Page 22 - Cadet ReviewAutumn/Winter 2020

SWY Wing ATC
A LIGHTNING VISIT FOR
MIRFIELD AIR CADETS
By Flight Lieutenant Peter Doubell
During August the cadets of 868 (Mirfield) Squadron continued their recent international contacts when they were joined for one of their regular Tuesday evening Virtual Meetings by Flight Lieutenant Paul “Yorkie” Beevers calling in from the United States of America.
Flt Lt Beevers is an Instructor Pilot on exchange with the United States Marine Corps at the Beaufort Marine Corps Air Station in South Carolina, working with the F35-B Lightning. He gave a very interesting and stimulating presentation for the cadets about
his career in the Royal Air Force spanning 25 years during which time he has flown such varied aircraft as Harrier, Tornado GR4, Typhoon and now the F35-B Lightning.
The main focus of his talk centred on his present work with the F35 and he explained some of the advanced features which help to make it a combat aircraft which is both pilot friendly and capable of multiple strike roles in service.
Among those features are:
• Capability for Short Take off and Vertical
Landing (STOVL)
• Fully ‘glass cockpit’ where all the flight
information is displayed on touch sensitive
screens stretching the width of the cockpit
• A helmet which is a fully integrated part of
the aircraft systems allowing the pilot to see important flight information displayed on the visor and even ‘through a series of cameras’ to be able ‘see’ through the fuselage to the ground below
He also talked about the use of the aircraft in formation flying, air to air refuelling and some of the types of mission it could be used for:
• Air to Surface
• Armed Reconnaissance
• Close Air Support
• Suppression of Enemy Air Defences • Tactical Intercepts
• Anti-Air Warfare
• Strike
I think it
was a really interesting night learning about the F35 and has been a good taster for cadets interested in joining the forces
In all this he provided a very informative evening about the Royal Air Force’s most advanced combat aircraft, and comments from the cadets all united in praise for Flt Lt Beevers and his talk.
“I think it was a really interesting night learning about the F35 and has been a good taster for cadets interested in joining the forces” – Jacob Stockwell
“I really enjoyed the presentation, I found everything easy to understand and it certainly give me some brilliant information on that aircraft. It made me think about a career as a pilot.” - Alfie Barnes.
“The presentation was structured well, the pictures illustrated what he was talking about and made it easier to understand. It was very interesting to listen to and watch.” - Alicia Dwyer
Squadron Commander Flight Lieutenant Peter Doubell commented: “It is now 21 weeks since the Air Cadets had to close their doors to having face-to- face activities with cadets, but evenings like this show that we still have something valuable to offer to our members in the virtual world. We are all very grateful to “Yorkie” for his time and effort in making this a very memorable evening for us all.”
22 CADET REVIEW AUTUMN/WINTER 2020