Air cadets and staff from 1220 (March) Squadron took advantage of the Easter break to attend camp at the Defence School of Aeronautical Engineering, RAF Cosford.

Sargeant Josef Pankhurst, 17, and cadet Lauren Thompson, 13, along with a member of staff joined others from the Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire wing on the first RAF station camps of the year.

During the week the cadets visited the number-one radio school to learn about what it takes to enable, operate and maintain the huge range of complex communication, computers, information networks, sensors and detection systems needed to successfully undertake air operations across the globe.

Both Josef and Lauren also got the chance to sit in the Tornado aircraft used for training the engineering recruits and tried marshalling the aircraft on a simulator.

The group also visited the nearby RAF museum, the Staffordshire regiment and the national arboretum, as well as keeping active with sports, low ropes and swimming (including a chance to have a go at the ATC proficiency tests).

Teams of cadets were later set the challenge of designing, building and flying a scale glider with a wing span of two metres.

The next cadet trip takes place in August and will see teams travel to RAF Coningsby.