Page 11 - Wish Stream Year of 2016

OCdt Billingham after being released by his instructors for the rst time
alised and explained! The instructional team at the Rhine Army Parachute Association (RAPA) Centre, Bad Lippspringe were absolutely fantas- tic, going through everything in great length with the total beginners, whilst still making it highly enjoyable and fun for everyone. It’s fair to say the day was long and we had taken a lot of informa- tion in, so armed with our revision sheets, we returned to our accommodation to prepare for ve days of skydiving.
On Monday morning we had completed one jump each. We had all hoped to get more done, but various weather holds throughout the day meant that only a few ights could take place. It was quite an alien concept to the group to par- ticipate in a sport that could be so easily affected by the weather, wiping out the majority of Mon- day’s jumps and making it impossible to jump on the Tuesday. Regardless, the team at RAPA worked hard to make sure we kept on top of our ground school training when we couldn’t jump.
It is fair to say that the rst jump of the trip, and for the majority of us of our lives, was the single most terrifying thing we’ve ever done! The idea of jumping out of a perfectly serviceable aero- plane is, despite the training we had done, an idea that is distinctly against a human’s survival instincts. As you throw yourself out of the plane
OCdt Hunt tracking across the sky
OCdt Reeds doing a “backloop”
and begin speeding towards the ground, a com- plete inability to breathe can be quite common. However, we all remained calm and managed to get ourselves under control, all completing each jump safely and pulling our parachutes in plenty of time. As the course progressed we would start throwing manoeuvres in during the free-fall time, such as turns and ips, which only added to the adrenaline rush! I don’t think any of us have found a sport that is in any way similar to skydiving, and it also pushed us all to our limits and beyond.
Our week skydiving was action-packed and exhilarating, a very worthwhile experience; the elements of the sport, such as facing fears and acting professionally under stress, directly col- late with aspects of military training. All Of cer Cadets on the Expedition are incredibly grateful to the Sandhurst Trust for their help and contri- butions, which undoubtedly made an outstand- ing week possible.
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