Date
24 Oct 2020

RO Number
2020-23

CO’s Message

We’re finally back to in-person training this Wednesday! We have a number of changes in our processes that are necessary to comply with COVID-19 safety protocols and these can be reviewed here: SOP – COVID-19 Safety Plan. It is very important that all cadets and parents/guardians familiarize themselves with these processes so that we can deliver the best program that we can in these trying times. This is a living document and will be updated based on our experiences, so please refer back to it often. Major changes will be announced as they are made. Please direct any questions with respect to safety procedures directly to the DCO, OCdt Couroux.

For the next two Monday evenings, there will be a virtual meeting on Google Meet for parents/guardians and new cadets where we will outline how 809 Newark Squadron will be delivering the air cadet program this year. For new cadets and their parents/guardians, this will be a summary of the cadet program, our objectives for the training year, and a comparison of how we will be operating versus how we operate normally. For parents and guardians of existing cadets, this will be an overview of changes that have become necessary in the face of COVID-19. A Q&A session will follow the presentation. If you know of any potential new cadets who might be interested in joining us, please direct them to one of these sessions. If further dates need to be scheduled, those can be done as required.

See you on Wednesday!

Training Night
28 Oct 2020

Training Night Schedule
See the Events Calendar.

CAF Member Dress
3B

Cadet Dress
C3B: Sgt, FSgt, WO2, WO1
C3F: AC, LAC, Cpl, FCpl

Duty Personnel
Duty Officer: Capt Lemoine
Duty NCM: WO1 Lett

This Week’s Activities

Upcoming Activities

J. Lemoine
Captain
Commanding Officer
809 Newark RCACS
Immortal!

Date
31 May 2020

RO Number
2020-22

CO’s Message

There are a few things to keep your interest this week.

First, thanks to 2Lt Nicolescu for her continued education on the capitals of the world. We can’t do much in the way of travel right now, but building interest for the day we can will never hurt.

For those who want to try it out, a cadet from 23 Squadron is about to run an on-line Dungeons and Dragons campaign. If you’re a veteran player or a curious newbie, give it a whirl. I got my introduction to Dungeons and Dragons during my own time as a cadet back in the 1980s. Here’s the message:

“Do you love Dungeons & Dragons? Did you participate last summer at one of the Training Centres? Can’t meet up with your friends because of the COVID-19 shutdown? Join us online, Friday’s at 1530hrs, for Waterdeep Dragon Heist Campaign. “A splendid treasure trove is yours for the taking, underneath Waterdeep” D&D 5E. Some previous experience required. We will begin with character creation, then move on to game play. Cadets only, parent permission to participate is required. All participants will be verified before beginning.”

If you’re interested, let me know at co@809cadets.ca and I’ll verify with your parents and provide the Zoom link.

This last Wednesday, we had two very cool and memorable things happen:

NASA and SpaceX launched the first ever crewed Dragon capsule, sending Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley on the first US-launched mission to the International Space Station since the retirement of the Space Shuttle. Check out the full coverage here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=xY96v0OIcK4

The world’s largest cargo aircraft, the Antonov AN-225, made a landing at Toronto Pearson International Airport delivering medical supplies. A local gaming vlogger captured the whole thing with some good commentary here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lnbyrt5WYng

If those aren’t enough, here are a few very cool aviation and aerospace virtual tours worth checking out.

Adler Planetarium, Chicago, Illinois, USA
ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array), Atacama, Chile
Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Washington, DC, USA
NASA Langley Research Center, Virginia, USA
NASA Glenn Research Center, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
Palomar Observatory, California, USA

Mr. Abt has indicated that he may have some volunteer opportunities coming up in the near future for cadets. Stay tuned and we’ll let you know as we find out more.

For those of you working on the 50th anniversary pin competition, I’ve put together some source graphics for you to work with.

Remember, we’re interested in ideas more than final products. If you’re not very skilled at putting something like this together, that’s fine. Give us an outline of the idea and we’ll work with you to make it happen.

If anyone needs anything, don’t hesitate to reach out. Stay safe.

J. Lemoine
Captain
Commanding Officer
809 Newark RCACS
Immortal!

Date
20 May 2020

RO Number
2020-20

CO’s Message

The experiment appears to be a success! Between the various resources of Google Earth, Google Maps, Google Street View and Wikipedia, we’ve managed to produce a virtual re-creation of our Vimy 100 Trip for those cadets who are interested in re-living or trying that experience for the first time. Check it out at the following link:

Virtual Vimy 100 Trip

Last week we posted about the Canadian Armed Forces’ learning portal for cadets. If you haven’t checked it out yet, here’s the link again.

https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/services/cadets-junior-canadian-rangers/cadets/learningportal.html

If you have any input on either of the above activities, feel free to email me with your thoughts.

We’re still waiting on submissions for a 50th anniversary pin. I’m even sweetening the deal with a $25 Amazon Gift Card for the winner of the competition. That and bragging rights? What more could you ask for?

Anniversary Pin Competition

Look for more activities from the staff and your fellow cadets over the next little bit. There’s more to come.

Stay safe.

J. Lemoine
Captain
Commanding Officer
809 Newark RCACS
Immortal!

Date
11 May 2020

RO Number
2020-19

CO’s Message

Between paper airplanes and geography lessons, OCdt Couroux and 2Lt Nicolescu have covered some interesting activities over the last couple of weeks. Thanks to both of you for giving us all something to work with while we’re stuck at home.

This week, we’re experimenting with Google Earth to see if we can produce a virtual re-creation of our 2017 Vimy Ridge trip for those cadets who are interested in re-living (or trying) that experience. We’ll let you know how that turns out.

As OCdt Couroux posted earlier this week, the Canadian Armed Forces has created an interesting learning portal for cadets. For those of you who missed it, it can be found at the following link:

https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/services/cadets-junior-canadian-rangers/cadets/learningportal.html

The quest for a 50th anniversary pin is still on and can be found at the link below. We’re still looking for submissions:

Anniversary Pin Competition

Over the next week, we’ll be reaching out to you and your families individually to see how everything is going and if there’s anything we can do to help your isolated cadet experience be better.

J. Lemoine
Captain
Commanding Officer
809 Newark RCACS
Immortal!

Date
4 Apr 2020

RO Number
2020-18

CO’s Message

Participation in last week’s L3/L4 Aviation Combined Subjects exam appears to have been good. If those cadets who sat the exam can provide any feedback, please let OCdt Couroux or myself know. We’re always looking for ways to improve.

This week’s virtual activity is the Paper Airplane Contest that was announced last week. OCdt Couroux will be putting out the link information for the Hangouts Meet on Wednesday at 1900 (7:00pm) so that everyone can demonstrate their planes and judge winners in the various categories.

The Anniversary Pin competition is still running and we’re still accepting submissions. Here’s a link to the original post:

Anniversary Pin Competition

We’ll have more activities posted over the coming weeks and are already preparing for the 2020/2021 training year this fall.

Stay committed and stay safe. This too shall pass.

Upcoming Activities

J. Lemoine
Captain
Commanding Officer
809 Newark RCACS
Immortal!

Date
28 Apr 2020

RO Number
2020-17

CO’s Message

Last week’s L3/L4 Aviation Combined Subjects review appeared to have gone well. Thanks to WO2 Gowans, WO1 Lett and OCdt Couroux for facilitating that. I was only able to look in on it occasionally as I was involved in another meeting at the time, but I liked what I saw. If those cadets who participated can provide any feedback on how they thought the session went, please let me know. This is a new platform and we’re looking for any opportunity to make it better.

Following up on the review, we have the exam this Wednesday night. As I mentioned before, this is optional and is being offered as an opportunity for cadets to challenge their knowledge. It does not affect training results.

The links to the review material were in WRO two weeks ago and can also be found in the Classroom resources. The exam will be held at 1900 (7:00pm) on Wednesday night. For those of you taking part, best of luck!

Remember that we still have the Anniversary Pin competition running. If you’ve got a vision, some time, and wouldn’t mind a little bit of squadron fame, we would love to see your ideas for celebrating our unit’s 50th anniversary next year. Here’s a link to the original post:

Anniversary Pin Competition

OCdt Couroux has already posted the information on our Paper Airplane Contest and 2Lt Nicolescu has put out some Aviation Humour this week. I’m hoping to have a global scavenger hunt ready for next week, so stay tuned.

We’re still looking for more ideas, so if you have an idea for something you’d like to run for your fellow cadets, let me know.

Upcoming Activities

J. Lemoine
Captain
Commanding Officer
809 Newark RCACS
Immortal!

Date
20 Apr 2020

RO Number
2020-16

CO’s Message

I’ve received a little bit of feedback concerning the L3/L4 Combined Aviation Subjects review and exam. There is some concern that this is a live exam and that there will be a pass/fail component to it. The cadet training program for the year has been concluded and all cadets have been given a passing mark for all components of this year’s training, so this is entirely optional, though encouraged. There are two purposes to what we’re doing with the L3/L4 Combined Aviation Subjects review and exam:

1. Testing out the Classroom and Hangouts Meet functions for suitability for further unit training
2. Providing an opportunity for the L3 and L4 cadets to challenge themselves and see how they would have done

The links to the review material were in the last week’s WRO and the first Q&A session will be at 1900 (7:00pm) on Wednesday night with the exam to follow at 1900 on 29 April.

If you’re interested in participating and haven’t done so already, please contact me so that you can be set up with an 809cadets.ca email address for joining the class.

Remember that we still have the Anniversary Pin competition underway. If you’ve got ideas and a little bit of spare time, we would love to see your ideas for celebrating our unit’s 50th anniversary next year. Here’s a link to the original post:

Anniversary Pin Competition

We’re also going to be proposing fun activities that we can do over the summer while we’re in isolation mode. Items being considered thus far:

• Model aircraft competition
• “Boots and a Movie” boot polishing and on-line hangout
• Global scavenger hunt

Any new ideas for something you’d like to run for your fellow cadets are being wholeheartedly sought. Email me directly if you’ve got something you want to put forward.

Stay home. Stay safe.

Upcoming Activities

J. Lemoine
Captain
Commanding Officer
809 Newark RCACS
Immortal!

Date
14 Apr 2020

RO Number
2020-15

CO’s Message

It took a little longer than expected to get everything together, but we have our Google Classroom / Meet setup ready to try out. We’re a week late from the L3/L4 combined subjects review and exam schedule posted last week, but that shouldn’t be a problem.

Now, I need to clarify things a bit. When the COVID-19 emergency was declared, the entire cadet training program was suspended. Our orders are that no mandatory training is to be conducted during this period, so:

• Any activities that we schedule virtually are optional.
• Any cadet who chooses not to participate will not be penalized in any way.

We intend to use the Classroom system in the new year for managing information related to our training, so a live test with some of the actual material will be useful. Any cadet who participates and takes the L3 or L4 Combined Aviation Subjects exam will have their results recorded for their level progression. Cadets who do not participate will be given the opportunity to complete this portion of their training when we resume normal activities.

If you are an L3 or L4 cadet and are interested in participating, please email me and OCdt Couroux and let us know so that we can generate an 809cadets.ca email address for you and add you to the Classroom. At the same time, please begin studying for the exam with the following material:

PROFICIENCY LEVEL 3 Aviation Subjects Handbook
PROFICIENCY LEVEL 4 Aviation Subjects Handbook

We’re looking to have an online review session on the 22nd of the month and to conduct the exam on the 29th. OCdt Couroux will follow up with further details.

We still haven’t received any submissions for next year’s Anniversary Pin. If you’ve got ideas and a little bit of spare time, this is the perfect opportunity to put something together. The original deadline for submissions was to be tomorrow, but I’m sure we can push that out under the circumstances. For reference, here’s a link to the original post:

Anniversary Pin Competition

We’re still waiting for information on whether or not our cadet activity will resume after our current 30 April date, but have been told that more information will be coming this week. I’ll keep you informed as I have more information.

If you have any questions, please email me directly.

Stay put and stay safe.

Upcoming Activities

J. Lemoine
Captain
Commanding Officer
809 Newark RCACS
Immortal!

Date
5 Apr 2020

RO Number
2020-14

CO’s Message

Thank you to everyone who submitted your feedback about on-line training. Your responses and comments have given us some clarification on how to move forward. There’s a lot of potential in this, but it takes a long time to get everything set up correctly. In the short term, here’s what we’re going to be doing:

The only mandatory training items remaining in the year are the Level 3 and Level 4 Combined Aviation Subjects Exams. OCdt Couroux is going to be working with Google Classroom and Hangouts Meet to set up the necessary framework for a couple of on-line review sessions on 15 and 22 April and an on-line exam on 29 April.

Going forward, we may continue to use Google Classroom as a resource for organizing supplemental class material and for other functions like quizzes, but we’ll likely keep actual on-line training sessions as an option to be used only when strictly necessary.

We haven’t received further word as to whether or not our cadet activity will resume after our current 30 April date, nor whether summer training will be affected, but I’m optimistic that the Regional Cadet Support Unit will be able to salvage as much of our program as they can from the current circumstances.

In the meantime, as soon as we have further information, we’ll be sure to post it so that you’re aware.

Stay put and stay safe.

Upcoming Activities

J. Lemoine
Captain
Commanding Officer
809 Newark RCACS
Immortal!

Date
29 Mar 2020

RO Number
2020-13

CO’s Message

Another week has gone by and I hope everyone is managing to stay upbeat despite the physical isolation. It’s not an easy task, I’m confident that each of you is showing leadership and setting a good example for your peers and our community.

Updates have come down from the National Cadets and Junior Canadian Rangers Support Group that the cadet program will remain suspended until at least 30 Apr 2020. This is somewhat disappointing, but understandable and entirely necessary if we’re to ensure that COVID-19 is going to be controlled. As a result, there will be no training nights or supplemental in-person cadet activities for the month of April. We’re looking into options for finishing out our year properly if this becomes extended into May and will keep you informed as we know more.

Last week, I put out a survey to see how many cadets have the ability to participate in on-line training. To date, we’ve had seven (7) responses. This is a good beginning, but I don’t want to go down the path of developing something unless I’m certain that a majority of the unit can participate. If you haven’t replied yet, please do so as soon as you can.

Looking forward to seeing everyone either on-line or when the current situation passes.

J. Lemoine
Captain
Commanding Officer
809 Newark RCACS
Immortal!