Flying And Gliding
Joining the Air Cadets opens up lots of opportunities, including the chance to fly! It’s our aim to get you airborne as often as possible, as a passenger in a light aircraft, a glider or even on-board RAF aircraft such as our Hawk fast-jet or a Chinook helicopter!
Air Experience Flights
And what an experience! As a cadet you'll have the chance to fly with the best - RAF pilots.
Air Experience Flight (AEF) instructors are all current or former RAF service pilots who volunteer to pass on their knowledge and enthusiasm for flying to you. Flying takes place at one of 12 AEFs around the country, with our closest being 12 AEF based at Glasgow Airport. You're shown how the aircraft flies and given the chance to control it and experience aerobatics. And the views from 3,000ft are stunning.
You'll join a long list of cadets going back over 50 years – including royalty - who have benefitted from this fantastic experience. The first AEFs were formed in 1958 and flew the classic DeHavilland Chipmunk which served faithfully for almost 40 years until it was replaced by the Scottish Aviation Bulldog.
Recently, it's the Grob Tutor that has become the aircraft of choice. It has great visibility from its large canopy and is agile enough to allow it to perform full aerobatics. You'll soon feel right at home in the Tutor and hungry for more flight time.
The Grob Tutor T1, used for Air Experience Flights
Gliding Induction Course (GIC)
Our gliding experience kicks off at a Volunteer Gliding Squadron (VGS) flying Viking winch-launch gliders. Your focus, along with others from your ATC squadron, will be to complete the Gliding Induction Course (GIC).
Designed to give you a taste for Air Cadet Gliding, the GIC consists of three levels of instruction. On your first visit you'll be taught the GIC 1. Later visits will cover GIC 2 and 3. In these levels you'll learn all about aerodynamics and controlling the aircraft, first in a classroom, then taking control and practising what you've learned in the air. After you've completed the course, you'll be awarded a GIC certificate.
The Viking T1 used by air cadets for gliding
Flying Scholarships
Prove that you have the aptitude for flying and you could bag yourself a prestigious flying scholarship, much like Flt Sgt Wood has done recently.
There are several scholarships available to air cadets each year. These are sponsored by the Royal Aero Club, the Air League Educational Trust, the RAF Charitable Trust, the Geoffrey DeHavilland Foundation, Babcock Defence Services, the RAF Association and the Guild of Air Pilots and Air Navigators.
For many cadets, these courses are the stepping stone to their PPL - Private Pilots’ Licence - and potentially a career as a pilot with the RAF, the Royal Navy, Army or commercial airlines.
Some cadets achieve their PPLs before they even get their driving licence, so the sky really is the limit!
You could earn your wings!