Page 80 - QDG Vol. 9 No. 2 CREST

78 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards
E Squadron (1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards), Dyfed and Glamorgan
Army Cadet Force
2021... and we thought 2020 was bizarre – 2021 has been just a big a challenge but with some fantastic achievements from both cadets and Cadet Force Adult Volunteers (CFAVs)!
Going straight into the breach
starting with a much anticipated return to parading at Detachments (with masks and 2m separation of course), non-residential training at Army Reserve Centres (ARCs) in Llanelli and Haver- fordwest ensured Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire suddenly becoming alive with cadets and CFAVs and then more recently, being given the green light to return to residential training! It has been a welcome change from the ‘virtual training’ environment where Zoom has really played its part but you cannot beat face-to-face training at the end of the day.
As mentioned, we initially had a return to Detachments where under strict guide- lines we tried to pick up from where we left off. Some cadets had unfortunately
aged out, a small handful were not to be seen but I am glad to say the lions share made an enthusiastic return. This was mainly due to keeping them engaged during difficult times so the
home fires were still burning throughout closures and restrictions.
After the initial parade
nights at Detachments we
then proceeded to organise
the training for the year; unfortunately the Annual
Camp at Sennybridge fell by
the wayside due to Regular
Army priorities so we
switched to a 9 day package
at Templeton Airfield, near
Narberth, Pembrokeshire.
On the run-up to this we
conducted beat up training
on Saturdays and Sundays
at the ARCs so cadets and CFAVs could be up to speed with Skill At Arms inc. their Weapon Handling Tests (WHTs) as well as some refresher training on Navi-
gation and Fieldcraft. This meant that we went straight into our Hybrid Annual Camp 2021 and hit the ground running.
Exercise First Knight The first 2 days were further refresher training and issuing of kit for the Field Training Exercise (FTX) as well as some last minute WHTs and this enable us to then ‘get on the bus!’ and deploy on our 3 day FTX where we had assistance from Sgt Grills and the boys from Regi- mental Engagement Team all sharing their expertise. This was hugely appreciated – thank you to all that assisted. After the cadets saw off the enemy on the final day with a Squadron blank firing had the Water Activity Centre
Zoom has really played its part but you cannot beat face-to-face training at the end of the day
ambush we
at Llanion Cove, Pembroke Dock booked where laughter and fun was abound with Paddleboarding, Canoeing, Canadian