Frequently Asked Questions

COVID-19 Environment

Currently in the COVID-19 environment, Cadets train once a week on Wednesday Evening, 1845hrs – 2000hrs (6:45pm – 8:00pm). Our training takes place virtually over Zoom.

Pre-COVID-19

Cadets train once a week on a Wednesday Evening, 1830hrs -2130hrs (6:30pm – 9:30pm) at Eastshore Community Centre, located at 910 Liverpool Rd, Pickering. There are optional activities held locally that occur on weeknights, such as Drill, Sports, Rifle, and Band. We host or attend weekend activities throughout the training year, such as survival weekends, sports competitions, leadership training, and gliding.

A Cadet who participates regularly in the (extra) activities may find themselves coming out 3 – 4 times per week! Cadets are encouraged to take advantage of the extra activities offered. There is something for everyone.

The local Cadet Program with 856 Air Cadets runs from September to June. Optional Summer Training is also available, which is run by the National and Provincial levels of the Cadet Program.

COVID-19 Environment

In the current COVID-19 environent, Cadet training takes place over Zoom. The Zoom weeks for each link can be found in the Zoom tab of their Level Group pages.

1830: Log-on to Zoom Session

1835 – 1840: Attendance

1840 – 1915: Period 1 Classes

1915 – 1925: Break

1925 – 2000: Period 2 Classes

2000: Dismissal

Pre-COVID-19

We meet at Eastshore Community Centre, 910 Liverpool Road South, Pickering, ON, on Wednesday evenings. Opening parade begins at 18:30hrss (6:30 pm). Parents are asked to ensure they are at the Community Centre prior to 21:30hrs. (9:30 pm). It is very important that parents arrive on time to pick-up you up.

We ask that parents do not block driveways during drop off/pick up of Cadets. Please park your vehicle to keep the roadways clear.

1830: Arrival/Fall-in

1830 – 1900: Opening Parade

1900 – 1930: Period 1 Classes

1935 – 2005: Period 2 Classes

2005 – 2015: Level Officer Period

2015 – 2030: Break

2030 – 2100: Period 3 Classes

2100 – 2130: Closing Parade

2130: Dismissal

While we try to limit Cadets being delayed after Closing Parade on a Wednesday night, sometimes it still occurs. The most common reasons for a delay are:

• receiving important information or documentation for an activity or other purpose
• cleaning up after a lesson (more common if your Cadet is an Instructor)
• engaging in an OGroup (Orders Group – this will occur if your Cadet has been appointed as a Cadet Directing Staff member for an activity)

You should always use the appropriate Chain of Command to find the answers you are looking for. On our Officers & Civilian Instructors page and Sponsoring Committee page we have listed all of the Squadron Staff and the positions they hold. We hope this will help to direct your questions.

Please note as the Cadet Program is not the full time job for the Squadron Staff, it may take up to 72 hours for a response. Thank you for your understanding.

A major goal of the Cadet Program is getting Cadets to lead Cadets. This is one reason why we encourage you to find information at the lowest possible level in the Chain of Command as possible. This is something that is common in the workplace. You don’t go to the CEO to ask how to submit a vacation request. As you go through the Cadet Program, and start leading other Cadets, you will get questions from the Cadets you lead. This helps you to practice important leadership and communication skills.

Once you logged in, you might have noticed a navigation bar appear on the left-hand side of your screen. If you’re on mobile, click the menu button and you will see the options. Here, you will see:

1. Squadron Community
2. Calendar
3. My Groups
4. Messages
5. Photos
6. FAQs
7. Summer Training
8. Kit Shop
9. Report Absent

Let’s take a look at what these pages are.

Squadron Community

The Squadron Community is the first page you see after you login. There are a number of things you will see on this page.

1. Announcements – This is where we will communicate announcements for the entire squadron. Keep an eye out here.
2. Upcoming Activities – Just as it says, this list some upcoming activities. If you click on an activity here, it will bring you right to the calendar item.
3. Recently Active Members – This shows who has logged in recently to the website.
4. Groups – A quick way for you to discover different groups. In the future, we will add more groups beyond levels, such as teams.
5. The Main Feed – This is a great space where we as a squadron can all connect with one another. Feel free to ask questions, comment or like other cadets or staff posts. Keep an eye here as well for some squadron wide competitions! You will also notice posts come into this feed from groups that you are a part of. This is useful to help keep all the communications in one place. If you do have a level specific question, please post that question to your level group. You will notice a “report” button on each post here. If you ever see anything inappropriate or offensive you can report it, which will notify an administrator.

Calendar

The calendar shows all of our activities for the year. Currently it only shows our Regular Training nights, but we will add more activities as the year goes on. You will also be able to signup for activities here as required.

My Groups

My Groups shows all the groups you are a part of. Groups are similar to the Squadron Community, except it’s just a space for your smaller group.

In the group pages you will see:

1. Feed – Here you will be able to connect with one another, ask questions, comment or like other cadets or staff posts. Your Level Officer will also use this space to communicate level specific information.
2. Zoom – In this tab, you will see all of the upcoming and past Zoom for your level. You will be able to see the Zoom details and see a count down timer to the start of the meeting. When it gets close to the start of the meeting you will be able to launch the Zoom meeting from here. We will start to access Zoom meetings on our website starting 4 Nov.
3. Members – See who is a part of your level
4. Documents – Find and download documents specific to your level
5. Photos – See any photos specific to your level

Messages

Here in messages, you will be able to send direct messages any user of our website. No more need to find and keep track of emails! You will see a history of your messages with single users or groups of users. You can also start typing in the name of users here to start a chat.

An important note, while these are direct messages, they are not completely private. Just like anything on the internet, anything you send is there forever, even if you delete it. We can and we will be auditing the direct messages that are sent.

Photos

This page contains the official Squadron photos from years past.

FAQs

A list of frequently asked questions. We will continue to add to this list as we get more questions.

Summer Training

This page contains information on the Summer Training program and how to apply.

Kit Shop

The kit shop contains squadron swag that can be purchased.

Report Absent

Here you can enter the dates you will be absent. If you are aware of a number of dates you will be absent, you can enter them. If you enter a date in error or will no longer be absent for a date you reported, please reach out to your Level Officer.

Once you logged in, you might have noticed a navigation bar appear on the left-hand side of your screen. If you’re on mobile, click the menu button and you will see the options. Here, you will see:

1. Parent Community
2. Announcements
3. Calendar
4. My Groups
5. Messages
6. Photos
7. FAQs
8. Summer Training
9. Kit Shop

Let’s take a look at what these pages are.

Parent Community

The Parent Community is the first page you see when you login. It is a place where you and the Squadron Staff can connect. It’s a great place to ask questions and to get information. In the Parent Community you will see:

1. Feed – Here you will be able to connect with one another and the Squadron Staff. This is a great place to ask questions, especially if you’re not sure who to reach out to. You will also see information and other communications posted here.
2. Members – Here you will see a listing of all the Officers & Civilian Instructors, Squadron Sponsoring Committee Members, and other Parents. From this page, you can click on the small mail icon to send a direct message to a specific user.
3. Documents – Here you will find documents that have been uploaded by the Squadron Staff
4. Photos – Here you will find any photos uploaded by the Squadron Staff that are just for parents.

Announcements

This page has a list of all the announcements made on the website.

Calendar

The calendar shows all of our activities for the year. This is where Cadets will be able to signup for activities.

My Groups

My Groups shows all the groups you are a part of. The Parent Community, which is the first page you see when you login, is a group. Overtime, you may be added to other groups.

Messages

Here in messages, you will be able to send direct messages to Officer and CI staff and SSC members. No more need to find and keep track of emails! You will see a history of your messages with single users or groups of users. You can also start typing in the name of users here to start a chat.

An important note, while these are direct messages, they are not completely private. Just like anything on the internet, anything you send is there forever, even if you delete it. We can and we will be auditing the direct messages that are sent.

Photos

This page contains the official Squadron photos from years past.

FAQs

A list of frequently asked questions. We will continue to add to this list as we get more questions.

Summer Training

This page contains information on the Summer Training program and how to apply.

Kit Shop

The kit shop contains squadron swag that can be purchased.

If you are having a problem with the website or your account, please send a message to the Webmaster using the internal messaging system. If you cannot log into your account, you can use the ‘Contact the Webmaster’ contact form on the Contact page to send the Webmaster an email.

There are a lot of acronyms in the Cadet Program, we know it can be confusing if you are not familiar with them. Please find some of the common acronyms below with their definitions.

2IC – Second in Command

The Officer or Civilian Instructor who is second in command of an activity or group of Cadets.

Cadet DS – Cadet Directing Staff

The Cadet Team who is running an activity (under the command of the Directing Staff).

CoC – Chain of Command

The Chain of Command is the hierarchical organization of the Squadron.

DS – Directing Staff

The Officer and Civilian Instructor Team who is running an activity.

EO – Enabling Objective

A EO specifies a specific lesson within a PO. Lesson numbers are shown like: M103.01. ‘M103’ is the PO while ‘.01’ is the EO. Let’s breakdown the lesson number:

M – Means this is a mandatory lesson. The other letter you may see is C, which means complementary. This letter doesn’t mean much to you or the Cadets, it’s only important for the Staff who are scheduling lessons.

1 – Means this is a Level 1 lesson

03 – Means this is a Leadership lesson

.01 – This indicates the specific lesson in the Leadership PO, which is “Identify the Responsibilities of a Follower in a Team”

FTX – Field Training Exercise

An FTX is any activity that takes place in a field. For example, our Winter FTX, Spring FTX, and Survivial day.

LHQ – Local Headquarters

The LHQ is the main building we parade out of and where our offices is. Our LHQ is the East Shore Community Centre.

NCO2IC – Non-Commissioned Officer Second in Command

An appointed postition that makes a Cadet the second most senior Cadet for an Activity.

NCOIC – Non-Commissioned Officer in Command

An appointed postition that makes a Cadet the most senior Cadet for an Activity.

OGroup – Orders Group

The OGroup is a meeting with the Directing Staff and Cadet Directing Staff of an activity to review the Operations Order in detail, to review activity setup orders, and to answer questions.

OPI – Officer of Primary Interest

The Officer or Civilian Instructor who is in command of an activity.

OpOrder – Operations Order

The OpOrder is the formal plan for an activity.

PO – Performance Objective

A PO is an overall topic in the cadet program (e.g. Instructional Techniques, Leadership, General Cadet Knowledge, etc.). Lesson numbers are shown like: M103.01. ‘M103’ is the PO while ‘.01’ is the EO. Let’s breakdown the lesson number:

M – Means this is a mandatory lesson. The other letter you may see is C, which mean complementary. This letter doesn’t mean much to you or the Cadets, it’s only important for the Staff who are scheduling lessons.

1 – Means this is a Level 1 lesson

03 – Means this is a Leadership lesson

.01 – This indicates the specific lesson in the Leadership PO, which is “Identify the Responsibilities of a Follower in a Team”

Yes, it is important for you to check the website on a regular basis. The website is our main tool for delivering communications, where all our activities are listed, and where you can signup for activities. At a minimum, you should check the website once per week.

If you are interested in getting involved with the Cadet Program, you can join the Officers & Staff or the Squadron Sponsoring Commitee. If you are interested in joining the Officers & Staff, please send us a message from the Contact page. If you are interested in joining the Squadron Sponsoring Commitee, please send us a message from the Squadron Sponsoring Commitee page.

Attendance is important for two main reasons:

1. We use the attendance to give you credit for attending your classes or an activity. The attendance is critical for determining your Level completion.
2. We use the attendance to know what Cadets are under our supervision. We do checks throughout a Training Night to ensure Cadets are still present. Additionally, should there be a fire or other disaster, we use the attendance to ensure all Cadets who have attended a Training Night or activity are safe.

Wednesday Night Training

You should use the “Report Absent” button on the left toolbar menu. You should select the date you will be absent and then press submit.

Activity

You should notify the NCOIC (the Cadet leading the activity) or OPI (the Officer or CI leading the activity) for the activity using the messaging feature on this website. These positions change per activity. The NCOIC and OPI names will be shown on the activity in the Calendar.

Wednesday Night Training

You should notify your Level Officer by using the messaging feature on this website.

Activity

You should notify the NCOIC (the Cadet leading the activity) or OPI (the Officer or CI leading the activity) for the activity using the messaging feature on this website. These positions change per activity. The NCOIC and OPI names will be shown on the activity in the Calendar.

Please contact the Administrator Officer, Capt DeCock, CD with your changes by using the messaging feature on this website.

The Annual Validation form is used to verify your personal contact information and medical status and your parent’s personal contact information. The form is sent out to you in September and must be signed and returned to the Administration Cell by the date specified. This is your chance to ensure the information we have for you is accurate.

You should contact your Level Officer though the internal messaging feature on this website. A form will be sent to you, which must be completed and returned. Your request for a Leave of Absence form will be verified and forwarded to the Commanding Officer for approval.

You should contact your Level Officer though the internal messaging feature on this website

You should contact your Level Officer though the internal messaging feature on this website

A level represents a segment of Air Cadet training and is equal to the cadet training year (September to June). There are five levels of training in the Air Cadet organization (Levels 1-5). You progress through each level of training as you successfully complete the required mandatory and complimentary Performance Objectives (POs) taught in each level. You are awarded a Level Badge to sew onto your uniform signifying that you have completed the corresponding level.

To successfully complete Level training and be eligible for promotion, you must achieve all Performance Objectives (POs) associated with that level and sixty percent attendance in all scheduled training during our Wednesday night training.

A Performance Objective (PO) is an overall topic in the cadet program (e.g. Instructional Techniques, Leadership, General Cadet Knowledge, etc.). Lesson numbers are shown like: M103.01. ‘M103’ is the PO while ‘.01’ is the Enabling Objective (EO). Let’s breakdown the lesson number:

M – Means this is a mandatory lesson. The other letter you may see is C, which means complementary. This letter doesn’t mean much to you or the Cadets, it’s only important for the Staff who are scheduling lessons.

1 – Means this is a Level 1 lesson

03 – Means this is a Leadership lesson

.01 – This indicates the specific lesson in the Leadership PO, which is “Identify the Responsibilities of a Follower in a Team”

Attendance is key. If a Cadet has less than 60% attendance for any PO, a mark of incomplete will be assessed for that PO. Additionally, for levels 3, 4 and 5, Cadets, if a Cadet misses a formal assessment or does not achieve a minimum standard assessment of “Completed without Difficulty”, the cadet will be assessed as incomplete for that PO.

Throughout the year and especially near then end of the training year, Level Officers will contact Cadets who have not completed specific POs. The cadet should communicate with his or her Level Officer if they believe that the successful completion of their level is in jeopardy.

Each Level Officer will have a process that will allow the you to complete outstanding PO utilizing self-study packages. You should contact your Level Officer for more information

Rank promotion is a progression where Cadets may be recognized for proficiency in the training program and awarded suitable advancement opportunities. Promotion is not automatic, and a Cadet may only be awarded one rank at a time. The specific criteria for all ranks is established to:

1. ensure that all Cadets who receive a rank promotion possess the same basic qualifications / similar experience;
2. ensure that merit and the successful completion of corps/sqn training serve as the common standard on which all Cadets are evaluated; and
3. ensure that every Cadet is given the same opportunity to advance.

The criteria for Cadet rank promotions are as follows:

Promotion to the rank of Leading Air Cadet (LAC):

1. participated in the first year of the proficiency level training program for a minimum period of five months
2. recommended by the appropriate Level Officer

Promotion to the rank of Corporal (Cpl):

1. hold the rank of LAC
2. successfully completed Level 1
3. participated in the Cadet Fitness Assessment as part of PO X04 (Personal Fitness & Healthy Living)
4. recommended by the appropriate Level Officer

Promotion to the rank of Corporal (Cpl):

1. hold the rank of LAC
2. successfully completed Level 1
3. participated in the Cadet Fitness Assessment as part of PO X04 (Personal Fitness & Healthy Living)
4. recommended by the appropriate Level Officer

Promotion to the rank of Flight Corporal (FCpl):

1. completed at least six months of service at the rank Cpl
2. successfully completed Level 2
3. participated in the Cadet Fitness Assessment as part of PO X04 (Personal Fitness & Healthy Living)
4. recommended by the appropriate Level Officer

Promotion to the rank of Sergeant (Sgt):

1. completed at least six months of service at the rank FCpl
2. successfully completed Level 3
3. achieved a minimum of “completed without difficulty” in PO 303 (Leadership)
4. participated in the Cadet Fitness Assessment as part of PO X04 (Personal Fitness & Healthy Living)
5. recommended by the appropriate Level Officer

Promotion to the rank of Flight Sergeant (FSgt):

1. completed at least six months of service at the rank Sgt
2. successfully completed Level 4
3. achieved a minimum of “completed without difficulty” in PO 403 (Leadership)
4. participated in the Cadet Fitness Assessment as part of PO X04 (Personal Fitness & Healthy Living)
5. recommended by the appropriate Level Officer

Promotion to the rank of Warrant Officer Second Class (WO2):

1. completed at least six months of service at the rank FSgt
2. achieved a minimum of “completed without difficulty” in PO 503 (Leadership)
3. participated in the Cadet Fitness Assessment as part of PO 504 (Personal Fitness & Healthy Living)
4. recommended by the appropriate Level Officer
5. identified as a successful candidate through the merit review board process (Leadership)

Promotion to the rank of Warrant Officer Second Class (WO2):

1. completed at least six months service at the rank of WO2,
2. recommended by the appropriate Level Officer
3. identified as a successful candidate through the merit review board process (Leadership)

There are several criteria that are considered when a Cadet is selected for an activity:

• Does the Cadet need to participate in the activity in order to successfully complete his/her level training?
• Are there any medical restrictions that would prevent the cadet from participating in the activity?
• Does the cadet have the required mandator attendance of at least 60%?
• The number of Cadets that can attend the activity. Depending of the nature of the activity, Cadets may be asked to sign-up and will be selected on a first come first selected basis.
• The Cadet’s record is reviewed to see if there are any disciplinary issues that may prevent the Cadet from being selected.

Selection results for an activity are posted to this website.

An Activity Memo is a document created by the Officer of Principal Interest (OPI) which outlines all of the necessary information about an activity that staff, selected Cadets and their parents need to know (i.e. the date’s, timings, location, required dress, supplies that personnel need to bring, whether transportation and rations are provided and officer/staff contact information).

The memo is posted to the this website at least two weeks in advance of the activity.

Optional summer training is offered by the national and provincial levels of the Cadet Program during the summer. The Camps run from 2 – 7 weeks depending on the Camp you are selected to attend.

To be eligible for Summer Training, you must be enrolled with 856 Air Cadets prior to December 31st of the current training year. There are a limited number of spaces for each Summer Training Program, so not every Cadet that submits and application will be selected. You may apply to up to 3 Camps to increase you chances for selection.

For more information about Summer Training and how to apply, visit the Summer Training page.

You can replace uniform parts at one of our supply exchange nights. There are several supply exchange nights scheduled through the training year, which can be found on the calendar. You must signup to attend a supply exchange night.

A uniform kitting is when new Cadets are measured for a uniform and have a day set aside to be given their new uniform and ensure it fits.

A couple times a year there will be a callout for Cadets who need new name tags. Details on how to request a name tag will be shared at that time.

You are responsible for the kit you are issued. If you are missing a uniform part, you must inform the Supply Officer. A replacement uniform part will be arranged at a uniform exchange night.