Cambridge University Air Squadron, abbreviated CUAS, formed in 1925, is the training unit of the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

and forms part of the

Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve The Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) was established in 1936 to support the preparedness of the U.K. Royal Air Force (RAF) in the event of another war. The Air Ministry intended it to form a supplement to the Royal Auxiliary Air Force ( ...

. It is the oldest of 15 University Air Squadrons in the UK. For many years it was based at Cambridge Airport at Teversham.

History

The unit was formed in 1925 and initially operated out a runway located next to RAF Engineering school at Fen causeway in Cambridge. After a brief spell at RAF Duxford, the squadron moved in 1949 to a new home at Cambridge "Marshall's" or "Teversham" Airport where it remained until 1999 and its transfer away to RAF Wyton. 15 years later, the squadron was moved again, to RAF Wittering.

Present day

Cambridge University Air Squadron offers basic flying training and adventure training to undergraduates and graduates and encourages members to take up a career as an officer in one of the branches of the Royal Air Force. Student members hold the title of

Officer Cadet Officer cadet is a rank held by military personnel during their training to become commissioned officers. In the United Kingdom, the rank is also used by personnel of University Service Units such as the University Officers' Training Corps. Th ...

, which carries the privileges, but not the rank, of a commissioned officer. Students may apply for an Acting Pilot Officer course in the RAF Volunteer Reserves, with four being selected per year. Officer Cadets are required to attend a minimum of one training night a week during full term, usually a lecture by a guest speaker on an aspect of the Royal Air Force, another military unit or Air Power. They are also expected to take part in two weeks of continuous training during the Long Vacation. There are also camps during all university vacations for sports and adventure training. Periods of intense flying training (PIFTs) are conducted over the Easter and Long Vacations. CUAS is based at RAF Wittering a station which they share with the University of London Air Squadron, and is equipped with Grob Tutor T Mk 1s.

The Hack Trophy

The Hack Trophy is awarded annually to the University Air Squadron for best all-round performance covering flying training, flying standards and competitions, ground school training, organisation and administration. Cambridge UAS won the trophy in 1970, 1974, 1975 (the year in which the squadron celebrated its 50th anniversary as the first-formed UAS) and 1977 (runner-up in 1976).

Commanding officers (incomplete)

* 1934–1937 Squadron Leader John Stanley Chick * 1959 - 1962 Wg Cdr John Eric Peter Thompson * ?1962 - ?1965 Wg Cdr McArdle (?sp) * 1971–1974 Squadron Leader Dick Joyce * 1974–1977 Squadron Leader John Nutkins * 1977–1980 Squadron Leader John Kennedy * 1980–1982 Squadron Leader Brian Burridge * 1982–1985 Squadron Leader Matt Buzby * 1985-1988 Squadron Leader Geoff Day * 2007–2008 Squadron Leader John Monahan * 2008–2011 Squadron Leader Simon Means * 2011–2014 Squadron Leader Charles Kane * 2014 – 2021 Squadron Leader Richard Kellett * 2021 - 2023 Squadron Leader Mark Hammond * 2023 - current Squadron Leader John Rowe

Notable members

King Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

, King of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth Realms, retired RAF and Royal Navy Pilot, trained to fly with the CUAS whilst at Cambridge University. * George Barclay, RAF officer and DFC recipient * Kenneth Campbell, RAF officer and

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

recipient * John Fairey, aviator * Alick Foord-Kelcey, RAF officer and civil servant * Victor Goddard, RAF officer * Gordon Manley, climatologist * Hector Monro, Baron Monro of Langholm, RAF officer & politician * James Peter Obeyesekere III

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

n politician * Nicholas Patrick,

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...

* Kate Saunders, the first female to eject in the UK; aged 22, studied classics at

Queens' College, Cambridge Queens' College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Queens' is one of the 16 "old colleges" of the university, and was founded in 1448 by Margaret of Anjou. Its buildings span the R ...

, from the independent

King Edward VI High School for Girls King Edward VI High School for Girls (KEHS) is an all-girls public school (United Kingdom), public school located in Edgbaston, Birmingham, England. It was founded in 1883 and occupies the same site as, and is twinned with the King Edward's Scho ...

in Birmingham; on Wednesday 25 September 1991, she ejected from a two-seat Harrier ''XZ147'' from RAF Wittering, with pilot Sqn Ldr Ashley Stevenson, later the station commander from 2005-06, suffering a broken leg and pelvis; she was seriously ill with 28% burns; the

ejection seat In aircraft, an ejection seat or ejector seat is a system designed to rescue the aircraft pilot, pilot or other aircrew, crew of an aircraft (usually military) in an emergency. In most designs, the seat is propelled out of the aircraft by an exp ...

was typically designed for the weight of a male; a lighter female would, likely, have more acceleration; she left hospital at the end of November 1991;''Birmingham Mail'' Saturday 30 November 1991, page 1 in September 1994, she married her flight instructor from RAF Cranwell; she left the RAF in September 1995, being medically discharged; she taught Classics at Dauntseys School in

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

from 2006 to 2019 *

Michael Stear Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael James Douglas Stear, (11 October 1938 – 5 January 2020) was a senior commander of the Royal Air Force (RAF). He served as Deputy Commander in Chief, Allied Forces Central Europe from 1992 to 1996. Early life ...

, RAF officer *

Richard Tomlinson Richard John Charles Tomlinson (born 13 January 1963) is a former officer of the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6). He argued that he was subjected to unfair dismissal from MI6 in 1995, and attempted to take his former employer to a tri ...

, soldier &

MI6 The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligenc ...

officer * Peter Vanneck, RN officer * Gino Watkins, polar explorer *

Frank Whittle Air Commodore Sir Frank Whittle, (1 June 1907 – 8 August 1996) was an English engineer, inventor and Royal Air Force (RAF) air officer. He is credited with co-creating the turbojet engine. A patent was submitted by Maxime Guillaume in 1921 fo ...

, RAF officer and inventor of the

turbo-jet The turbojet is an airbreathing jet engine which is typically used in aircraft. It consists of a gas turbine with a propelling nozzle. The gas turbine has an air inlet which includes inlet guide vanes, a compressor, a combustion chamber, and ...

engine * Cathcart Wight-Boycott, RAF officer

References