Sea Survival

At the end of the Spring Term, cadets from the Royal Navy section of the College’s CCF completed field training exercises to develop the skills required to continue their development.

The senior section visited the Sea Survival School in Portsmouth. They arrived at HMS Bristol at 6.30pm and were given a safety talk before relaxing and socialising with pupils from another school for the remainder of the evening.

Following the ever popular early morning wake-up call at 6.30am, the cadets marched to the galley and ate breakfast before travelling to the Sea Survival training facility. Here they were instructed how to put on survival suits and board the rafts safely. Their understanding was quickly put to the test, given just 2.5 minutes to don the survival suits correctly before jumping off a 3m platform into the water and swimming to a life raft. The most difficult part was safely letting air out of the suits to enable fast swimming. Royal navy personnel were on hand to give hints and tips on survival at sea.

After lunch on HMS Excellence, the boys were taken to the Damage Repair and Instructional Unit. They were met by CO Krueger who is currently on loan from the German navy. He instructed the group on the first two phases of damage control in the case of a hull breach. After the briefing, the group split up into Year 11 and Year 12 and attempted to rescue a ship.

The water was just 13°C, and no amount of forewarning can prepare you for that! Whilst descending the ladder the boys were met by a bucket of water being thrown over them (for acclimatisation!). They were then sent to various areas to plug the holes. Both groups did well but the Year 12s impressed the most. The instructors even said that some of the boys were better than some of the Royal Navy personnel they have trained.

Trip leader Miss Erasmus said: “The boys thoroughly enjoyed the day, especially the broken ship exercise. It was also a good experience to sleep on the HMS Bristol.”

Meanwhile, 24 Year 10 cadets travelled to the Dinton Activity Centre in Hurst to try their hands at sailing. The aim of the day was to give the cadets a full introduction to sailing before the start of the navy section’s sailing programme after Easter. The exercise was run by two instructors from the centre, assisted by Shiplake cadet Hamish Webb who possesses a dinghy instructor certificate.

The day started brightly with sunshine and light winds; perfect conditions to get the boys started. However, after lunch the wind picked up which made sailing a little more challenging. Needless to say capsize drills were practiced and enjoyed by everyone. School Staff Instructor Steve Macpherson said: “Overall the trip was a great success and the cadets are now looking forward to more sailing at Sonning Eye after Easter.”