Author Archives: Capt. Couroux

DCO’s Corner

Welcome back everyone.
What a couple of weeks…..We had some ups: CAP, the 80th Anniversary of the Air Cadet League and the 97th birthday of the RCAF.

And we had some downs: The passing of Prince Philip, loosing one of our past CO’s – Capt Brian Howard, the 104th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge (the last one could be both an up or down, I guess)

I hope everyone that participated in the CAP had a great experience. There was definitely plenty to do and I’m looking forward to hearing all about it.

The passing Capt Howard was definitely a sad note. I’ve never met him, but I hear lots of great things from the CIC members who have. Sorry I never had the chance to meet you, sir.

There are a couple of items to bring up for this upcoming week:

1/ April 22 is the 6th birthday of the combining of the RCSU’s (Regional Cadet Support Units) and the CJCR (Cadets & Jr Canadian Rangers) under the umbrella of the Vice Chief of Defense Staff. Check it out:


2/ This week is National Volunteer Week. So let’s give a shout out to the members of the SCC and also to CV Couroux, all of whom are volunteers with the squadron. Thanks for your efforts. To the staff members, we get paid, however, we still volunteered to take these duties on, thanks for your efforts. Finally, to you, the cadets. Thanks for volunteering to join the squadron. You’re what this program is all about. We couldn’t do this without any of you. Here’s a note from Commodore Kurtz.


That’s everything for now. I’m looking forward to seeing you all during training this week.

OCdt Couroux
DCO – 809 Newark RCACS
“Immortal”

Very Important CAP update:

This message just came down from RCSU with regards to the CAP. I have received the new joining instructions, however I just learned that the links are flawed and that I should expect a revised copy shortly. As soon as I get it, I’ll email to each of the cadets in the squadron. Please read the following:

Regard,
OCdt Couroux
DCO
“Immortal”




Due to technical issues with the CCO Portal, we will NOT be using this option for the upcoming #CentralCAPCruise this week.

The cadets will no longer need an account for the CCO Portal. Instead, the CAP content will now be hosted using an alternative platform. No account creation or sign-up is required.

Your corps/squadron staff have been sent an email with details. They will be in the best position to help you access everything you need to have fun this week!

See you on deck tomorrow at 9am SHARP!

Prince Philip Passes – He was 99

Hi everyone,
Passing along sad news. Prince Philip, Queen Elizabeth’s husband & the Duke of Edinburgh, passed away this morning, peacefully at Windsor Castle. He was 99. Prince Philip was a large supporter of youth programs and established the Duke of Edinburgh Awards, a program which a lot of cadets, including myself, have participated in. Follow this link for more information.

Prince Philip Passes

OCdt Couroux

104th Anniversary of Vimy Ridge – April 9th-12th, 1917.

This Friday marks the 104th anniversary of the battle of Vimy Ridge. This battle is of major significance to our country as it marks the first time all Canadian divisions, made up of Canadian soldiers from all across our country, fought together as one army. Vimy Ridge was secured from the German 6th Army by Canadian soldiers after 4 days of fighting which came to its conclusion in the evening of April 12. This battle is widely regarded to symbolize Canada’s coming of age as it’s own country. There were 10,602 Canadian casualties (3598 soldiers killed and 7004 wounded).

809 Sqn visited Vimy Ridge in France on 2 occasions. Here are some photos from the visit in October, 2017.

We brought KD for the staff. They seemed to be grateful

For more information on the battle of Vimy Ridge and our significant WW1 victory, feel free to follow this link.

Battle_of_Vimy_Ridge

OCdt Couroux

Immortal!

DCO’s Corner 04APR21 – Cadet Advisory Council & Virtual Summer Courses

Happy Easter 809,

I’ll be publishing a new column on a weekly basis to offset the WRO’s published by Capt. Lemoine.   I’ll try to find some cool items that include training, some history, and some opportunities that may be coming down the pipe that you may like to hear about.

To start, I’d like to take this opportunity to let you know that there’s still going to be some exciting summer opportunities this year even though in person training has been cancelled.   Check these options out and let us know if you’d like to take part:

Cadet Advisory Council

This summer, Cadets Canada will be creating a Cadet Advisory Council. This is a chance for you, a senior cadet, to influence the direction that the program will be heading in the future. 3 cadets will be chosen per RCSU to take part in the program. Check out the video below, along with the info link and let us know if you’d like to take part. The sooner the better please as I don’t believe that the spots will be available for long.

For more information:
Cadet Advisory Council – Information

 

Virtual Summer Training:

There is a wide variety of virtual training courses that are being offered for 2021.  With a combination of instructor led, and self paced courses, cadets will be able to earn qualifications, learn new skills, and connect with friends across Canada.   All of the courses will be operated on a new platform called CADET365.   More on this later.   

Here’s a list of what is going to be available:

Qualification Courses:

  • Virtual Basic Aviation
  • Virtual Advanced Aviation
  • Virtual Aerospace
  • Virtual Airport Operations
  • Virtual Survival
  • Virtual Military Band – Basic, Intermediate & Advanced
  • Virtual Pipes and Drums – Basic, Intermediate & Advanced
  • Virtual Cadet Correspondent
  • Introduction to Fitness & Sports
  • Virtual Coaching
  • Virtual Instructional Techniques
  • Effective Communication

Non-Qualification Courses:

  • Cadet Cyber Training

If you’re interested in these courses and would like more info, please check out this link and then let us know.  

Virtual Cadet summer training courses – Canada.ca

More new items will be posted on a weekly basis.   Now, go enjoy your Easter and we’ll see you on Wednesday night.

Regards,

OCDT Couroux.

“Immortal”

Aerospace Club – Bottle Rocket Drop Off – Sunday, March 28 @ 1500hrs

Attn Aerospace Club members,
WO2 Bell and CV Dau are going to be on-hand at the squadron headquarters parking lot on Sunday March 28 @ 1500hrs to receive your bottle rockets. Please stop by.

WO2 Bell will be following up with individual email notifications of what he requires. If you don’t have the ability to drop them off at that time, please make alternate arrangements with WO2 Bell.

Monday Night Cooking

Good evening, Cadets.

As many know there was a cooking club announced and we are eager to start, this being said we need to gather a list of attendees. So if everyone could email in a little message by Friday night saying “Hey, I’m interested.” I’ll jot you into the plans so that we can begin in January.

WO2 Abt