The Commanding Officer Squadron Leader Ray Dunkley has been awarded a Defence Council Letter of Appreciation (DCLA).  DCLAs are awarded twice yearly; in Spring and Autumn, to a maximum of 12 adult staff members, including civilian committee members.  The DCLA is a highly prestigeous and relatively rare award ranked one level below an MBE. 

Sqn Ldr Dunkley has been the Commanding Officer of 1924 for the past 2 years, he has provided the squadron with a level of stability during his tenure as Commanding Officer and provided the platform for the continued success of the squadron.  His latest acheivement has been to oversee eight of our cadets obtain their Gold DofE earlier in 2009.

 

The CO was interviewed by the squadron Newsletter team in September 2008, here is what he had to say:

Please tell us a bit about your history with the ATC and the military:

1962: Joined cadets, 1921 Lewisham Squadron. Only reached leading cadet. Flew in“Beverley” transport aircraft, Chipmunks and gliders.

1968: Joined the TA (151 Greater London Regiment RCT(V)).

1976 Left TA and became a special constable for 3 years with the police in South Norwood.

1978: Became a CI at 1924 ATC Squadron.

1979: I was commissioned as a Pilot Officer.

1981: Moved to 450 squadron, - when I joined there were about 25 cadets, when I left there were about 112 - the largest squadron in the wing.

From 1984 – 1986: Took command as Flight Lieutenant.

1986: Started up the RAF section of the CCF at Royal Russell School. It started with 10 cadets and when I left in 1988 it had 30.

1988: I rejoined TA as Lieutenant in 284 Movement Control Sqn RCT(V)

1991-1992: I transferred back to Royal Russell as a captain for the army section.

1992 - 1996 Took command of 66 (Selsdon) Squadron and in 1994 joined Surrey Wing HQ as Wing Adventure Training Officer, dealing with Nijmegen Training and D of E among other things. Later in 1994 I was promoted to squadron leader at HQ Surrey Wing

1996: I left ATC due to work pressures and went back to Royal Russell, finally leaving in 1999.

2002: Became CI at 1924 (D of E)

2004 Joined CCF at Trinity School as squadron leader and adjutant (whilst continuing as CI at 1924)

2007: Took over 1924

What is your favourite part of being the CO at 1924?

The constant enthusiasm of the cadets and staff, who continue to learn new skills and make the most out of their squadron. The strength of discipline here is also fantastic - and it works as 1924 continues to achieve more things each year. Also, the cadets themselves take a big part in running the squadron which is quite rare in the ATC, which is also a great thing to witness.

What do you consider to be your greatest achievement with the ATC?

Getting so many cadets through their D of E and watching them progress and improve.

 

Congratulations to Ellen Brown, who has just been promoted to Corporal. May she take on the responsibility and maturity being an NCO brings, and lead by example!

Congratulations to James Carr who is now promoted to corporal. He did well on the cadre course and continues to be an asset to the squadron.

As most of our sgts move on to university this year we will be looking for more cadets to join a cadre course for the next tranche of promotions.

On 5^th June on parade night six cadets from 1924 (Shirley) Squadron ATC were
presented with Gold Duke of Edinburgh Awards by Commander Peter
Linstead-Smith OBE, RN, who also inspected the parade. Cadets gained a
total of eight Gold Awards but two were unable to attend; The Cadets being presented with their awards were
Warrant Officer Richard Barker, Flt Sgt Abdul Patel, Sgt Tom Hall, Sgt Scott
Hennessy, Sgt Stuart Russell, Cpl Alex Grover and ex-Sgts Terence Ansell and
Marcus Clarke, who has since joined the RAF.

Also presented were Regional Gold Medals for Discus to Cdt Cleo Savva and
100m Gold to Jadon Roye. Ellen Brown was presented with her chevrons on promotion to Corporal. There were 29 cadets on parade and Cdr
Linstead-Smith, who is also Master of the Worshipful Company of Clockmakers,
one of the great City of London livery companies, remarked upon how smart
the cadets appeared.

1924 Sqn is very supportive of the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme and
encourages all cadets to join as soon as they reach 14. Last weekend a further 15 cadets completed a 15 mile, 2 day expedition as the final
element of their Bronze award. The Gold Award, in particular, is a highly coveted
qualification and many head teachers maintain that it is as good as an A Level in terms of employment potential.

Congratulations to Cpl Kateley who was promoted last night. 

Congratulations to Cdt Bishop who competed for Surrey Wing in the London and South east Region Rugby tournament back in February.  He will be awarded a Wing blue in due course.

Congratulations to Sgt Scott & Sgt Russell who have both successfully completed their Gliding Scholorships. Well Done

Best cadet for August and September was Cadet Brown. She came first with 905 points. Cdt Grover came 2^nd with 843 points and third place went to Cdt White with 812 points. The flight competition takes into account attendance to parades nights, camps, sports competition. Flight competition and inspections everything we do on the squadron goes towards the flight competition. But it was close between both flights the final score was A Flight with 6739 and B Flight won with 8302.

On Monday 15th September there was an unexpected promotion at the Squadron - Cdt Scott was thrilled to be promoted to Corporal Scott! Her promotion is well deserved after a successful year at the Squadron, completing her Silver Duke of Edinburgh's award and completing the Nijmegan Marches in Holland.  Promotion to Corporal is extremely difficult and Cpl Scott has a steep learing curve ahead, however she will surely embrace the challenge and will be a great asset to the 1924 NCO team.

Congratulations to Sgt Patel, Cdt Scott and Sgt Ozdimere for completing the Nijmegen march.  This is 100 mile march in 4 days.  To read the write up click here.

Congatulations to Cadet Scott for winning the best Cadet competition for June/July. 

The Best Drill Instructor (DI) is one of the most hard fought, individual trophies in Surrey Wing.  Each DI is marked on their bearing, ability to control their squad, uniform standards and importantly drill voice.