll be looking for a group of cadets to represent us at the Battle of Britain parade in Gatineau.  Can you believe we’re not even into October yet?  In October you have Fall Gliding, Tag Days, a special Halloween activity and of course the Fall Field Training Exercise. More information for all of these events, and more, will be posted on the Event Calendar as we get closer to each activity.

As you can see, we have a lot in store for September (don’t even get me started about the teams).  This year is shaping up to be another great one.  There will be a number of new (and a few returning) faces to help round out the staff; if you’re curious, go take a look at the “Leadership” page to see who’s who.  We also have a new committee and a strong plan to make this year a success.

So, iron your uniforms, polish your boots and bring a couple of new friends.  Let’s show everyone that Cyclone Squadron is number one in the area!
 
Captain Magill
Commanding Officer

Hello Cyclone!

I can’t believe that we’re already into February and that we’ve crested the halfway mark for our training program.  We’ve certainly had our ups and downs; I haven’t seen most of you since before our Christmas break, and that’s certainly not “normal”! I think mother nature has these storms out of her system though, and we’ll start seeing each other on a regular basis again.

You all have a great deal to be proud of so far this year.  You have really stepped up and taken on new challenges in order to continue the program moving forward.  Your dedication and commitment have certainly not gone unnoticed. We’ve seen a lot of changes at the squadron over the past few months, and each of your ability to roll with these changes with patience and a positive attitude is admirable.

You also have a lot to be proud of in terms of your accomplishments this year;

Ground School this year was a great success, we sent three cadets (the max we could send, I should add) to the regional exams and interviews.  All three of our cadets passed their exams and moved onto the interview, now we wait!

Effective Speaking also had one of its most successful years this year as well.  We had a huge group of cadets participate and compete locally.  We’ll be finding out at the CO’s parade just who won that competition

I can’t forget about Biathlon, this past weekend we had 11 cadets participate in the Ottawa Valley, all representing the squadron proudly.  For some, it was their first time competing!

As proud as you all should be to have competed to everyone how strong we are physically and mentally over the past couple of months, you should be equally proud of your commitment to the community in these events;

I think it’s easy to get lost in snow days, cancellations and last minute facility changes, but it’s clear to see that this year has been a fantastic one so far for the squadron.  Let’s find that momentum we had at the end of December and carry it into the New Year.  We’re going to be seeing some exciting new activities and programs coming up in the coming weeks and month so stay tuned…I don’t want to spoil the fun, but expect to see a couple new overnight activities, more inter-flight competitions and maybe even a new reward system!

Captain Mason Magill
Commanding Officer
5 Cyclone, Royal Canadian Air Cadets